People smoking bothers people not smoking. There has been a lot of legislation to ensure if you don't want to smell second hand smoke then you don't have to. When is the last time you smelled a cigarette in public? There is enough rules and regulations to make sure if you don't want to smoke or be bothered by smoke then you don't have to.
But, the anti-tobacco groups don't want to stop there. They want to regulate your life and stop you from doing things that people want to do. The latest attack in California is proposition 29. It is brilliantly marketed as an Cancer Research Funding bill. But the reality is the focus on the bill is punitive and make smoking cigarettes more expensive and thus hopefully lowering the number of people smoking cigarettes. It also includes significant hikes for premium tobacco products like hand made cigars and pipe tobacco.
But what is Proposition 29 really. It is a tax to just punish smokers. The money is going into state government controlled fund that is expected to be $735 million dollars. It will do nothing to help the state budget. It also bypasses a voter mandate that 40% of new revenue go towards education.
This is also going to create a new bureaucracy in the state government that doesn't have to spend the money in the state. In fact, there are no provisions that any of this money has to go back to California except to pay for the new government workers controlling the money. The politically appointed Board can spend up to $125 Million on salaries, buildings and benefits. With virtually no accountability or control over who spends what where!
There has been a lot of TV adds for and against Prop 29. People in coats telling you how good or bad the bill is. The reality is, this bill is deeply flawed. It is also people a way that people who want to control indiviual behaviors can use when they know outlawing something is impossible.
Vote no on 29
