The Infamous Master Settlement Agreement, cont'd - Pg3
As if this egregious corruption of law wasn't sufficient, in the ten years following the MSA's enactment, many state and local governments opted to sell so-called tobacco bonds. In some cases, the bonds permit state and local governments to transfer the risk of declines in future MSA payments to bondholders. In many cases, however, the bonds are backed by secondary pledges of state or local revenues, which creates a huge incentive to support the tobacco industry, on whom they are now dependent for future payments against this debt, and to persecute, vilify, and attack anything which would cause sales of tobacco products to decline -- such as vaping.
For more details about those debts now owed by those feckless, irresponsible states, please see: https://www.propublica.org/article/how-wall-street-tobacco-deals-left-states-with-billions-in-toxic-debt
For more details about those debts now owed by those feckless, irresponsible states, please see: https://www.propublica.org/article/how-wall-street-tobacco-deals-left-states-with-billions-in-toxic-debt
As you can see from the chart to the right, smoking has declined considerably since 1993, five years before the MSA went into effect. But even after the MSA, smoking rates jumped around; some years higher, some lower, though with an overall slight decline; when roughly averaging the various peaks and valleys from 1998 to 2014, it appears that smoking rates went from about 28% to about 24% -- a very slight decline!
Only since sometime in 2014, by which time vaping technology had progressed sufficiently that e-cigarettes/vaping became a highly viable and effective method of smoking cessation, has there been a steady decline without any increases.
Tobacco Control takes credit for this, which is positively laughable, as is easy to see from the above-mentioned very slight decline before vaping became really viable. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the only thing that has changed is the advent (and technological improvement) of vaping.
Only since sometime in 2014, by which time vaping technology had progressed sufficiently that e-cigarettes/vaping became a highly viable and effective method of smoking cessation, has there been a steady decline without any increases.
Tobacco Control takes credit for this, which is positively laughable, as is easy to see from the above-mentioned very slight decline before vaping became really viable. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the only thing that has changed is the advent (and technological improvement) of vaping.
As an overview, circa 2014, this was how the ethical, legal, and financial disaster known as the MSA appeared:
(courtesy of https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/tbcbonds-statemap for this chart)
(courtesy of https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/tbcbonds-statemap for this chart)
It is quite easy to see which states/territories are in the hottest water, and can expect to go completely bankrupt in the near future, unless those states and/or the US government can pass laws either banning or hugely, grossly taxing the first thing to ever come along that has better than a snowball's chance in hell of actually helping people quit smoking and stay that way -- vaping. No need to look any further as to why the FDA is making so much irrational, dishonest, and completely absurd noise about a safe way to quit smoking that actually works -- it's because money is far more important to ANY government than the health (or lack thereof) of its citizens -- even a part of the government whose LEGAL MANDATE is to care for the health and safety of its citizens!
These are the worst offenders, giving evidence that their administrations are criminally incompetent and corrupt:
California
Ohio
Michigan
New Jersey
Puerto Rico
West Virginia
Rhode Island
Washington DC
Guam
and to a slightly lesser extent, these places too:
Virginia
Iowa
Alaska
US Virgin Islands
If you're a resident of any of those places, even if you have zero personal interest in vaping, the best advice I can offer you is MOVE, NOW! Abandon ship! Governments which are that incompetent and corrupt are not safe for ANY of their citizens, and if you're a smoker who wants a safe, effective, and nearly-painless way to quit, you're going to be in a world of hurt.
These are the worst offenders, giving evidence that their administrations are criminally incompetent and corrupt:
California
Ohio
Michigan
New Jersey
Puerto Rico
West Virginia
Rhode Island
Washington DC
Guam
and to a slightly lesser extent, these places too:
Virginia
Iowa
Alaska
US Virgin Islands
If you're a resident of any of those places, even if you have zero personal interest in vaping, the best advice I can offer you is MOVE, NOW! Abandon ship! Governments which are that incompetent and corrupt are not safe for ANY of their citizens, and if you're a smoker who wants a safe, effective, and nearly-painless way to quit, you're going to be in a world of hurt.
