Sen. Mike Enzi introduces bill to wipe out tobacco in America in a generation

Mike Enzi (R-Wyo) Senate.gov Page ^ | July 19, 2007 | Mike Enzi

[Gabz]

Excuse me, but..BWAAAAAHAAAAAHAAAAHAAAAHAAA!

I guess I phrased that wrong, didn't I?

[Eric Blair 2084]

Within 20 years this will become a $10 trillion ponzi scheme with 200 million Americans sucking cash from it. It will become as sacred as social security and another third rail of politics. And smoking will increase to half the population, including kindergartners.

Excuse me Sargeant Dave...

Sir, it's already a ponzi scheme, sir!

Sir, if we don't smoke em while we got em, the chilrun won't get healthcare, sir!

[DakotaRed]

GOOD! Now, watch as all the anti-smoking groups line up opposing it, as they did in North Dakota in 2003.

Ban tobacco and they lose major funding.

[Hattie]

The Senators have nothing to do.

[Eric Blair 2084]

Exactly. Do you notice how the 5 FR anti’s are notoriously silent here?

Much like the Socialists, anti tobacco pros and cockroaches, they crawl back into the dark when they are threatened (and by threatened I mean taking the keys to their Mercedes Benz E320 away when the bank repo’s it).

The silence is defeaning. Enzi’s bill has about as much chance of passing as Algore does of getting the GOP presidential nomination. The left and the health groups wont stand for it.

[Eric Blair 2084]

I’m not illitimerate....

That should read Deafening.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[Gabz]

Do you notice how the 5 FR anti’s are notoriously silent here?

ROFLMSS!!!!

Do you think we should ping them? YUK-YUK-YUK!!!!!!

[DilJective]

He better not find out about those four-wheeled death-traps because I'll end up driving around in a golf cart! /s

Our drug laws have been pretty effective, haven't they? Those were phased in over decades....

[Reagan is King]

And this is a Republican pushing this? No wonder they’re losing elections.

[mysterio]

And this is a Republican pushing this? No wonder they’re losing elections.

When it comes to statism, there isn't a dime's worth of difference between the two halves of the demopublican superparty.

[LaineyDee]

Thanks for the info! Don’t you have to rotate crops every so often? I heard that it really leaches the nutrients out of the ground.

[RinaseaofDs]

Just the one in my skull.

I actually do have one of the hatchets, plus one of her books, and some photos.

You’ve got the basic story right. It is also alleged she was baptised by the Holy Spirit, and spoke in tongues while in a trance.

I’m not sure its fair to compare her to Sheehan, since Sheehan barely cared for that boy of hers, and only had an opinion it seems once he was dead.

She got whacked around by her husband at the time, and decided she’d had it. Better to compare it to a ‘Thelma and Louise’ thing without the undertones of homosexuality or suicide.

Still, she had a legitimate beef at the time. It’ll interest you to know that her grandnewphew was a stone alcoholic, as was his father. He served in the Navy in the Pacific theater in what was the Underwater Demolition Team, but before there was one. He’d swim under ships, attach bombs, and then swim away as fast as he could.

His ship was attacked by a kamikaze, and he jumped three decks to avoid being killed by it. He was a teatotaler going into to the war, and an alcoholic coming out of it. Never talked about the war. What I did learn I got from one of his medals, the citation accompanying it.

Still the irony of him being an alcoholic.

Funny, how they are trying to elminate smoking, but drinking, well, that’s been tried.

I drink myself, but I’m not sure that was the point of her life, to be against drinking.

[metesky]

America’s two party system in 2007: Socialists and Socialist-lites

America’s two party system in 2007: International Socialists and National Socialists.

[metesky]

The Civil War was fought because the Confederacy was in rebellion against the legally constituted government, with South Carolina leaving before Lincoln was even inaugurated.

We return you now to your regularly scheduled smoking thread...

[Sacajaweau]

Alcohol was satan at one time and prohibition, in the form of an amendment to the Constitution came about. Except it was unenforcable. Half the population would have been in jail.

They've just taken another approach with Tobacco...make a big damn profit with an illegal tax because our jails can't hold 30% of the adult population.

Yes, I believe the tax and restrictions are totally illegal. You can't say something is very, very bad and put a 500% tax on it. That says it is very, very bad but if you can afford it, it's okay.

[Finalapproach29er]

Yep. A new generation of Kennedy’s ready to make a fortune on the black market.

[TChris]

This is odd. I would have expected this from Barrasso, but from Enzi???

AFAICT, Barrasso is more conservative than Thomas or Enzi. But still...

[TChris]

He may be a republican, but he is no conservative.

Well, as badly as prohibition worked with alcohol, it did achieve some of its aims. Alcohol consumption was significantly lower afterward, even after prohibition was lifted. Maybe that's Enzi's thinking with tobacco as well.

I must admit that I have mixed feelings on the subject. If smoking were clearly a decision which affected only the smoker, and if that decision weren't interwoven with the addictive power of nicotine, I would be inclined to say "leave it alone."

But those conditions do not exist. The smoker's decision frequently does affect others. And his decision is heavily influenced by nicotine. It's not a simple matter of "individual choice over individual matters", as I had written before...

I'm going back and forth on it. :-/