Here's what I don't get, things got nasty when Pataki tried to collect these taxes, and the state of New York caved and quit collecting, so why the hell are they going to try this again?  Is the state going to do whatever is necessary to collect these cigarette taxes?

I doubt it, they'll probably cave like last time, because they aren't going to have it in them to take the reservations on.  The folks on the reservations know that, why New York is trying to collect these taxes is beyond me, this'll only end in embarrassment for the state. 

New York is losing a ton of tax money on tobacco products because people who smoke found a way to beat the system in the form of tax free tobacco from the reservations.   So here's what I don't get, why doesn't New York try lowering the taxes on tobacco instead of trying to take on the reservations, which will only lead to embarrassment? 

Oh, I mean I get it, the demagoguery, shrill screeching and "Won't someone pleeeeease think of the children?"-ing would be more than anyone could bear, but I still don't get it.  Maybe by offering a slightly less obscene tax on tobacco, the state might get some people back to buying from their 7-11 instead of going through the hassle of buying from a reservation.  In any case, sounds like they didn't learn their lesson from last time. 

New York can't have it both ways, they either need to definitively crack down on the reservations and enforce the tax, or admit they don't have it in them to do that and lower the tobacco taxes to make the hassle of going to a reservation not worth it.  Or they'll continue to flail around haplessly and incompetently as they are now.

Posted by: doubleplusundead at 11:45 AM | Comments (22) | Add Comment
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