On NPR's Morning Edition today, reporter Debbie Elliott offered a fair and well-balanced story on the effects of the S-CHIP tax increase on the cigar industry, told primarily from the point of view of Tampa-based cigar companies.
Highlighted was J.C. Newman (pictured), and I especially liked the quote from Eric Newman, the president of the company:
“In the days they are offering $25 billion bailouts, we don't want a 25-cent bailout. We just want the government to leave us alone to run our business the same way we've been doing it for 114 years”
Hopefully our favorite cigar and tobacco shops around the country won't be affected too badly by the increase. I know a number of shops are trying to blow out their inventory to avoid an especially onerous floor tax, which takes effect this Wednesday, April 1.Of course, the tax is to pay for healthcare for children whose families don't qualify for Medicaid but can't afford to buy insurance on their own. And who wouldn't want to support "the children". The irony is that if everyone were to stop smoking, there would be no income from a tobacco tax, so Congress would just look to tax something else.Not that I'm for increased taxes, but it seems to me that if Congress needs to increase revenues to pay for such a broad, sweeping new program, it's a little unfair to target a particular segment of the population.Anyway, give the NPR story a listen - some good reporting with both sides of the issue represented.Cheers! - Bob
We had a good crowd at the Hut today: Lou of course, Barry, Joe, Peter all enjoying their cigar of choice, and I had a Peterson Hudson going with a bowlful of Blenheim from Heroes & Legacies in Austin, Texas (a gift from Joe from his recent visit there).
Joe and I talked a lot about the package he is expecting from Minneapolis - a 24" iMac he bought off eBay. Apart from being pathologically jealous, I am eager to help Joe come over from the dark side and begin exploring the world of the Mac. He has pledged to call me when the package arrives next week and I'll come over and help him get it set up and offer some quick lessons. I told him I couldn't guarantee I wouldn't get drool on the keyboard though.
A lot of the day was spent sympathizing with Lou about the signing of the SCHIP bill by President Obama. Although it doesn't look like the additional tax on large cigars will exceed 40 cents, the tax on RYO (roll-your-own) cigarette tobacco will be punishingly high. Hitting Lou where it hurts the most - his wallet - you could practically feel the love in the air for Obama.
I gave Peter some designs for a business card and rack card for his new business, and we discussed some further ideas a little, including a website. Speaking of websites, the Hut's new website has seen 133 unique visitors since it went live a little over a week ago. I spread the word on Smokers Forums and many people checked it out from there, and some traffic has come from my Pipe Smoking 101 website as well.
I did some admiring of some new Peterson pipes Lou got in last week, the St. Patrick's Day commemorative pipe. He has three in stock of this limited edition pipe, each with a very nice grain pattern and standard stem (not the p-lip). My wife and sister (Paula and Julie respectively) were out shopping together, which is always a dangerous thing, so held off buying one of the Petersons, lest we have no grocery money.
The balance of the day was talking about the state of the economy, the bailout, and the environment. Having recently read Thomas Friedman's Hot, Flat, and Crowded, I was able to make some reasonably cogent arguments for weaning ourselves off of fossil fuels altogether and concentrating on renewable energy sources.
There being no more close-encounter-with-a-sports-celebrity stories from Barry, and being 5 o'clock, we helped Lou close up and headed home.
