Sin Taxes

  • Thread starter Thread starter Michaelo
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
Marfran said:
I like what you call it: the dumb-dumb tax!!! Right on!!!
I am very dismayed that we are still manufacturing cigarettes however. I don’t think that anyone can argue that they have one ounce of good in them–people who smoke them are well aware of the risks, but continue to smoke because they are addicted to them. Why are we letting these companies continue to make them??? And how does this affect health care costs for everyone, including the non-smokers?

And alcohol–I know it’s legal but so many people are injured by it, including people and children who don’t actually drink it–alcohol related automobile accidents, alcoholism, etc.

I don’t play the lottery. I think it’s a stupid waste of money. They tax that too???

Maybe we should tax to the max all these hazardous (cigarettes, alcohol) or stupid (lottery) items. If cigarettes are too expensive maybe that will help people give them up and the companies close their operations.

I shouldn’t speak about the lottery because I don’t know anything about it. Abuse of alcohol and the destruction it causes, are of moral/ethical concern. I suppose that if alcohol were so overpriced and taxed people would find something else to abuse that’s possibly worse.
Click to expand...
I agree with you on the cig thing. I am absolutely against the evil companies who make them. The cigs they make are no good and filled with chemical and many carcinogens that do not come from the tobacco plants alone (I grow tobacco so I know this). The government is corrupt, they don’t care about people’s health otherwise it would illegal to buy cigs. They want the money that smokers bring in and unfortunately for them, they running out of smokers. Besides I’m sure President Hussein needs a little extra cash to help our debt he put us in. One good thing that the taxes have done is that it does encourage them to quit or grown their own tobacco, which I am a huge advocate of. BTW home grown tobacco isn’t addictive either so, it can help smokers quit if they need to.

Alcohol kills many, but it does have some health benefits. It’s also very fun to make it and the different drinks too which can be responsible uses. I think things are fine the way they are as far as legality and taxes go.

They don’t tax lotto at purchase. When I buy tickets it’s the price it’s the price you see on the label. They come in 1,2,3,5,7,10, and 20 dollar tickets for the scratch off’s. The drawings depend on how much you spend. Usually most if not all picks are a minimum of 1 dollar. You are asked pay taxes if your winnings are over a certain amount. It all varies from state to state, but I know it’s more than $600. For the big games, you’ll definitely need to pay boys down at the IRS(usually 28-35%). Why do you think lotto stupid? Most states give a large sum of it to schools/college scholarship and education (unless your against education too). I hope you’re not, because I would really love a scholarship. True it’s a form of gambling and can be abused can be abused, but it also can be very fun and benefits many people too
 
Marfran said:
No, I am not. But it is so frustrating to see people hurt by it. I don’t know what the answer is. Innocent children should not have to die because some guy couldn’t keep his drinking in check. I support Mothers Against Drunk Drivers.
Click to expand...
I agree with that. Every Christmas I am reminded a Sue. She was an RN that I knew. On Christmas day in 1991 she was on her way to work in the ER at 6AM when she was hit and killed by a drunk driver leaving her 18, 14, & 8 year old children without a mother. He got 2 years for vehicular manslaughter.

There are also parents who get drunk and then abuse their families in a drunken rage.

There is a lot of hurt that comes from alcohol. Unfortunately you cannot simply outlaw it because that unleashes an even worse evil on society. So, education is the means of controlling this beast.
 
Marfran said:
Yes it can. You have a few too many drinks, and you get in your car and you run down a pedestrian or have a head-on collision with another vehicle. Or you are an alcoholic and you have a drink and you are negligent with your children because of the drink, or are abusive to your spouse, or you make an error at work because you had a few swigs from that bottle in your desk drawer…
Click to expand...
The alcohol is not the problem in any of these scenarios, it is the person consuming it. I am reminded of the adage, guns don’t kill people – people kill people. I think it applies here as well.

When you drink don’t drive, if you like bars walk, take a cab, or have a designated driver.

If you’re an alcoholic don’t drink, if you’re an abusive alcoholic you should be in jail.

If you’re taking swigs form the bottle in your desk while you’re at work then you really shouldn’t have a job.
 
Drawmack said:
The alcohol is not the problem in any of these scenarios, it is the person consuming it. I am reminded of the adage, guns don’t kill people – people kill people. I think it applies here as well.

When you drink don’t drive, if you like bars walk, take a cab, or have a designated driver.

If you’re an alcoholic don’t drink, if you’re an abusive alcoholic you should be in jail.

If you’re taking swigs form the bottle in your desk while you’re at work then you really shouldn’t have a job.
Click to expand...
Yes, but these people can’t control themselves or police themselves. They insist that they will drive, they’re not “too” intoxicated. They aren’t going to leave their car there and take a cab. How will they get their car in the morning? So they get behind the wheel and get in an accident and kill someone. And it is completely avoidable. Alcoholic beverages in themselves are not evil, but the over-consumption and subsequent behavior is. I don’t know what the answer is. But it’s a shame when an innocent person pays the price for someone else’s indiscretion.
 
Marfran said:
Yes, but these people can’t control themselves or police themselves. They insist that they will drive, they’re not “too” intoxicated. They aren’t going to leave their car there and take a cab. How will they get their car in the morning? So they get behind the wheel and get in an accident and kill someone. And it is completely avoidable. Alcoholic beverages in themselves are not evil, but the over-consumption and subsequent behavior is. I don’t know what the answer is. But it’s a shame when an innocent person pays the price for someone else’s indiscretion.
Click to expand...
And everyone handles alcohol differently. 20 years ago at a bar up at college I drank 3 pitchers of beer in a couple hours and drove home fine, and no hanger over. While my roomate drank 3 of the same brand I did and had to be carried out by 2 lovely young ladies and he was hungover the rest of the weekend. Back then I was only 140 lbs also. People have to have a little self conscousness and know what they can handle. I know now I couldn’t repeat what I did that night because of hypoglycemia.
 
Marfran said:
Yes, but these people can’t control themselves or police themselves. They insist that they will drive, they’re not “too” intoxicated. They aren’t going to leave their car there and take a cab. How will they get their car in the morning? So they get behind the wheel and get in an accident and kill someone. And it is completely avoidable. Alcoholic beverages in themselves are not evil, but the over-consumption and subsequent behavior is. I don’t know what the answer is. But it’s a shame when an innocent person pays the price for someone else’s indiscretion.
Click to expand...
The town where I went to college had a great means of this. It was co-sponsored by MADD and SADD, it was called have your first drink on us. By the entrance to every bar on Friday and Saturday night a table was set up, you would sign a paper and give them your car keys. They would then give you a chip for your first drink. When you were ready to leave they took you home, returned your car keys to you at your door and provided you with a cab voucher for the next morning. In the first six months after this was implemented incidents of drunk driving decreased by 60% and accidents due to drunk driving were cut by 70% in the town. If you weren’t driving they would provide you with a free drink and a ride home anyway. If you were a designated driver they would give you a wrist band and then the bar tender wouldn’t serve you alcoholic beverages and they would pick up your tab (including food) for the entire night.
 
Drawmack said:
I agree with that. Every Christmas I am reminded a Sue. She was an RN that I knew. On Christmas day in 1991 she was on her way to work in the ER at 6AM when she was hit and killed by a drunk driver leaving her 18, 14, & 8 year old children without a mother. He got 2 years for vehicular manslaughter.

There are also parents who get drunk and then abuse their families in a drunken rage.

There is a lot of hurt that comes from alcohol. Unfortunately you cannot simply outlaw it because that unleashes an even worse evil on society. So, education is the means of controlling this beast.
Click to expand...
2 years for leaving 3 children without a mother. This is so sad.

Education is the means of controlling this beast? I don’t know, doesn’t seem to be working. Everytime you open the paper or turn on the news they are talking about another alcohol related crash.
 
Drawmack said:
The alcohol is not the problem in any of these scenarios, it is the person consuming it. I am reminded of the adage, guns don’t kill people – people kill people. I think it applies here as well.

When you drink don’t drive, if you like bars walk, take a cab, or have a designated driver.

If you’re an alcoholic don’t drink, if you’re an abusive alcoholic you should be in jail.

If you’re taking swigs form the bottle in your desk while you’re at work then you really shouldn’t have a job.
Click to expand...
Some people literally cannot control their actions…they are PHYSICALLY addicted, feel completely normal, like they can function normally. They do not “feel” drunk. In fact, in many ways, even to other people, they look and act “normally”. I personally know someone like this…he is an admitted alcoholic who in is “prime” could put away 8-10 whiskeys in the late afternoons at happy hour after a full day at work. He would then get in a car and drive home. He looked and acted “normal”. He was recently stopped for a vehicle taillight out, and was subsequently arrested for a DWI. His BAC was 0.29. The officer who tested him had him retested 3 times, because he could not believe this “normal acting, sounding, and walking” person was so far over the limit. What made him check for BAC in the first place was the eye movement thing…he could not hold his eyes straight.
 
Marfran said:
Michaelo: are you going to tell us your position on sin taxes?
Click to expand...
If a product presents a grave short term or foreseeable long term danger to citizens, then I believe a sin tax of appropriate magnitude should exist to help counteract the adverse effects.

I know that statement involves many subjective terms, but I think you understand what I mean.
 
Catholic90 said:
Some people literally cannot control their actions…they are PHYSICALLY addicted, feel completely normal, like they can function normally. They do not “feel” drunk. In fact, in many ways, even to other people, they look and act “normally”. I personally know someone like this…he is an admitted alcoholic who in is “prime” could put away 8-10 whiskeys in the late afternoons at happy hour after a full day at work. He would then get in a car and drive home. He looked and acted “normal”. He was recently stopped for a vehicle taillight out, and was subsequently arrested for a DWI. His BAC was 0.29. The officer who tested him had him retested 3 times, because he could not believe this “normal acting, sounding, and walking” person was so far over the limit. What made him check for BAC in the first place was the eye movement thing…he could not hold his eyes straight.
Click to expand...
Very true, some few people especially guys can hold their liquor pretty good, but that not indication that they are okay to drive.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top