Deseret News | Hiking taxes on cigarettes isn't unfair

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Hiking taxes on cigarettes isn't unfair

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Fine by me | 3:22 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Fine, raise the tax, then I WILL quit smoking, same as everyone else. Then where will your money come from? And I'll laugh when no one's health improves and you're still spending just as much money on health care.

sinnercal | 3:23 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Minority:
1. The smaller part or number; a number, part, or amount forming less than half of the whole.
2. A smaller party or group opposed to a majority, as in voting or other action.

How are smokers NOT a minority? Especially in Utah?

And for those still continuing to complain about smokers financial drain on the American Health Care System. Have you looked up how much obesity related costs are? Heart attacks, strokes, high cholesterol/blood pressure, CANCER (breast, colon, esophageal, endometrial, and kidney), diabetes, and joints? And lets not forget the SSI checks that early death smokers leave on the table for non-smokers. Obesity numbers KEEP CLIMBING. Smoking numbers decline year after year.
Yes, smoking is bad. However, it is no longer the top priority of the CDC. Obesity is. Where are the taxes strictly affecting that? The sugar, soda, energy drink, and/or fast food taxes?
Lastly, if Huntsman wanted to raise the cigarette tax to something more inline with the national average, smokers couldn't really complain. We would, no doubt, but it would be baseless. His raising it to do away with a tax benefiting the majority is WRONG.

Laura | 3:30 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

How about we just balance the tax? If the tax on cigarettes in New York is $2.75, why don't we increase it to only $2.00. Every tax discriminates, one person talked about how eliminating the food tax would most assist the large LDS families. By the same idea, the tax that is in place now punishes large LDS families. (less that 50% of the state is LDS now fyi)

Also, to those who suggested taxing minorities who have health problems specific to their race, you can't give colo-rectal cancer to another person. Cigarette smoke sends me, and several of my friends and coworkers, into coughing and hacking fits. It also aggravates my friends' asthma, even if we are outside and just walk by a smoker.

I agree with this tax because of several things mentioned in this article. I go to WSU and I see more cigarette butts lying on the ground than I see food wrappers, papers, or any other type of trash, so smoking is not only a health risk, but an environmental one.

Frankly, if cigarette smokers were are courteous as they say they are, we wouldn't have any problems with 2nd hand smoke or littering.

Comments continue below

Tax it up! | 3:36 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Tax the H out of them! You people trying to say this is morally wrong are dellusional!

hate the tax like the column | 3:55 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I appreciate that Doug didn't make the argument that smokers should pay a high tax to support health care. That is a weak argument. He simply says that there should be a high tax to discourage smoking - not to get rich off the backs of smokers.
I use smokeless tobacco which doesn't affect anyone except me - as long as they don't mind secondhand spit. And yes, it's biodegradeable. I'm sure us dippers and chewers will get to participate in the tax as well though. Anyone going to Wyo this weekend?

Hmmm... | 3:55 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I take it from this article that any action of a group of people that has been deemed to be 'bad' for the majority is alright to be predjudice against? Of course you think your right, your on the 'majority' side. Not saying smokers will ever be liberated, but saying they deserve punishments because you don't agree with thier choice is just ethically wrong.

MR LETS ALL JUST COMMIT SUICIDE | 4:31 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I don't smoke i quit the nasty awful habit in 2004 but i still think this is ridiculous to raise taxes for smokers, especially in Utah, our country is supposed to free yet all we do these days are try to find restrictions or ways to tax things that the majority of us don't agree with. Why don't we also raise taxes on liquor also since that isn't the healthiest option either. Why isn't that brought up other than the fact the majority of everybody in the US drinks. And since were the leading country on obesity lets tax all the fast food chains for making us fat. Long story short if people want to smoke and its not good for them thats their own god given decision, lets quit raising taxes on the small majority. Id say tax the rich because they can afford it but that still does not make things right. There is so many areas to raise taxes but in my opinion the majority of smokers are poor and raising taxes for the poor is just wrong.

Anonymous | 4:53 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Give me a break...further testing has proved alcohol, caffeine and nicotine to be harmful to the body. It has been proven that alcohol does not prevent heart problems. My father died in his 40's because he smoked. My kids never got to know him..He was gone.

Michael | 5:10 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I don't have any problem with raising taxes on cigarettes, but I do think this is really excessive. And I am offended by the attitude that any time we need to cosider raising taxes, Utah looks first at cigarettes and second at alcohol (the price of which is already 86 cent taxes per dollar). I do not smoke, but I do think it looks unfair and discriminatory to charge such excessive taxes- and it will send a lot of tax dollars out of state.

I know this from my own experience. I do drink and think the state treats drinkers like criminals and makes them pay for school lunches which have nothing to do with drinking. As a result, I really don't care what the state charges for alcohol- I just bottleg it every time I leave the state- and pay state taxes in Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada and California to keep my bar stocked.

Tax SMOKERS | 6:36 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Tax the heck out of smokers.

Take the money and apply it toward their healthcare--healthcare that we ALL pay for--when they get sick from their nasty habit.

It's amazing that selling the drug is still legal.

sick of it | 6:22 a.m. Jan. 14, 2009

get off your high horse. people like you should not be reporters. and you are representative of why this is a narrow minded bigoted state. maybe we could start taxing medicare people to fix the roads. better yet instead of free lunch hand out birth control and a tax to the good mormons with six or more children. it is wrong to pick out a portion of our society like this and this state does it on a regular basis especially if you drink or smoke. doug robinson is a pompous arrogant man and should not be a reporter.

Accomplishment | 10:47 p.m. Jan. 15, 2009

One of the great societal accomplishments over the last thrity years is the removal of smoking from flights and other public places. Some things seem to be going down hill. Here is an area of considerable progress!

or | 10:33 a.m. Feb. 3, 2009

You can look at it this way, picking on smokers was taboo in 70's-90's but now, people are empowered enough to stand up for their own health and pick on smokers. Because the research is out there. It is dumb to smoke, so why not call it out?

or what? | 2:14 p.m. Feb. 4, 2009

Duh! Attention all smokers! Hello! Anybody home? Look here's the deal. Let's all the smokers in the whole country quit at the same time the same day for the same length of time, say maybe three months or so. Sit back and watch the non's scream about the tax money they lost. Just sit back and enjoy the fun.
Someone's having fun with the smokers think about it. Speaking for myself and from my experience Smokers are discriminated aganist, they are harrassed they are degraded they are bullied, they are blamed for everybodys health problems including hang nail.(it seems to me) but nobody takes cigarettes of the market! How funny is that? Seems to me it goes something like this encourage people to stop smoking for "health" reasons. BUT NOT REALLY! Because if smoking is stopped no more tax money. So to me it's like the goal is not health issues but control by some of others. If health issues were the goal why are cigaretts still on the market? Duh!Something is wrong with this picture!

Jesq | 2:55 p.m. Feb. 13, 2009

I have actually been thinking about taking up smoking, so I can have an excuse go out for a break every 15 minutes. Plus I will instantly be able to make friends with all of the other usual suspects huddled up 15-25 feet from any building entrance. It would be worth the extra cash. Smokers aren't discriminated against. They are given special treatment in society. I want in!

mike | 1:50 p.m. March 16, 2009

come on enough is enough i make 1,100 a month its hard how do u think this will help those who dont make enough encome i listen to all the crap on tv to see that the rich get richer the poor get poorer the economy is failing have you thought that the crime rate will rise because of this tax on cigarettes yes because when you dont have enough money to buy things people steal and rob or kill to get things.i wish that i can stop the lobbyist from giving them selfs a raise and the goverment cuz i dont get one and i try to make sense of all this. the goverment makes the rules for the wealthy and for the poor well we get taxed to make them richer omg stop this let us try to live in peace .

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