Big Nanny Baltimore wages war on…cheap cigars
Baltimore has been wracked by violence the past year. “Charm City” is commonly derided as “Harm City” because of the high murder rate. There’s even an entire blog devoted to documenting Baltimore Crime.
So what are city officials proposing to do to help Baltimore’s residents?
Hoping to curb smoking among teenagers and prevent a lifetime of nicotine dependence, Baltimore officials are proposing a citywide ban on the sale of individual small cigars, sometimes called “blunts” or “loosies,” in neighborhood shops.
If the public health proposal becomes law, Baltimore could be the first municipality in the country to attempt to improve residents’ overall health by limiting their access to the potentially cancer-causing cigars.
“Hopefully, we can look back and know that we protected young people from ever wanting to smoke,” said Mayor Sheila Dixon, who attended a news conference at City Hall Wednesday to announce the proposal. The ban could be enacted relatively quickly by the Health Department, which has regulatory authority to protect citizens’ health and safety.
The cigars, which have been popularized by hip-hop stars, pack more tobacco than a cigarette and come in flavors such as cherry and grape that appeal to a young crowd. It is this dangerous mingling of status symbol, sweet taste and high tobacco content that has city officials worried.
Sold under brand names such as Black & Mild, White Owl and The Game, the cigars are exempt from laws that prohibit the sale of individual cigarettes. Neighborhood shops sell the cigars, which can also be repacked with marijuana, for as little as 50 cents apiece.
And while cigarette use by teens and young adults has decreased in recent years, cigar smoking continues to be a “serious and growing health problem,” said city Health Commissioner Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein.
A 2007 study by public health researchers at the Johns Hopkins University found that nearly 24 percent of Baltimoreans ages 18 to 25 had smoked a small cigar within the past 30 days.
“This is an important step to make Baltimore healthier,” said Sharfstein, who joined the mayor in introducing the proposed ban. “This is a small but important step forward.”
The state already outlaws the sale of tobacco products to minors, so the “For the Children” defense doesn’t wash. This is a Nanny State power grab to shut down a legal activity using kiddie human shields as protection.
It’s also a handy way to distract from B’more’s abysmal failure to make its streets, buses, and schools safe.
But hey, at least we’ll be safe from 50-cent cigars and trans-fats!
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Update: Police investigating Baltimore bus beating as “possible racially motivated hate crime”
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Yup, we’ve come a long way since Vice-President Thomas Marshall said, “What this country needs is a good five-cent cigar.”
To think I was allowed to enjoy cigarrettes back in 1990 on school grounds as a sophomore in high school seems unreal nowadays. (I quit btw, nasty habit)
Maybe they help the kool-aid drinkers with those flavors. Nasty!
I can see kids hanging out in front of stores now trying to get an adult to buy them a whole pack of cigars now as shown in American Graffiti.
In my city this would be the primary usage.
PC and the slippery-slide to the socialist LEFT……….
Do we really want to continue sliding — my fellow citizens?
RE: #4
Of course
I can’t fault Baltimore for acting like this. They need to pull silly stunts after all in order to draw attention away from the fact that they don’t have a single good sports team.
The leadership (cough!) folks in Baltimore must be taking their cues from nanny-state California’s State Assembly. Here in CA, they ban/tax/”revenue enhance” just about anything they can, all in the name of the Liberal agenda (actually increased but disguised taxes). Beer-tax anyone? Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Golden Colorado–any of you guys listening? Oh, and the bag you take your brewsky’s home in from the market will also be taxed.
Would a gentleman offer a Tiparillo to a lady? LOL
Bashing tobacco (and taxing the living crap our of it) is much easier than tackling the real problems of urban life and offers the proponents the cheap advantage of moral authority.
I remember the backlash against Winchester “little cigars” in the late seventies. Much ado about nothing, they’re still considered cigars and probaly still clear the room when you smoke them.
I’m glad the “higher minds” have MD’s best needs top of mind.
/sarc off
BSR
It amazes me that people are so stupid as to think that by banning cigars will stop violence. These are the same type of mind set who do not get the fact that guns do not kill people but it is the person pulling the trigger who does, but it is the gun manufacturs fault that a murder happened. How our founding fathers would be so depressed by what we have become. We are allowing our elected officals to replace capitalism with socialism because they refuse to take on the problem head on. What they need to do is start upholding the law and stop pandering.
Yep, no minors with tobacco in Baltimore!
next thing you know they’re going to outlaw lenin statues.
Are you certain they actually want to end crime???
And how many in that same age group smoked a joint within the last 30 days? The liberals have already tried to stop cigar smokers at the federal level, and failed, by trying to pass the SCHIP bill. This bill would raise the taxes on “small” cigars over 500% (under the guise of “it’s for the children.”)
Also, understand what they actually consider a small cigar…it is basically all cigars worth smoking, has nothing what-so-ever to do with the size of the smoke, and yes, it even includes the cigars the Balt. Libs are considering.
Note to liberals…just leave us the h*ll alone! Heal thyselves…there is much to work on without looking at others.
This has nothing at all to do with the “evils” of tobacco. The hollowed out cigars are almost exclusively used to conceal the marijuana within.
What’s wrong with Black & Mild?
Just another example of the brave doing what the brave do. This particular brand of brave carve out sanctuaries for illegal immigrants and criminal gangs. Oh, and advocating just say no to blunts. It make us all feel safer.
these blunts are used to smoke marijuana, anyone who thought otherwise is clearly over the age of 50
what morons.
Michelle, but how is this a power grab? these numbskulls are not gaining anything from this move…in fact, they’re cutting their nose to spite their face in that they’re going to lose tax revenue. so the question is, what power is to be had from this? they haven’t outlawed owning these things. there isn’t a fine for having one. I suspect Baltimore does understand that they’re legal everywhere else in the country…
so, i don’t think this is about a power grab. i think this is about an impotent city council/mayor attempting to look like they’re achieving something.
high crime rate – “we’ll get back to you”
poor schools – “we’ll get back to you”
blunts – “WE’RE RIGHT ON IT”
it’s impossible anymore to respect a democrat.
So, in other words, John Hopkins U is running the city.
Anybody find it funny that they only include the marijuana angle as an aside, and not as the main reason these little cigars are so popular among those in the drug scene? They make it out like tobacco is the illegal substance. “If only these evil tobacco cigars were loaded only with weed, then they would stop committing crime!”
A flex of muscle for the children, just shows the children how moronic their elders can be. The kids know where to get smokes. Besides, with transportation so easily obtained, they’ll just go to a neighboring city-state, buy a bunch and sell them to others!
Hey! A brand new business – and I thought government didn’t create jobs.
Um, when I grew up, kids also used apples and coke cans to smoke with.
So its obvious we must outlaw those too.
Riiiight. Because banning something makes people want it less.
I liked it better when stupid politicians got nothing done instead of getting stupid things done.
So, from the Mayor of Baltimore:
Cigars = BAD
High Velocity Lead Poisoning and Rampant Violence Unfettered by Local PD = GOOD
With the money the kids save from not buying evil cigars they can buy guns,wait,they already do.
Sorry folks…I dont like cheap cigars anyway
I prefer, personally, a Monte Cristo Robusto, or a Macanuedo with a good martini (with extra EXTRA olives!!!!!), or even a good cognac (but I’m not a Grand Marnier fan). It is a relaxing activity.
Whats the sense in smoking a cigar if you’re not going enjoy it?
Speaking of the dogs that haven’t barked…where are Bill and Monica on this issue? Don’t the lefties want to “keep government out of the bedroom”?
Indeed, the Baltimore leadership are a band of feckless reprobates. They fiddle with cigars while the whole city burns.
Yep. That ought to do it. Make them illegal, like assault weapons. Nobody ever breaks the law to buy or sell items that are illegal.
/sarcasm off
They can’t fix the violent crimes to protect the victims. So, now they want to do something like this? Geez!
You beat me to it, Tiger. I was just thinking about the blue dress and cigars, when I read the thread’s headline.
Remind me again what the muder rate in Baltimore is?
Um… I guess that shows what an out of touch 25-year-old I am. I knew a couple of girls in college who smoked those disgusting, flavored “cigarillos” when they drank, and I’m pretty sure they smoked them as is. To me, grape flavored tobacco sounds worse than a regular cigarette, but then, I have never smoked anything…
I’m inclined to agree with bloghooligan on this. Both in that they are morons and that it sounds like an attempt to appear like they are accomplishing something.
People and all their hyped up bull. What a racket!
Let’s attack tobacco smokers- that’ll fix everything. Those nasty cigar and cigarette smokers be damned! It’s just easier to bully them “for thier own good.” Makes those liberals feel oh so good about themselves. Florence friggn Nite ‘n gales!
I for one agree to the ban, but not for the publicly stated reasons. The kids around here use the cheap cigars for disposable crack pipes. They open up the end and drop in a rock of crack and smoke it.
I’m sure other drugs are used elsewhere in the same holder. It eliminates the drug paraphenalia charge. You can’t get arrested for carrying a cigar like carrying a crack pipe.
So how is this going to work exactly? I assume that someone is going to go into a corner store, bypassing the kids out front dealing drugs or playing dice, and then look over the conter to see if the owner is selling blunts. After a fine has/hasn’t been made, said officer will then leave the store, again bypassing the trouble makers and drive away.
Now that’s what I cal efffective policing!!!
Yo dog, lets go stoke up a blunt and get up a couple 40s homey ! Seriously, these folks really think outlawing “blunts” is going to stop crime in the streets ? Wow what are they smokin’ ?
It is good to know that Baltimore has stomped out crime and solved all the serious problems so they can finally spend time on trivia like this.
Sorry guy. They don’t smoke blunts with the tobacco in it. They transfer it over to marijuana and sometimes other items. Maybe you should ban wraps too. Here’s the problem. It’s not the cigar man who’s making your kid smoke weed and act a fool.
It is the parents who don’t take responsibility for their children that are the problem. Start getting your act together.
Don’t worry if you don’t sell them anymore, the kids will just save up and buy the packages, or now you created another commodity to sell on the street, that I assume will be sold tax free. I guess you are giving the junior entrepreneurs another item to sell. I guess a dime bag and the blunt will be sold at the same time, thanks for making the trip to the store a thing of the past.
bigGR – I’m afraid I don’t follow… It’s okay to ban something because people might use it as a crack pipe? I have no idea how smoking crack works, but it would seem that many items could then be used as a makeshift crack pipe, you couldn’t possibly mean to ban them all?
There’s a whole bunch of things popularized by hip-hop stars they could consider banning that would be much more effective in reducing crime. But reducing crime doesn’t seem to be the goal.
fixed it fer ya…
Who cares if the kids beat white girls on the buses so long as they don’t smoke and aren’t eating trans fats? Priorities, people!
No way – it would be run WAAAY better…
Wait, I’ve got it, parents could teach their kids values. Sorry, I’ll go to the corner for some quiet time.
How about a ban on hip-hop stars?
I don’t know what everyone is so upset about—-nothing was said when ‘they’ originally came for the smokers of cigarettes. By the way, it’s not worth mentioning that it’s a ‘nasty habit’. A much nastier habit is an adult telling me what to do.
Obama wouldn’t like this he’s a chain smoker. Lol.