# Fuck Cigarette Prices!!!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 17, 2002, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507 "2002-05-17T06:21:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![baltotop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@baltotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/baltotop)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/1 "2002-05-17T06:21:51Z")
:mad: :mad: :mad:The only thing that i have to say is fuck cigarette prices. I cant believe that i have to pay more and more money each fucking month for my cigarettes. I am almost 30 years old and it is my choice to smoke, but does the government really need to raise taxes on cigarettes just to stop kids from smoking. Kids will do what they want no matter what anyone else says. Why should i be punished for what they do? šŸ˜• When i was younger i could get ciggs for about $1.25 a pack Now they are over 5 dollarsā€¦Dam fuckersā€¦ What is the world coming too. ---
**Author:** ![chula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a4c791/32.png) [@chula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chula)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/2 "2002-05-17T06:24:45Z")
Try ordering off the internet. I heard theyā€™re going up to $7.50 in New York. ---
**Author:** ![techchick68](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea5d25/32.png) [@techchick68](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/techchick68)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/3 "2002-05-17T06:35:40Z")
I pay $19 and some change for Doral Lights 100s cartons here in Colorado. (thatā€™s $1.9x for those slow on the break down per pack.) I think that is too highā€¦going to entertain the idea of quitting again, then I wont have to whine about cigarette prices anymore. Then I can become a militant non-smoker. šŸ˜‰ Actually, then I can become a healthier person. Tried it last summer, think I am a little more grounded this year. Quit coffee cold turkey, can quit cigs, I know it! ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/4 "2002-05-17T06:38:01Z")
I can sympathize and understand your frustration about the government adding fees onto your cigs, but come on. Get a grip. Cigarettes ainā€™t babyā€™s milk. They are not life sustaining, they are not that vital. If you canā€™t afford 'em, donā€™t buy 'em, or buy less of 'em. It wonā€™t kill you. And by the way, maybe all these extra fees are to help pay for the cleanup of all the damned cigarette butts I see everywhere. It seems like some smokers think the whole world is their ashtray. (A hijack, I know, and a topic that is discussed not-infrequently. But itā€™s true for a certain amount of smokers. I see them all the time, flicking their butts everywhere. Maybe if the cigs are a little bit more expensive, they wonā€™t be able to afford to flick quite so many. One can hope. :D) ---
**Author:** ![LolaBaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@LolaBaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LolaBaby)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/5 "2002-05-17T06:44:17Z")
Maybe itā€™s a conspiracy to get **all** of us to quit. šŸ˜ƒ Look at it this way: the more expensive it is the more likely weā€™ll quit! I remember when it was dollar a pack too. If it takes that to make me quit, then maybe itā€™s a good thing. I canā€™t complain about it. **yosemitebabe** is right: _ā€œThey are not life sustaining, they are not that vital. If you canā€™t afford 'em, donā€™t buy 'em, or buy less of 'em. It wonā€™t kill you.ā€_ ---
**Author:** ![baltotop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@baltotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/baltotop)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/6 "2002-05-17T06:56:44Z")
Oh you are not my first militant non-smoker that ive had the pleasure of talking too. Iā€™m not worried about the price of babys milk and i do think smoking is important to me and others. Tell me what your vice is and ill bet you that you would feel the same way if the government taxed that too. Ive got a grip and i know how to use it. :mad: Do Not take your frustrations out on me for your dislike of smokers. BTW, I can afford them, thats not the point. The point is why do i have to pay more for them so kids cant buy them. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/7 "2002-05-17T07:05:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by baltotop \* > Oh you are not my first militant non-smoker that ive had the pleasure of talking too. Actually, Iā€™m not that militant. I used to hang out with all the smokers at my last job, because I liked them. Smoke, donā€™t smoke. Whatever floats your boat. Just donā€™t go whining about cigarette prices as if they are overcharging you for some life-sustaining thing. Because cigarettes _arenā€™t_ life-sustaining. > [@](#): > > Iā€™m not worried about the price of babys milk and i do think smoking is important to me and others. How is it ā€œimportantā€? What useful benefit does it have for you, and society? > [@](#): > > Tell me what your vice is and ill bet you that you would feel the same way if the government taxed that too. Movie theatre prices are too high. I go to less movies. Airline tickets have all sorts of extra fees, I wait until I can find a deal. A whole lot of things I like are taxed too much, and I cope. I donā€™t HAVE to go to movies, I wonā€™t die if I donā€™t go to them. > [@](#): > > Ive got a grip and i know how to use it. Now youā€™ve just lost me thereā€¦ > [@](#): > > :mad: Do Not take your frustrations out on me for your dislike of smokers. Donā€™t care all that much. As long as you donā€™t smoke in my house or car, as long as you use the smoking designated areas, and donā€™t flick your butts on the ground, and I have no gripes. Yeah, and donā€™t whine about cigarette prices, as if they have just raised the price on a diabeticā€™s insulin. Give me a break. > [@](#): > > BTW, I can afford them, thats not the point. The point is why do i have to pay more for them so kids cant buy them. Because the kids might buy them. ---
**Author:** ![baltotop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@baltotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/baltotop)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/8 "2002-05-17T07:25:10Z")
WHATEVERā€¦ I do not think i am whining ā€¦ Iā€™m just stating my opinion about cigarette pricesā€¦ And i did not say that i couldnt do without them, I do cope with the situation and have bought lessā€¦ Why must people be so critical. And i do have a problem with the price of insulin it has gone up recently and i dont hold those two on the same level. Insulin is more important. I know, i have to buy it alot and have been hurting on the cost of that too. I can have a gripe about what ever i want and your opinion will not change the way i feel about this subject. Not everything we do or use has to have a useful benefit to me or societyā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/9 "2002-05-17T07:44:29Z")
3 reasons cigs are expensive 1 the tobbaco lawsuit that the states had againts the cigaretts companies 2 The various state goverments have added and raised taxes on them for smoking prevention and to pay for smoking related illinesses on state medical programs 3 the goverment removed the price controlls on most farming crops about 4 or 5 years ago and farmers went out of business or switched crops This hit the tobbaco farmers really hard making the actual tobaccao supply scarcer and driving up crop prices Also theres only what 1 or 2 major cigarette companies left ? so when demand is more than supply they can charge what ever they want , and one has to decide if theā€™ll join the other sheep in paying it ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/10 "2002-05-17T07:55:25Z")
> [@](#): > > WHATEVERā€¦ I do not think i am whining Yeah you are. > [@](#): > > Iā€™m just stating my opinion about cigarette prices Sure. With a lot of red unhappy smilies (which is _so_ charming) and in red text (_so_ tasteful). And with a liberal use of ā€œFuckā€, with lots of exclamation points, and other emotional exclamations. But itā€™s all just ā€œJust expressing an opinion, not whiningā€. Oh-kayā€¦ > [@](#): > > And i did not say that i couldnt do without them, I do cope with the situation and have bought less Well, then stop whining! > [@](#): > > Why must people be so critical. Because you make it so easy. > [@](#): > > And i do have a problem with the price of insulin it has gone up recently and i dont hold those two on the same level. So why wasnā€™t this rant about the price of insulin? Itā€™s far more important! > [@](#): > > Insulin is more important. Thatā€™s why you started a rant about the price of cigarettes. > [@](#): > > I can have a gripe about what ever i want And I can consider it ā€œwhiningā€ if I want. > [@](#): > > and your opinion will not change the way i feel about this subject. Donā€™t care. > [@](#): > > Not everything we do or use has to have a useful benefit to me or society But you _just_ wrote that ā€œi do think smoking is important to me and others.ā€. So, which is it? Are they ā€œimportantā€, or not? ---
**Author:** ![techchick68](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea5d25/32.png) [@techchick68](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/techchick68)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/11 "2002-05-17T07:59:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by baltotop \* > WHATEVERā€¦ I do not think i am whining ā€¦ Iā€™m just stating my opinion about cigarette pricesā€¦ And i did not say that i couldnt do without them, I do cope with the situation and have bought lessā€¦ Why must people be so critical. Because, even as a smoker, itā€™s a stupid thing to whine about and you are whining. Look, you have the choice to smoke or not to smoke, just as I do. But sitting there whining about the prices of something that is very dangerous to your health as well as my health is ridiculous. If you can cope without the smokes (as a fellow smoker) then quit whining about the prices and quit! NOW thereā€™s a novel idea! Sheesh, letā€™s bitch about the pricing but state we arenā€™t whining then proceed to whine about how people are being critical. Good Lord, you need to rethink your battles. If you have a bitch, then bitch but donā€™t expect people to agree with you. Very ummmm, whiney post indeed. ---
**Author:** ![LolaBaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@LolaBaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LolaBaby)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/12 "2002-05-17T08:12:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by baltotop \* > \*\*WHATEVERā€¦ I do not think i am whining ā€¦ Iā€™m just stating my opinion about cigarette pricesā€¦ And i did not say that i couldnt do without them, I do cope with the situation and have bought lessā€¦ Why must people be so critical. And i do have a problem with the price of insulin it has gone up recently and i dont hold those two on the same level. Insulin is more important. I know, i have to buy it alot and have been hurting on the cost of that too. I can have a gripe about what ever i want and your opinion will not change the way i feel about this subject. Not everything we do or use has to have a useful benefit to me or societyā€¦ \*\* Iā€™m a smoker, I donā€™t care for the price rise, butā€¦you _are_ whining. I didnā€™t get from **yosemitebabeā€™s** post that she was being overly or even slightly critical. You can have an opinion on whatever you want but donā€™t post in here about something we should be quitting anyway and expect sympathy from people who were smart enough to quit or not even start. ā€¦and if you need insulin also, you really _should_ look into quitting smoking. ---
**Author:** ![S.Mussberger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@S.Mussberger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/S.Mussberger)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/13 "2002-05-17T10:46:11Z")
The cost of smoking is quite a handful for the society nowdays. A LOT of money and human suffering. If you ask me a pack of cigarettes should be three times the cost of what they are today. ---
**Author:** ![kabbes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e99b99/32.png) [@kabbes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kabbes)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/14 "2002-05-17T10:56:00Z")
I have friends that quit because of the cost. Some did so because they could not afford it, but others used the cost as an incentive, putting the money they would have spent on cigs to one side and treating themselves with it instead\* If it helps people quit, itā€™s a good thing. I hate to see loved ones die in agony and I hate the secondary effects of smoking I have to suffer (including mostly the non-health related ones, such as smoky clothes, red eyes, smell of smoke and so forth) Your habit is unsavory. You can pursue it if you wish, but we will exact a price for your anti-socialness. I have no sympathy. pan \*No, the treat did not involve buying cigarettes. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/15 "2002-05-17T11:40:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by yosemitebabe \* > \*\* > Smoke, donā€™t smoke. Whatever floats your boat. Just donā€™t go whining about cigarette prices as if they are overcharging you for some life-sustaining thing. \*\* The tobacco companies arenā€™t overcharging their customers for the product. They are being overcharged because of all the taxes placed on the tobacco products. > [@](#): > > \*\* > Because cigarettes _arenā€™t_ life-sustaining.How is it ā€œimportantā€? What useful benefit does it have for you, and society? \*\* Does something have to be life sustaining to have importance to someone? Some people just feel better having their drug of choice. Perhaps yours isnā€™t tobacco but it is coffee instead. > [@](#): > > \*\* > Movie theatre prices are too high. I go to less movies. Airline tickets have all sorts of extra fees, I wait until I can find a deal. A whole lot of things I like are taxed too much, and I cope. \*\* So if they put a 100 dollar tax on those going to Yosemite Park you wouldnā€™t mind? After all it isnā€™t life sustaining and it serves no useful benefit for you to go there. > [@](#): > > \*\* > Because the kids might buy them. \*\* Theyā€™re not raising the prices of tobacco because kids might buy them. Thyā€™re raising the taxes on them because tobacco is an unpopular product and they can get away with doing that. Since it is illegal to sell tobacco to minors why do they need to raise the prices so minors canā€™t afford them? Marc ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/16 "2002-05-17T12:08:16Z")
::checks out pack of Lucky Strike lights:: 415 Ft or $1.50 a pack ::knows why he hasnā€™t quit yet:: Actually, when I get back to the States or go to the UK, the high prices really do dissuade me from smoking. Here I go through a pack or just less a day. In the US, Iā€™ll usually ration my cigarettes through the better part of a week. I simply cannot believe theyā€™re $7.50 in New York! My Lord, thatā€™s a bit excessive. But Iā€™ll concede that in the long run, itā€™s probably a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![erislover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/71e660/32.png) [@erislover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erislover)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/17 "2002-05-17T12:20:32Z")
This is bullshit. The government can stay the fuck out of it. I donā€™t like the idea of them taxing something into oblivion. They should start taxing religionā€¦ hey, it ownā€™t kill you to stop practicing, right? Fuck off. ---
**Author:** ![dragongirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b38774/32.png) [@dragongirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dragongirl)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/18 "2002-05-17T12:34:24Z")
I am a smoker and Iā€™m also upset over the raising prices. I always said if they got to be $5.00 a pack I would quit. Here in PA. we are almost there. I have a lot of good reasons to quit, my kids, my husband, my money, my health, and all of my old time smoking friends have quit, leaving me to be the outcast. But the problem I have is that I donā€™t want to quit. I like smoking, Iā€™m a really high strung person and the smokes seem to calm me down a lot. An alcoholic canā€™t stop using unless they want to, a drug addict canā€™t stop if the desire to get clean is not there, and it is the same with me. I resent the government nearly forcing me to quit smoking. I am a considerate smoker, I do not smoke in the homes of my non-smoking friends, I do not litter and if someone is bothered by my smoking, I put it out. I do not like the high prices. Chocolate donuts arenā€™t good for people, why not raise the prices on those too, or soda. Iā€™m not whining, itā€™s just my point of view. ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/19 "2002-05-17T12:44:37Z")
While youā€™re coughing up a lung, baltotopā€¦trim your sig. ---
**Author:** ![kabbes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e99b99/32.png) [@kabbes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kabbes)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507/20 "2002-05-17T13:17:46Z")
**dragongirl** , ever consider the possibility that the _reason_ you are highly strung is nicotine withdrawal, which having a smoke fixes? That if you didnā€™t smoke at all, youā€™d always be like you are just after a cigerette? **eris** - we gotta raise tax revenue from _somewhere_. Why not start with the socially unpleasant that weā€™d like to dissuade? Why not start with an activity that actually costs the government billions as a consequence? Iā€™m not convinced that even with tax revenues as they are that they pay for the cost to society of smoking. Especially in this country, where medical service is free. pan [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-cigarette-prices/109507.md?page=2)