[I can't imagine folks paying these prices, as I RYO, right now it's costing me about 5 bucks a carton. Adjust for inflation, it's cheaper than 35 years ago. They really count heavily on the "sheep" factor with these tax increases. A certain percentage of smokers, like all taxpayers feel it's their patriotic duty to pay taxes, no matter how unreasonable or unjust ... the politicians count on these folks year after year to mug. The non-sheep of course are low life cheats in their book ... because they won't let themselves be robbed.]



"Smokes shine like gold to thieves"


PATRICK MALONEY, Free Press Reporter 2004-12-04 01:47:05

"Naji Abdelhadi was standing behind the counter, nearing the end of another 16-hour workday, when they stormed in. It was about 11 p.m. on a Saturday last March and three of Abdelhadi's children were also in his south London convenience store. "I thought it was kind of a joke," he recalled this week.

Suddenly, there was pepper spray in his eyes. A knife to his 14-year-old son's throat. His two other kids, 12 and five, hiding under a table.

One of the thieves, a bandana covering his face, jumped the counter.

Though he couldn't see, Abdelhadi -- whose store has been robbed five times in two years -- knew what they were after.

Cigarettes, as always

The cost of a carton has gone up $21 since 2001 -- to about $6 * -- according to industry estimates, and the province raked in about $1 billion from taxes on cigarette sales last year.

While the goal might be to price smokers out of the habit, tax hikes have dovetailed with a dramatic rise in violent crime inside Ontario's convenience stores.

In London alone this year, at least a dozen store clerks were robbed for cigarettes.

Abdelhadi and industry experts -- who support taxing tobacco -- blame the crime wave on "aggressive" tax increases.

Abdelhadi, 44, lost $10,000 in smokes in June during a late-night break-in and, like thousands of other Ontario store owners, has become a bystander in the province's war on smoking.

And while the province is raking in more taxes, it has done little to help him.

It's not money on Abdelhadi's mind when thinking of March's robbery.

"Most of these businesses are family-run," he says of convenience stores. "At that time, I thought, I shouldn't go (on in) this business. I'm risking my family.

"The (profit) margin on this is not big. We make money by the long hours that we work. Without my kids (working), can I run it 18, 16 hours a day? No, I can't."

***

A study being published Monday by the Ontario Convenience Store Association, a non-profit group representing 6,000 retailers, shows in-store violent crime has risen 28 per cent over the past three years.

The only thing more mind-boggling than that number, OCSA executive director Dave Bryans said, is the lack of action the province has taken.

"If a (28-per-cent) increase of robberies of banks and liquor stores was the issue of the day, there would be (an outcry from) government," he says. "We'd have to have armed guards. But because it's spread among independents and little people, people just ignore the issue."

Bryans isn't interested in advocating for Big Tobacco or arguing the merits of smoking. He backs tobacco taxation, just not what he calls "aggressive" taxation, and understands the government's desire to curb smoking.

But his 6,000 members -- nearly three-quarters of whom are recent immigrants -- are the forgotten victims, left alone in an industry that relies surprisingly heavily on cigarette sales.

Forty to 60 per cent of each store's revenue comes from smokes, he says. And cigarettes bring in smokers who also buy bread, pop, candy and other products.

Rapid tax increases -- though well intended -- put store owners at serious risk, Bryans maintains.

"As governments increase any type of tax, as the government has (on tobacco), the criminal element moves in," he says.

Store owners, Bryans laments, "have no representation at government levels."

It's not that politicians aren't aware of the issue.

Ontario Health Minister George Smitherman has turned an eye toward banning all in-store cigarette displays -- the racks of smokes behind the counter -- as part of his effort to curb youth smoking. This is part of Ontario's multi-faceted plan to "set the pace" in the battle against smoking, Smitherman says.

Abdelhadi calls those in-store changes misguided, arguing customers make the decision to go to the store to buy cigarettes long before they see the display cases.

All it's going to do, he adds, is cost him the thousands of dollars he gets from tobacco companies for having their displays in his store.

The health ministry's effort focuses on stopping smoking for good, spokesperson Dan Strasbourg says.

"We simply can't turn a blind eye to (smoking). We're being very aggressive and it's about saving lives, period."

***

The province has been down this road before.

The price of smokes went through the roof in the early 1990s. Taxes were hiked three cents a cigarette -- or $6 a carton -- in a single 1991 increase.

Then, as now, cigarettes were being sold out of car trunks at cut-rate prices, but in-store theft wasn't a side-effect -- smuggling was.

It got so bad, the government slashed taxes to end it.

Today, smuggling doesn't appear to be a concern. Instead, it's gun- or knife-point robberies in convenience stores like Abdelhadi's.

The attraction of cigarettes for thieves is obvious, says London police Const. Jeff Arbing.

"There's no serial number on them, they're easy for people to unload and there's a market for them," Arbing says. "You smoke it and the evidence is gone.

"It's very expensive to buy legally. If somebody can steal it and sell it for half the price, there's a profit margin."

Arbing recommends store owners have on hand just enough packages to fill the display, and leave the rest in a secure spot.

***

Bryans -- who stresses police shouldn't be held accountable for the rising thefts -- agrees the stores need more security. But with tiny profits, owners can't possibly afford to pour thousands into cigarette lockups.

The help, he says, should come from the governments raking in billions from cigarette taxes each year.

Just as millions are pledged to help tobacco farmers making the transition to different crops, convenience store owners need help adding security measures to lower losses during robberies and, more importantly, deter would-be thieves, he says.

"Why don't (politicians) work with the retailers and help these people lock up their product?"

The notion of finding a new cigarette-distribution model -- in other words, taking them out of stores altogether -- would cripple store owners, Bryans says.

"Without that, then we have nothing to bring people to the stores," he says. "Help these retailers . . . build lockups so they're secure, because they don't have the dollars.

"The Liberals have a great opportunity to help small families and immigrants to make a living here by working with them and protecting them. Not just by downloading costs on them."

Strasbourg, the health ministry spokesperson, says the tax money is better spent on health care.

***

Unlike most politicians who come into office from law practices or other professions, London-Fanshawe MPP Khalil Ramal brings a unique perspective to Queen's Park. And to this issue, in particular.

Ramal, who came to Canada from Lebanon, operated a south-end convenience store until his election in October 2003. Cigarette theft -- violent or not -- is a major issue, he says.

"It's very expensive and you can fill up a small bag with thousands of dollars' (worth). It's a wanted commodity."

With a clear understanding of the issue, Ramal says he has brought up his concerns to Smitherman.

"You don't want to jeopardize the hundreds of families (running stores) across the province," he says. "It's a family business and I don't want to see it gone."

***

Abdelhadi is equal parts respectful and respectable. He's dedicated to his two-year-old business, which has been robbed five times, including the March attack. He was an accountant in his native Jordan. He donates money to the community. He works part-time with the Canadian Forces.

A non-smoker, he understands the dangers of tobacco and plans to add an in-store deli to make up for the money lost if tobacco displays are banned.

Abdelhadi is willing to co-operate with the government, but he points out he's an honest businessperson selling a legal product.

Convenience store owners are caught in the crossfire between health advocates and the tobacco industry. And aggressive tax hikes hurt the likes of Abdelhadi, he says.

For Bryans, the concerns of his members need to be heard.

"Convenience stores are located in every community in Ontario," he says. "It's our (duty) as consumers and as citizens to protect the interest of these people.

"Seventy to 75 per cent of our (members) are new Canadians. They need to be protected by society."

By the numbers

- Average price of a carton of cigarettes in Ontario: $63.38

- Amount of that price that is taxes: $42.20 (67 per cent)

- Number of provinces with prices lower than Ontario: One (Quebec)

- Per-carton increase in Ontario since 2001: $21

- Per-carton increase in Nova Scotia since 2001: $26.50

- Number of Imperial Tobacco cigarettes stolen before reaching stores across Canada in 2003: 1 million

- Number stolen in first eight months of 2004: 17 million

- Estimated per cent of total store sales that comes from cigarettes in Ontario: 50

- Estimated increase, in per cent, of in-store violent crimes in Ontario this year: 28

- Value of stolen products in average store robbery: $2,000-$10,000"

LONDON FREE PRESS

The anticipated cigarette tax collection in Massachusetts is short for 2004. By $25 million buckeros. That is just in one year. People are wising up and going to the internet or New Hampshire for cigarettes.

The weekly trips to NH still cost too much...I am considering getting those big tins of tobacco and rolling my own. Does anyone know if they tax that stuff? I mean they are always talking about tax on cigarettes..they never mention a tax on tobacco.

Shrike,
Rolling tobacco is taxed at a much lower rate than cigarettes. Go to Leavitt and Pierce in Harvard Square (or any tobacco shop) - you can get a rolling kit and choose whatever tobacco you want and its much better quality than the mass-produced stuff. Better yet - it will only end up costing you a little more than $20 a carton to roll your own.

quote:

Originally posted by Shrike:
The weekly trips to NH still cost too much...I am considering getting those big tins of tobacco and rolling my own. Does anyone know if they tax that stuff? I mean they are always talking about tax on cigarettes..they never mention a tax on tobacco.

It is taxed in MA, but it still costs you $8-12 per carton, depending on the kind of tobacco you buy. For now.

I am sure if there is a larger shift of smokers to SYO/RYO, they will raise the taxes on bulk tobacco to "even the playing field." The antismoking thieves will not let the loot drop too much before they act. At the moment, due to small numbers we're under the radar.

quote:

Convenience Store

in my opinion the next logical step for more tobacco control by the antis would be to ban all sales of tobacco products in Convenience stores.. that would reduce the amount of robberies, reduce the harm to owners, reduce the availability of tobacco products to teens..

I don't agree with the tatics but just wait some bill will be pushed thourgh or introduced

quote:

in my opinion the next logical step for more tobacco control by the antis would be to ban all sales of tobacco products in Convenience stores

They will immediately do this IF and ONLY IF they can make more money by doing it.

As anti-smoking increases, the level of caring for people who smoke decreases. Conversely, the
stated level of caring increases.

In other words, as they continue to marginalize people who choose to smoke, they will more and more claim that they are concerned about the people who smoke.

As senseless as this sounds, it seems to me that the inevitable path of anti-smoking is attacking the very people it has always sought to create; former smokers. Though they won't be as marginalized as current smokers, former smokers will begin to receive negative treatment.

I won't go into further specifics because, of course, others are looking in and I don't want to give them ideas.

Winston, I think you're on to something there.

I think anyone who has ever used the evil weed tobacco will also be demonized. Just wait until hillary care kicks in, and at the rate the sheeple seem to be screaming for socialism now, it'll be damn right soon.

The "reformed smokers" will be in the boat with the rest of us then, along with a whole host of "I don't think that will happen here" people.

383rr,

Anti-smoking has everything to do with smoking.

Anti-smoking has nothing to do with smoking.

These two statements, though contradictory, in my mind, are true.

Anti-smoking serves, unconsciously, a much larger and powerful pattern that has nothing to do with smoking. I believe that this pattern is Neo-Communism.

It ain't the smoking, it's the Capitalism. The people who oppose capitalism have found their poster child; Big Tobacco.

You want to know who screwed up alot of this discussion: Enron.

Those fucking asshole bastards were given de-regualtion and the first thing that occurred to them was to fuck everybody they could. They had a grand opportunity to show free market supremacy and, instead, they proceeded to re-confirm the beliefs of every socialist in America. Now, because of a collection of numbskulls, the whole nation is convinced that more and more government regulation is the right thing.

quote:

It ain't the smoking, it's the Capitalism. The people who oppose capitalism have found their poster child; Big Tobacco.

I agree Winston. Notice how the war on smokers intensified about 10-12 years ago when it became a war on big tobacco. I think that this is what helped bring the leftist elite media like the NYT onto the side of the antis. Now this model has been copied for the wars on obesity and global warming - that greedy corporations duped an unsuspecting and clueless public into smoking, eating fast food, and driving big SUV's. However, while the media makes it seem like there is demand for more government regulation of business and that people are willing to accept more intrusion into their personal lives "for the common good" whether this means sniffing out closet smokers or terrorists, I think that there are really a few well funded and connected figures driving the dialogue and money at very high levels of power - John Banzhaf being the leading tyrant, there's also the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Money if flowing into the coffers of many non-profit organizations to fund research that is consistent with their agenda, just like they accused big tobacco of doing. In the past 5 years, how many "studies" have we seen in the headlines about smoking, secondhand smoke, obesity and global warming, compared to the 5 years before that? They have been so effective so far because they have been litigating and acting at the local level; not necessarily because there has been a national trend towards more regulation - most people pay little attention to what goes on in their city council or county board chamber, if they did, perhaps smoking bans would have been dead in the water years ago.

quote:

Originally posted by asmoker123:

I am for protecting people from second hand smoke.

Uh, why is that? To my knowledge and from all that I have read here and elsewhere, there is "NO" health hazard from exposure to SHS.