Quote:
Originally Posted by Joker666
In countries like US its not a big deal if the govt raised the cigarette prices, but in countries like Lebanon, the consequences would be big enough to cause some major troubles.
You see, in a country like US where the minimum wage is high enough, addicts will still be able to buy cigarettes. And by adding these taxes, the govt is trying to 1) have a benefit from the taxes, and 2) reduce the number of "new addicts".
In a survey conducted some time ago, it was shown that more than 80% of cigarette addicts started their addiction before the age of 21. You realize that a 21- person who gets paid 8$ an hour (on average) or a 18- who still gets paid from his parents, wouldn't waste all this amount of money (7$ a pack) to start a new "bad" addiction.
Whereas in a country like Lebanon, where the minimum wage is around 10 - 12$ a day, you realize what would happen to addicted people?
The middle and rich class people wouldn't be affected, but the family with an income of 1000-$ a month would suffer.
And I guess you know what nicotine withdrawal do in some people. They would go out of their mind.
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The effect of nicotine withdrawal is exaggerated. Out of experience and also scientifically speaking, nicotine if stopped suddenly has only neural effects in a discrete manner throughout the day and the addiction to it fades out in less than two months. It would be a great help by the government for those who dont have the will to stop killing themselves slowly and harming everyone around them.
Humans haven't proved to be conscious enough at some points, and this is one of them. If such an act would push a lot of people towards the right decision of getting rid of their addiction, why not?