April 04, 2005
Keeping us safe from terrorist smokes
Two years ago, Florida lawmakers de-funded the highly lauded tobacco control program. Announced with much fanfare after Florida settled a lawsuit with tobacco companies, and funded by the settlement, the program was known for its creative commercials and innovative ideas and actually seemed to be working, as teen smoking rates started to drop.
Now, the state spends a miserly pittance on the program, because it just wouldn’t be right to put the health and welfare of our youth ahead of the rights of international conglomerates to profit by creating new addicts for a mediocre drug.
So, cigarette companies are free to market their product with no balancing message of caution, but that still isn’t enough for them. See, if we don’t act now, the terrorists are gonna win. The terrorists are gonna steal profits from cigarette makers, and the terrorists are gonna use that ill gotten cash to do evil things, such as turning teenagers into addicts of off-brand smokes.
``There are indications that terrorist group involvement in illicit cigarette trafficking, as well as the relationship between criminal groups and terrorist groups, will grow in the future because of the large profits that can be made,'' the report said. ......``The total tax losses to this activity to the United States are estimated to exceed a billion a year. At the same time cigarette smuggling creates incredible profits for criminal organizations. It's an easy money making venture and where does that money go?'' Boyd said. ``It's lining the pockets of criminal organizations or, God forbid, going to terrorist organizations.''
In Florida, Rep. Thad Altman and Sen. Mike Haridopolos, both Republicans from Melbourne, are sponsoring bills to try to stop counterfeit and contraband cigarettes. Each (SB 816 and HB 205) has one more committee stop before reaching the vote of their full chambers. The bills also make possession of counterfeit cigarettes a felony that carries up to five years in prison.
Similar bills died in the Legislature last year, most likely because some House members were afraid an unrelated cigarette tax bill would be attached to it.
``It was just a mistake. It helped terrorists. We've had a year of imported [counterfeit] cigarettes that slipped through that we may have caught,'' Altman said.
Keep terrorist tumors out of your lungs: smoke American - the costlier tobacco will make you strong and smart!
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