u/choppyharbour

Let’s start with Nicola Roxon. Chair of the AIHW, the organisation that released the data showing Australia’s daily smoking rate is now 5.6%. A remarkable success story. We’re on track for the 2030 National Tobacco Strategy target. Congratulations all round.

Nicola Roxon was also the health minister during the formation of our “world leading” tobacco policy. She received national and international awards for it.

Conveniently, these figures arrived just before the government’s response to the illicit tobacco inquiry, at a time when pressure is mounting to rethink policy. But according to the AIHW, only 34% of smokers report using illicit tobacco. So clearly everything is proceeding exactly as planned.

Which means we’ll just have to reconcile a few awkward details.

Like the ABS wastewater data showing nicotine consumption has increased substantially.

Or the Roy Morgan survey suggesting adult smoking is closer to 12%, with smoking no longer falling in the way the other figures suggest.

Or we could look outside.

But that would mean trusting our own observations.

And by now we’ve all learned that’s not how this works.

Remember everyone: This is a very complex issue. The tax didn’t cause it. All nicotine products are equally bad. More enforcement funding is the answer. And if that doesn’t work, more enforcement funding.

And don’t worry, the national law enforcement response is being coordinated by the health bureaucracy too. Amber Shuhyta, the health insider appointed by Mark Butler. With no law enforcement experience. Head of the ITEC commission.

No oversight. No one to answer to. Nothing to see here.

There is currently a senate inquiry underway for the illicit tobacco crisis. And so far the government has doubled down on the excise. To quote the health minister we’re “not going to have our public health policies dictated by organised crime.”

While organised crime already fucking dictates the market, it controls 80% of the market, it already controls the price point.

Instead their solution is more impotent task forces, tasked with enforcing harsher penalties, let’s ignore the lighter ones are barely enforced to begin with. While our legal system is so exploitable that these organisations are using encrypted apps to fund the arson of our protected youth offender class.

The criminal organisations have saturated the tobacco market so well that they are now broadening their horizons to liquor and general extortion, they are owning infrastructure. This is a parallel unregulated economy, linked to Iraq, that’s becoming more powerful, in Australia.

Can we call it what this fucking is? It’s a national security crisis.

And the government is doubling down on the puritanical, ideological, evidence resistant failure of an excise policy. So they can continue jerking each other off with ‘record breaking seizures’. Because why bother treating cancer when you can just treat the symptoms and get off on it.

You’d almost be inclined to think they’re captured by Iraq, but I think the problem is much stupider than that. I think they are a bunch of gutless fucking clowns who are more willing to let the country burn than admit they got it wrong.

There is currently a senate inquiry underway for the illicit tobacco crisis. And so far the government has doubled down on the excise. To quote the health minister we’re “not going to have our public health policies dictated by organised crime.”

While organised crime already fucking dictates the market, it controls 80% of the market, it already controls the price point.

Instead their solution is more impotent task forces, tasked with enforcing harsher penalties, let’s ignore the lighter ones are barely enforced to begin with. While our legal system is so exploitable that these organisations are using encrypted apps to fund the arson of our protected youth offender class.

The criminal organisations have saturated the tobacco market so well that they are now broadening their horizons to liquor and general extortion, they are owning infrastructure. This is a parallel unregulated economy, linked to Iraq, that’s becoming more powerful, in Australia.

Can we call it what this fucking is? It’s a national security crisis.

And the government is doubling down on the puritanical, ideological, evidence resistant failure of an excise policy. So they can continue jerking each other off with ‘record breaking seizures’. Because why bother treating cancer when you can just treat the symptoms and get off on it.

You’d almost be inclined to think they’re captured by Iraq, but I think the problem is much stupider than that. I think they are a bunch of gutless fucking clowns who are more willing to let the country burn than admit they got it wrong.

There is currently a senate inquiry underway for the illicit tobacco crisis. And so far the government has doubled down on the excise. To quote the health minister we’re “not going to have our public health policies dictated by organised crime.”

While organised crime already fucking dictates the market, it controls 80% of the market, it already controls the price point.

Instead their solution is more impotent task forces, tasked with enforcing harsher penalties, let’s ignore the lighter ones are barely enforced to begin with. While our legal system is so exploitable that these organisations are using encrypted apps to fund the arson of our protected youth offender class.

The criminal organisations have saturated the tobacco market so well that they are now broadening their horizons to liquor and general extortion, they are owning infrastructure. This is a parallel unregulated economy, linked to Iraq, that’s becoming more powerful, in Australia.

Can we call it what this fucking is? It’s a national security crisis.

And the government is doubling down on the puritanical, ideological, evidence resistant failure of an excise policy. So they can continue jerking each other off with ‘record breaking seizures’. Because why bother treating cancer when you can just treat the symptoms and get off on it.

You’d almost be inclined to think they’re captured by Iraq, but I think the problem is much stupider than that. I think they are a bunch of gutless fucking clowns who are more willing to let the country burn than admit they got it wrong.

I was just walking down kings cross last night. Every third shop is an illicit tobacconist. How have they taken over such a massive part of our street, there used to be legitimate businesses in these shops, but now they’re all flogging cheap smokes. How is this ok? how is no one talking about this? How are they operating so openly? Why can’t anyone touch them? How much control do they have over our country? Why are they untouchable by authorities?

Why is everyone acting like this is normal?