This is one way to deal with an economic crisis. Get a bunch of people hooked on one of the most addictive substances around and tax the bejeezus out of it. From FOX:
Officials in China have reportedly been told to puff their way through four and a half million cigarettes a year.Smokers tend to kick the bucket earlier as well, thereby costing less to the state-run health industry. The U.S. could probably adopt a similar policy of "smoke 'em if you got 'em" with Obama as the spokesman since a whole array of social programs are funded through smokers and that tax-paying base is dying off. But since we live in a democracy, you have to give the appearance that you "care" about the people or some crap.
Staff at local government offices in Hubei province were given the order in a move intended to set an example for the rest of the nation, according to state media.
And if they fail to smoke their way through 230,000 packs of locally-produced cigarettes, the officials could face fines.
Brands such as Huanghelou have been earmarked as part of the official quota.
"The regulation will boost the local economy via the cigarette tax," local official Chen Nianzu told the Global Times.
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4 comments:
We used to call them sin taxes back in the south. Politicians feel all good about taxing beer, tabacco, and if you're in NV sex. But, really it does the opposite. Low income people who are hooked on this stuff (especially sex, glad I'm still employed) keep spending the money on them anyway.
I'll bum my cig when I drink, but when I went to the "Bodies" exhibition here in Seattle all of the plasticized bodies were from China. None of them had clean lungs. It was gross. Although some of that had to come from the crap air they breath.
It's still called the sin tax, I think. It taxes alcohol, cigarettes and canned meat.
I may quit smokin and drinkin but I'll be damned if I give up my deviled ham, with a side of SPAM! That's just wrong.
SR,
I figure you wouldn't need to smoke if you live in Beijing, because there's enough nastiness just floating around the air. As a matter of fact, Bangkok feels like that at times.
I just had a great idea...why don't we do a fund raiser and send boatloads of smokes to China?
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