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Just criminalize the sale, not the possession. When they vanish from storefronts and become much harder to find, many people will switch to alternatives like vapes, or reduce their consumption. Don’t bother with citing individuals for possessing them; Just fine the fuck out of any storefronts caught selling them, and/or take their tobacco sale permits away.
That would fuel a black market even more because now customers don't need to take any risk so more profit for those who do take the risk on the selling side.
And if they just do fines, it will become a cost of business. If they lock people up, then it's just another front in the ridiculous drug war that does more harm on its own than the drugs themselves do.
As much as I don't like smoking still being a thing, use is trending down on its own and people should have a right to choose what they do with their bodies, even if it fucks them up or they end up regretting it later. As a society, we've been fucking up our environment more than smoking ever has to the point where just existing in a large city is as bad as smoking because of the car exhaust, and that's for everyone, not just those who choose to drive or ride in cars.
Though I would be in favour of mandating that some majority portion of cigarette profits go to paying for the health treatments and would also be open to some kind of asterisk on healthcare coverage for those who live in places with public healthcare and choose to smoke, maybe requiring some kind of insurance policy to help pay for healthcare they might end up needing.
I would agree, except do not criminalize individuals selling to other individuals, but if it's stores then I completely agree.
What do you think a store is, exactly?
I consider a store to be more of a corporation because of the fact that I can't go up and talk to the individual who runs the thing in most cases.
It depends on the size of the store, but that isn’t necessarily true. A lot of convenience stores are franchises, and you definitely could talk to the owner.
My point isn’t really to define what a store is, but rather to point out that it is really tricky to place blame appropriately when you are banning a substance that people want to buy. How far down the chain do you prosecute?
Much better to simply teach people the truth about their health and let them make their own decisions rather than try to control and blame, in my opinion.
Fair enough, I generally think prosecution is a bad idea if it can be at all avoided because then taxpayers have to pay for that person to be prosecuted in court and if they end up guilty have to keep them in jail and I don't agree with that if it can be avoided.