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H.R. 1108, The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act
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Visitor Comments
wonker
This Act creates a Monopoly for Big Tobacco, Raises Taxes, Expands Bureaucracy, Ignores Public Health, and Bans Tobacco in America.
This legislation will allow only the largest tobacco manufacturers to survive.
The bill will increase taxes on Americans by $300 million/year.
It will expand the bureaucratic authority of an inefficient agency (FDA) already struggling with the approval process for, and monitoring of, existing drugs.
The Act will distract the FDA from its core mission of approving safe and effective products – a standard unachievable by any tobacco product.
FDA Commissioner Edwards stated in sworn Congressional testimony in 1972 that “if cigarettes were to be classified as drugs, they would have to be removed from the market because it would be impossible to prove they were safe for their intended use."
The bill decimates family farms by instituting limitless authority to ban compounds found naturally in tobacco leaf, resulting in de facto prohibition
WonkerWrong
The majority of the comments made by Wonker are absolutely baseless. If he/she had bothered to read the Act, he/she would know that it explicitly states that the FDA cannot "ban" tobacco. Nor does the Act in any way create limitless authority to ban compounds "found naturally in tobacco leaf." Do your research before you post!
emily
Plain and simple...smoking cigarettes kills. If you want to kill yourself that way, go ahead, but I agree with the government in trying to make it a little harder. They're actually doing smokers a favor in the end.
Concered citizen
All of us must work together to keep children safe from tobacco addiction. We may not have the money that tobacco companies have, but we have the hearts that react to the pain and suffering caused by tobacco use. As a nurse, one needs to draw attention to the effects of tobacco-related diseases and how it impacts our patients. This is a momentous step forward to protect people from a lifetime of tobacco addiction and disease. H.R.1108, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2007, will reduce health care costs and improve quality of care for our society.
Landowner
Stop eating fat, excercise, don't breath the air, don't drink coffee, what else should our government control for us folks?
Disgusted
This bill deliberately signals out a minority group of people (approx 22% of the population-(smokers) to pay for the health care of a greater majority of the population. Does the phrase "taxation without representation" ring a bell with anyone? Can we say discrimination here? How would you like to have an additional tax on every gallon of gas you use in your car to pay for programs that do not benefit you or that will be denied you in a time of need? Regardless of your personal feelings about smoking, try removing the blinders and looking at the bigger picture. What group is next for targeting - after the overweight of course, for that has already started. And while the FDA cannot ban tobacco, the bill will allow them to reduce the nicotine (which just happens to be a natural component of the plant, thereby changing its structure so to speak) to a point where the cigarette is unpalatable, it is, as a judge ruled recently - prohibition.
George Mason
Concerned C Tobacco has generated 2.6 trillion world wide since the year 2000. 2.2 trillion has been collected by governments. tobacco Cos make about 30 cents a pack as of right now in the US. Governments in the US make on average about $2.20 a pack. Governments are the biggest profiteers in the tobacco trade. Nice try!
Alice in Wonderland
Non smokers should think about where the taxes will come from when smokers all quit smoking. My bet is property taxes get raised - a lot!
Lindsey
Smokers should think about the fact that federal spending on healthcare, welfare, etc. would go WAY down if smokers didn't incapacitate themselves by smoking and developing one of many smoking-related diseases. Tax revenue will go down, but so will millions of death as well as the need for tax money.
Alice in la la land
Alice - Property taxes might get raised, but health care costs might go down. Then the country won't have to spend so much money on Medicaid/Medicare because less people smoke.
Fastrunner
The costs of tobacco use are much greater than the tax benefits. Since smoking is primarily a habit of low income groups, the public pays for sick and dying smokers treatments through increased medicaid and medicare costs.
FDACan'tHandleIt
WonkerWroge, The bill would actually allow for states to ban the sales of tobacco in there state. I'm all for NOT selling tobacco to kids, lowering taxes etc, but the bottom line is that the FDA does not have the means to oversee and carry out a task on this proportion. You also have to consider the store owners who sell tobacco, it is a significant part of there sales, it would hurt them, their employees and community.
Spartan
People talk about health care cost going down etc but cig taxes fund so many state and federal projects, if sales of tobacco go down then the gen pop would begin to pay more taxes to cover up for the loss. It's about the benjamins baby!
Marjorie Miller
Isn't it funny they care more about complete record keeping on every cigarette sold, and aren't worried at all about auditing the voting system. See http://votebankaccount.com/TimeTracker/selfRecount.aspx
for a self-check recount. Vote these clowns out of office. Get a Vote Account and track your votes. Soon to be updated and extended to general election erector set.
Do you know where your vote is?
Deb
I like land owners response, yep, they forgot why they are there, ignore the constitution, too big, produce NOTHING. Bunch of criminals. And WASTE our money.
Healthy
What I like about this bill is that it will give the FDA authority to require that cigarettes be labeled with their ingredients. I want to see the nicotine content and ingredients listed on every pack of cigarettes. Then consumers can make an INFORMED choice about whether and what to smoke.
Martin
I hate smoking and being around those who smoke. However, I don't feel that anyone, ESPECIALLY THE GOVERNMENT, has the right to tell them they can't smoke. This is just another step towards an all out ban on cigarettes. Many tobacco companies won't be able to keep up with these regulations and they'll go under. Otherwise prices will have to be raised, less people will smoke, and there goes all of the cigarette tax money.
For Christ sake just leave us alone!
pipesmoke
The decision to smoke or not should be an individual and personal decision, and whatever consequences of that decision must be accepted by that individual----------and government at ALL levels should STAY THE HELL OUT OF THE PROCESS!!!!!!!!
Dezzrt_Rider
I smoked my entire adult life up until 6 months ago when I decided to quit. The government both local and federal is in on the take with tobacco. They have created a public enemy (a smoker) and have continued to tax tobacco at ridiculous levels. Cigarettes in Phoenix AZ are over $6.00/pk. in many locations. This was the result of a local tax levy about 2 year ago. All the non-smoking public (a majority) votes for the taxes. So the govenment has a clever way to get more tax money by having one sector of the voting public to raise taxes on another sector of the voting public. Nice - huh? Just think what they may come up with next. Maybe it will affect you next time and you will be the enemy. Heu everyone, gas is about at $4.00/Gal. Food prices are sky-rocketing. The banking, housing, and several other industries are ready to collapse. Maybe its time the government start keeping their hands out of everyone's pockets. We can't afford the government any longer.
Allie
If smokers quit they actually cost MORE because they live longer - it's way cheaper to treat lung cancer til death than it is to have another 40 years of medical bills with age related problems. I'm in healthcare, I know. Most citizens have private insurance, the public isn't paying for it. If we got rid of the illegals there would be plenty of healthcare dollars for US citizens. This is no different than Prohibition, when people wake up to gov't interference they'll repeal stuff. The framers of Prohibition never thought it could happen, but it did. And like the DC gun ban, people wake up and fight back against a gov't that tries to be a nanny-state -- ever heard of Russia or China? And yes, you all will have to make up the tax loss. MD did a public smoking ban - and way upped the taxes. Everyone goes to other states to buy cigs at half the price and MD lost so much tax revenue they are operating in the red - again. Citizens didn't stop smoking, the state admits that.
RebelBoxer
This is just another loop hole for the crooked politicians to line their pockets with gold. If Congress is given the authority to "terminate tobacco sales", as stated in this Bill, you can bet your sweet butt they will coerce these companines to bow down to there request for "funding" this and that. Wake up America!! We are being robed every minute of every day by these politicians. They "tweak" these Bills so they can extort at will. I, personally, am mad as hell and won't take it anymore. Retired USAF
Martin
This bill would no doubt incur extra costs on the tobacco industry, drive up cigarette prices, cause more individuals to stop smoking, and reduce revenues from excise taxes. This is blatant contempt for the tobacco industry and as long as I'm paying for it (with taxes) I'd sooner approve of an all out ban and subsidizing nicotine patches.