Posted by
Dakotaranger on Friday, September 28, 2007 1:31:37 AM
While tobacco is
everyone's favorite 'whipping boy' because it's the
ultimate evil. It makes it alright for government to tell people how to conduct their business on private property (Never mind according to Roe v Wade we have the right to privacy and choice, backed up by the Equal protection clause of the 14
th Amendment, but that's another post). And in my continuing effort for full-disclosure I enjoy maybe three cigars a year.
Now
Tennessee has instituted a law if people buy more than two cartons of
cigs out of the state they can seize their car and send them to the
penn for a few months. The thing that COULD violate the Interstate Commerce clause of the US Constitution is Tennessee has revenuers spying on OTHER STATES stores, meaning they have to violate the jurisdiction of another state so they can either get more tax money or ruin some blue collar guys life because he's trying to save money.
The new Tennessee's tobacco tax increase from $.20 to $.62 is nothing more than a punitive tax on a legal item because tobacco is the ultimate evil today and the average citizen doesn't care. (I guess US history isn't taught in Tennessee, our Founders threw tea off a boat because of a smaller tax than this.) The thing is government never stops at taxing just one thing. Since money is power, those in government cravenly do everything they can to grasp all the money they can get.
Of course I maybe looking at this all wrong. IF Tennessee has so little violent crime and no drug problems they MUST have the greatest state in the nation to be able to allocate so many resources to stop 'bootleg' cigarettes from coming into the state.