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Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk
They always tax our vices...tobacco, alcohol, gasoline. Seems to be wide spread use of these three, no?  I find none of this unusual that Obama would raise taxes on tobacco and fund a healthcare program. Looks like status quo to me. |
Yeah, so-called "sin taxes" have been around for years and years, and I agree with them.
This is NOT socialism nor is it redistributionism. This is a tax on an item that one can choose to either partake or not partake in. I know this first hand - I smoked for 25 years.
But more importantly, as someone pointed out it is typically the lower-income folks that indulge in this habit. It is also typically lower-income folks who are uninsured. So now we run into ACTUAL socialism and redistribution of wealth as someone must pay for the inevitable medical care these people will require.
Also, doesn't anyone see the irony that certain lower-income individuals who'd have the most to gain by keeping in good health also be the riskiest with their health? Or, that they would spend sizable portions of their already limited income simply on cigarettes?
Think about that.