fight terrorism: lower taxes!
Islamic terrorism and high tax rates.
Hassan Makki and Mohamad A. Hariri were detained earlier this week by federal authorities as part of an eleven person ring of cigarette smugglers. Makki and Hariri's group bought cigarettes in North Carolina (cigarette tax: 50 cents per carton) and on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation in New York (cigarette tax: zero) and resold them in Michigan (cigarette tax: $12.50 per carton.)
Government manipulation of the market through taxation or prohibition always encourages a black market if the profit to be made outweighs the risk of being caught violating the law. Black market smuggling has given rise to two cancers on American society that still plague us: inner city gangs and the Kennedy dynasty. In this case, the profit opportunity in cigarette smuggling threatens America's national security. Makki is a self-described member of terrorist group Hezbollah and was previously linked with Islamic Amal, an organization with ties to Syria and Iran. Mohammed Hammoud, leader of a Hezbollah cell in North Carolina convicted of cigarette smuggling last June, has also been linked to this smuggling ring.
This problem's solution is simple enough: lower cigarette taxes! These "sin" taxes raise little revenue, and serve primarily as a tool for anti-smoking social engineering. Cigarette smokers have little reason to quit, however, if cheaper smokes can be had in the underground economy - even when that underground economy is funneling cash to American enemies.
10.02.2003 © ljr