Pack of cigarettes to go over $10 in NY

I'm thinking us PA-based morons ought to start setting up tobacco shops along the NY border.  We'll lose some business to the reservations, but I bet we'll still pull a profit.  Ten a pack?  Holy crap.

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 12:14 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Smoke 'em if you got 'em

Obama signed the SCHIP expansion bill today, and it looks like I'll be paying for it:

Congress voted to cover the cost of the program by raising the federal excise tax on cigarettes by 62 cents, to $1.01 a pack. The tax should have a double benefit to public health by discouraging smoking by young people, who are more likely than adults to curb their consumption because of price increases.

As for the rest of us adult smokers, I guess we'd better not grumble since it's For The Childrenâ„¢ of course.

Oh, and if that wasn't clear enough, make sure you click on the link and read the opening sentence of the article, which might as well include a link to a video of someone singing "The Greatest Love of All" over video of Obama signing the bill. 

(If you don't mind throwing up a little in your mouth, that is.)

Posted by: Sean M. at 10:51 PM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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I hate Illinois Nazis

The DuPage County Board has some important business to attend to:

State law prohibits these types of establishments from offering both all-nude dancing and drinking. Diamonds allows patrons to bring their own alcohol -- a policy Zay and board members call a loophole that needs to be fixed.

They say mixing adult entertainment with drinking can prove to be a lethal combination, especially when that leads to drunken driving. The new law is intended to keep the two separate, not to shut Diamonds and similar businesses down, Zay said.

Um, I beg to differ. After all, mixing too much drinking with any form of entertainment can be deadly, but you seem to have singled out this kind of establishment. If a bunch of the adults at a five-year-old's birthday party get trashed and then decide to drive, surely that's just as terrible, but I don't see you urgently writing a law that would ban the use of alcohol around pony rides. Funny, that.

Posted by: Sean M. at 05:45 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Nanny Bloomberg chomped by groundhog

Good groundhog!  This'd be Staten Island Chuck that bit Nanny Bloomberg.  When asked to comment about the story, Punxsutawney Phil reportedly said, "Who the fuck is Staten Island Chuck?"  As for Phil, he did see his shadow.  I'm surprized ol' Phil doesn't go into epileptic seizures with the thousands of cameras that are snapping.

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 05:15 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Australian Nanny Staters looking to ban Vegemite?

Even with assurances that it won't be banned from the Deputy Prime Minister, they haven't said anything about it not being hit with sin taxes.  Basically, there is a government panel that is looking for unhealthy foods to ban, a reaction to rising obesity rates.  Vegemite has a really high salt content, and that's why it's being targeted.  As to the Vegemite itself, it's basically a spread made of an extract of leftover yeast from brewing, mixed with vegetables and spices.  Oh, and this is obligatory,

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 11:12 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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