For several years  now, most of South Carolina’s media - much of it liberal, most of the rest evangelical nanny-state - has been pushing hard to raise this state’s cigarette tax... not just a little, not just to make it close or slightly higher than surrounding states, but DRAMATICALLY. Many antis in the state legislature, most of them Democrats but some of them - pardon my venom - worthless Republicans, have also been pushing this as well. Without your action, their dream of taxing a minority to death will come true.

I don’t rightly know what happened to Bobby Harrell, SC House Republican Leader. Up until last spring he was a reliable conservative Republican. Then, last summer - I don’t know - maybe he was bribed by anti, he took bad counsel, he started to lose his mind (Think Mayor Hallman of Mount Pleasant, who was against bans for decades, then suddenly supported one, then revealed soon after he had Alzheimer's) or the simple fact that YOU don’t speak up - Harrell announced his support for a 50 cent increase in cigarette taxes.

This is bad enough. What is absolutely worse is that in the face of the Federal increase in cigarette taxes of 62 cents per pack (signed by Obama in early February, slated to take effect on April first - see last entry), Bobby Harrell has NOT withdrawn his plan to raise cigarette taxes.

This is what is so stupid. Sure, the tax burden being levied upon a minority is bad, doubly bad when coming from two sides at about the same time. But with the Federal tax increase burdening smokers, an additional state tax increase in South Carolina will demand that people who buy in this state will most certainly turn to North Carolina or Georgia.

If Harrell and a bunch of anti loonies in our legislature have their way, we tobacco consumers will be Doubly Smacked with tax increases - $1.12 per pack or $11.20 per carton total. I’d start buying in North Carolina to save five dollars per carton - wouldn’t you? Hell, show me an illegal outlet for cigarettes and I’ll buy - I’m patently sick of being taxed outrageously for other people’s benefits.

The only way to counteract this is to counter the propaganda of anti and the media and oppose this, in writing, to the Governor, your representatives and to as many other representatives as you can.

Click here to see the legislation

Click here to start doing something about it!