Those who would increase taxes on cigarettes fail to understand the Law of Demand. Higher taxes mean higher prices which means a lower quantity demanded....cigarette sales will decline or the market will seek cheaper substitutes. I would expect that organized crime will see a great opportunity for bootlegging cigarettes.
But if you were as wise as Obama you would be able to know that the taxes will reduce the number of cigarettes sold while at the same time be able to spend the money of 94¢ times the number of packs currently consumed because the number of cigarettes sold won't change. By the way, our chocolate ration has been increased from 30 grams per week to 20 grams. All hail Big Barack!
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See post 5. Nanny Bloom-wad has a muzzie black-market operation ongoing in NYC funding terrorism.
60% of cigarettes sold in New York are smuggled: report - CNN Money
Black-market cigarettes costing NY $20M a month - New York Post
3 Out of 5 Cigarettes Sold in State With Highest Cigarette Taxes are ...
Large scale cigarette smuggling networks in New York State are dominated by tight knit nationality-based networks, primarily families through blood or marriage of Lebanese, Yemeni, Jordanian and Palestinian descent.
Federal and New York State law enforcement officials estimate that nearly 60 percent of all convenience retail outlets in New York City are now Arab-owned, and with the Arab networks compartmentalized by ethnicity and family ties, the risk of infiltration by law enforcement is minimal.
In total, law enforcement officials in New York State estimate that well-organized cigarette smuggling networks generate between $200,000 – $300,000 per week. A large percentage of the money is believed to be sent back to the Middle East where it directly or indirectly finances groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas and Al Qaeda.
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