The stupid literally burns like, well, cigarettes. It's apparently hard to keep a bad idea down. While New Zealand's new government is backing off from the previous government's phased tobacco ban and plans to reverse it, as Malaysia already did as well, the UK government under Rishi Sunak now wants to implement such a phased ban for anyone born after 2008. Even Bhutan lifted their tobacco ban in 2021, as it was such a massive failure due to the massive black market it created. (Hey, somebody answer the Clue Phone, as it is ringing loud and clear now!) So should they go through with it, the UK now stands alone in the modern (or even semi-modern) world, leaving them in the good company of...wait for it...the Taliban and ISIL in that regard. Only difference being that the UK is simply taking the scenic route there instead of simply making a beeline for it. Gee, how very enlightened and progressive of them.
Hey, don't go getting any ideas, California, or any other state for that matter! Seriously.
Smoking tobacco, especially in this day and age, is dumb, but banning it is even dumber. People who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Prohibition didn't work then, and it doesn't work now.
I'm thinking we need someone like Javier Milei in my country to sort the mess out.
ReplyDeleteIndeed. Rishi Sunak seems to be rather unfit for purpose as PM.
DeleteOn another topic, I just want to point out that the UK's Drinking Age of 18 was imposed in 1923, exactly 100 years ago.
ReplyDeleteWow, interesting. They chose 18 even though the age of majority was still 21 until the early 1970s. My home state of New York also chose 18 in 1934 after Prohibition ended in 1933. They briefly set it at 21 for a few months, as 21 was the age of majority, but then lowered it to 18, where it stayed until December 1982, when they raised it to 19. Didn't work. Then they raised it to 21 in December 1985 under federal duress. Still didn't work. Then they came up with all of these ridiculous ancillary laws to prop it up. Guess what? It still doesn't work.
DeleteYes, in most countries in Europe, the voting age was 21 until the 1970s, and yet most countries set their drinking ages at 18 or even 16 long before this. Possibly it was because they had a mandatory peacetime draft for 16/18 year olds and it was argued they should therefore be allowed to drink.
ReplyDeletePossibly, but that was also true in countries that didn't have a draft as well.
DeleteOne exception is Iceland who set it at 21 until 1969 and 20 ever since, but even then they didn't enforce it until the late 1990s. Also Finland had it at 21 until 1969 and then lowered it to 18.
DeleteAnd many countries, both then and now, didn't even have a true drinking age, merely a purchase age and/or a drinking age that only applied in public and not in private.
DeleteBanning tobacco products will simply mean that the underground market will supply tobacco products containing fentanyl to unsuspecting people. The best answer in reducing smoking or vaping is by taxing them strongly.
ReplyDelete