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Ore. Rep. Moves to Make Cigarettes Prescription-Only, Threatens One Year in Jail and/or $6K+ Fine

Jan. 24, 2013 12:25pm Becket Adams

First they impose a heavy “sin tax.” Then they kick you outdoors. Then they ban you from certain public areas. Now this:

“Rep. Mitch Greenlick, from Portland, is sponsoring a bill that makes cigarettes a Schedule III controlled substance, meaning it would be illegal to possess or distribute cigarettes without a doctor’s prescription,” Fox 12 Oregon reports.

“Other drugs and substances that are considered Schedule III controlled substances are ketamine, lysergic acid and anabolic steroids,” the report adds.

Should the bill pass, and even Rep. Greenlick doesn’t think it will, offenders would face fines of up to $6,250, one year in jail, or both.

“I think it’s pretty crazy,” Juan Silva of Salem told the Fox affiliate. “I don’t see it going through. It’s going to be something to watch for, but I don’t think it’ll pass.”

Of course, there are those who disagree with Silva’s take on the proposed legislation.

“I hope it passes and I hope people actually think about it,” Rick Cannon of Salem told the Fox affiliate. “You know there’s less and less smokers everyday because they know how bad it is for them, so I just hope people wake up and realize how bad it actually is for them.”

You can read the entire bill here.

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Comments (89)

Imprimatur
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:54pm
They’ll just head up north for the more potent stuff. This politician is just bloaviating and posturing. He’s got nothing else to come up with to help the state. He’ll serve his constituency better by breathing under water without a SCUBA or snorkel.

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- JQuentinEvermann
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:16pm
  The should just outlaw all plants. Drug problem solved.
  
  Report this comment
- HKS
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:52pm
  I got a really good idea, lets make robbery and murder illegal and that will solve the problem, right. Now that’s worked well for the last ten thousand years or so and I’m sure this will to.
  
  Report this comment
- Detroit paperboy
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 3:04pm
  And this is the freedom millions have died for….
  
  Report this comment
- carhouse
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 3:29pm
  Ill stop smoking when he stops farting out his mouth
  
  Report this comment
- Junter
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 10:29pm
  Protecting citizens from themselves. Government knows best mentality.
  
  Report this comment
- Junter
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 10:33pm
  By the way.. since exercise has been proven to kill brain cells. We should ban all forms of exercise and only those with a prescription should be allowed to exercise. It’s for our own good mind you.
  
  (scientists also now claim the adult brain does grow new ones)
  
  Report this comment
- JohnofOregon
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 11:04pm
  I know this guy, he just blowing hot air, though it’s suspected he blows other things.
  
  The bill cannot pass, nor will it pass. Leftist in Oregon have an addiction to taxation that is the envy of every meth and crack dealer on the west coast.
  
  A group of known democrat politicians were on the second floor of the house offices waiting to use the can and I was talking with a couple of college kids in the men’s room. I pulled out two half dollars and threw them in the urinal. We went outside and I told the interns to check the urinal after the reps were done. That’s right, the coins were gone.
  
  It is meth for democrats. That is why I know the bill goes nowhere. Cig taxes are a slush fund for the governor.
  
  Report this comment
- sneetzle
  Posted on January 25, 2013 at 9:58am
  This kind of garbage is far too common in Oregon. Portland, Salem, Eugene, and Ashland dictate policy because the limp-wristed implants from California are forcing their agenda on the rest of the state. For many years now, there has been an ‘idea’ of creating a new state of Jefferson, by combining northern California, and Oregon, while leaving out the Willamette valley. (including Portland, Salem, and Eugene). If that ever happens, some of us may move back.
  
  Report this comment
- JohnofOregon
  Posted on January 25, 2013 at 10:43am
  first thing Californians say when they arrive in Oregon is “What I great place, let’s change it”
  
  As California dies, these screw balls will be fanning out into other states now.
  
  This is how all Marxist practitioners operate. Obama ran for office saying how great America is……..so we need to fundamentally change it.
  
  The democrat national platform has gun bans, national data bases, confiscation, the revocation of the first amendment and the elimination of god. If you are a democrat, that is what you believe in.
  
  All these Hispanic Catholics are faux believers. That is a statistical fact. That is no different than all those north Koreans that worship their leader.
  
  Report this comment
Spyderco
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:48pm
The first things the Nazis took away was cigarettes. Second was guns.

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- Keatonc333
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:18pm
  Hitler didn’t ban guns!!! “German firearms legislation under Hitler, far from banning private ownership, actually facilitated the keeping and bearing of arms by German citizens by eliminating or ameliorating restrictive laws which had been enacted by the government preceding his: a left-center government which had contained a number of Jews.”
  
  http://www.natvan.com/national-vanguard/assorted/gunhitler.html
  
  Sorry. i know you want to link gun control with Hitler.. but it’s just false.
  
  Report this comment
- brntout
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:38pm
  @ KeisterWhatever,,, Key word “prior” to his you dolt.
  
  Report this comment
- Perkins
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 3:00pm
  Keaton, like sendthemeteors you try to shift the topic just slightly.
  
  Was Hitler trying to subjugate the “Aryan Race”? You are arguing that because he did not take guns from a group he ostensibly supported he did not take anyone’s guns. So, were Jews allowed guns? What did Hitler do with guns in the countries his army invaded?
  
  This article is from the NRA because I can’t give you the books it cites, but I’m sure you are capable of finding them for yourself (check your local library), and check out the posters.
  
  http://www.stephenhalbrook.com/registration_article/registration.html
  
  Now, since tyrants never disarm their friends (what army can fight without weapons), how does Hitler not taking guns from his “chosen people” argue that he did not take guns from his intended victims?
  
  Sorry, did I just burst your bubble of equivocation? I apologize.
  
  As to disarming Germany after the war, that was done by the UN… the communists as you point out… yeah, I’m against that too.
  
  So, back to topic, why is it that some are worthy of bearing weapons (police, soldiers, ect) while others are not (civilians)? Are the former superior beings? Are they more worthy of life? Are they more trustworthy? Who gets to decide in which group each of us belongs? You seem to be arguing that “everyone is equal, but some are more equal than others.” Please reconcile your position on equality and firearm ownership for us sans the equivocation. Thanks.
  
  Report this comment
- lemkete
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 3:48pm
  @Keaton Wow! Quoting propaganda from a white supremacist organization makes me believe you are one yourself. The 1938 German Weapons did nothing to make it easier to own or obtain a firearm in Germany unless you were a government worker or a member of the Nazi party. They were actually exempt from licensing. It forbid Jews from having anything to do with firearms. By 1940 the Nazis were already executing people, not just Jews, who did not turn in their firearms. It would be best to take your Nazi loving somewhere else because we’re not buying that here.
  
  Report this comment
TommyGuns
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:46pm
I usually ask people who want to ban smoking just how much more they’re willing to pay in taxes in order to make up the shortfall in the excise tax receipts from cigarettes. Currently, the feds get more than $10.00 per carton in taxes, the majority of which funds SCHIP. This puts the government in the position of having to encourage the consumption of cigarettes to get the tax, but discourage it as a public health concern. Talk about speaking out of both sides of your mouth. And what about the state taxes on cigarettes, which usually go into the general revenue fund, and in many states is more than two or three times the federal tax rate. How much is the average taxpayer willing to pay to make up that shortfall that’s used to help fund public safety, health and welfare, etc.?

History has taught us that outlawing the possession or consumption of a product generally results in a widespread disregard for the law, and the beginnings of a black market. Think how well we did with Prohibition, and just how well we’re doing with the war on drugs. If it was that easy, we wouldn’t have to talk about gun control, because we could simply outlaw murder, robbery, assault, etc. Oh. that’s right, we already have.

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- booger71
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:53pm
  Politicians are experts at talking out of both sides of their mouths, and their rear end at the same time.
  
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Pencil_trick
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:45pm
This guy probably tried to quit smoking and failed so now he needs the gov’t to intercede. I’m guessing it passes without them reading the bill, and then they realize all the taxes, both sales and cigarette, that they stand to lose so guess what, they need to raise taxes to make up the difference in their budget shortfall.

Maybe they’ll look into a per mile road use tax like their neighbor Washington State is because of all the gas tax revenue they lost due to higher mileage cars and stricter CAFE standards.

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- woodyee
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:15pm
  that’s how it often happens, Pencil!
  
  Report this comment
chris72sax
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:44pm
We need to get back to the idea that the individual is supreme and government should only be able to punish us for disturbing somebody else’s rights or property. When you make someone else your master, you can’t complain about being someone’s subject.

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ABoggledMind
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:36pm
Well there is the next phase of the drug war for you!

Now that they are starting to lose the battle on marijuana, what else could they put all the money from that into? I was having a hard time thinking of a fit seeing as they already lost with alcohol, but that is a pretty perfect fit if that works out……….

Pretty soon you are gonna have to go see your doc every time you have to take a crap.

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red_white_blue2
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:20pm
There’s a difference in educating people to the dangers and arming them with information so they can make an informed decision about the length of their life, and taking away freedom of choice. BIG DIFFERENCE!

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- carhouse
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:38pm
  go ahead and make it illegal, then all smokers will sue the fed for not doing it sooner knowing it was dangerous
  
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TheGrtDcptn
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:11pm
rep. greenlick can go p*ss on an electric fence…

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- carhouse
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:39pm
  think his name is A$$Lick
  
  Report this comment
- spirited
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 8:38pm
  You both are good together –lol
  
  ;^>Really Bold and Refreshing
  
  Report this comment
Silversmith
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:09pm
Gotta stop legislating peoples liberties or trouble will ensue. Hey OR, you voted for him — fix it!

Silversmith

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denkat56
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:05pm
And yet they legalize pot. Not to much common sense up in Oregon.

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- ConstitunalAmerican
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:24pm
  I think these politicians are all in competition with each other, to see who comes up with the stupiest idea.
  
  Report this comment
- HYPNOTOAD
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 4:08pm
  DENKAT56: Oregon didn’t legalize pot, Washington sadly did. I hate my state.
  
  Report this comment
Blivit
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:44pm
From tax cash cow to tax cash drain as soon as they become prescription drugs they would probably be covered by health insurance and medicare/medicade drug subsidies!

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- truthnstuff
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:12pm
  Excellent point. Hello free 0bamacigarrets for the food stamp crowd.
  
  Report this comment
- LP2468
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 5:30pm
  You beat me to it. A lot of people on Medicaid have their doctor write a prescription for aspirin because then they only have to pay $1 for generic or $3 for brand name. So if your doctor wrote you a prescription for a carton of cigarettes, you could pay $3 and have the government pick up the rest.
  
  Report this comment
Rowgue
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:43pm
Quitting smoking because you realize how bad it is for you isn’t the same thing as the government trying to forcing you to make that decision.

It’s the same nonsense we’re seeing in the ridiculous healthy eating campaign.

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- spirited
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 8:51pm
  Seinfeld’s “Soup Nazi” was funny because he was so rediculous.
  
  Salt
  Pop
  Food
  Smokes
  
  >hmmm…..?
  
  Report this comment
stopprintn
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:42pm
Sounds like your average ex-smoker, with the usual libral mind set. Hypocrite best defines his nature and control is the goal. A Bloomburg light is my best descriptive.

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woodyee
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:41pm
You know, the cigarette companies thought they had NO CHOICE but to bend over forward and grab their ankles, while tort attorneys reached in and grabbed BILLIONS of dollars.

All they had to do was to pull out of the US market to satisfy the powerful chimp-screamers. It would have been a big but temporary setback for the shareholders, but the cost to our economy would have had the politicians running to tobacco companies, offering Lewinsky’s in exchange for returning to the US market. Ever wonder how much insider-trading politicians made off of the tobacco settlement?

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- biohazard23
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:50pm
  “…offering Lewinskis…” ROFLMAO!!!
  
  Report this comment
- Lt_Scrounge
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 8:24pm
  Firearms manufacturers should do the same, especially Sales to the military and police. Imagine the look on the faces of Dem Congress critters when Colt, Smith & Wesson, Ruger, and all of the other manufacturers inform them that they are ceasing ALL domestic sales including military and police contracts and laying off hundreds of thousands of employees, including a large number of union members. Of course the employees could then collect 99 weeks of unemployment, so the tax revenues would be lost. Management could tell all of the laid off employees that the lay offs are a result of the anti gun business environment of the Democrat politicians and should the laws change, they’ll be more than happy to return to full production, provided that the laws included provisions whereby the Second Amendment would be confirmed as protecting the rights of all law abiding citizens to own whatever weapons they chose without interference from the government.
  
  Report this comment
RoDogg
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:40pm
Any politician that tries to dictate what they like or dislike people doing through policy should be relieved from their post right away.

I smoke and I’m sick and tired of people voting to raise taxes etc on things they don’t like. That is SO un-American to me.

Just because YOU disagree with it doesn’t make it OK to tax it more or ban it!

IMO … sin taxes are unconstitutional …….I’m being taxed by people that don’t represent me. I’m being taxed to CHANGE me!

A pack of cigs in Oregon is around 6 bucks. Its ridiculous. EVERY non smoker I know is less healthy than me. These blanket laws and sin taxes need to STOP!!!

How dare ANYONE vote to raise taxes on something they disagree with!!!!!

reality check ignorant politicians!!!! Poor people don’t stop smoking. Shoot, when things get bad. they save what little they have for their vices. You only hurt people!

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- Auntdoozie
  Posted on January 26, 2013 at 8:29am
  I couldn’t have said that any better, You are so right. Give this man a carton of cigarettes.
  
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Cavallo
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:38pm
This is hilarious. Who would have thought that the violent revolution would begin in Oregon. (Foghorn Leghorn, “That’s a joke, son”) I think there are quite a few individuals who would go crazy. I look forward to seeing the effects of this asinine legislation. Does it seem more and more like something out of Demolition Man.. (everything bad for you is illegal).

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Carol in Indy
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:36pm
Whoa hang on there chief:
My youngest child is a junior in a major midwest univeristy. This semester she is studing in Vienna Austria.
As you know, they are a Quasi Socialistic Society. According to her emails, everyone smokes cigarettes everywhere. Resturants, Stores, Libraries, HER OWN CAMPUS!
I asked her about second hand smoke supportors and she said “There are none”

Hmmm..

~smh~

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woodyee
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:36pm
Smoking weed is WORSE for your lungs, imho; it’s unfiltered inhalation of burning substances containing toxic chemicals. Filtering it defeats the purpose, and taking a pill, well, we can’t have THAT now…

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- scuba13
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:53pm
  What about all of the chemicals that are added to cigarettes? I didn’t know that people added chemicals to pot.
  
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- RoDogg
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 1:06pm
  taken from article:
  “CHICAGO — Smoking a joint once a week or a bit more apparently doesn’t harm the lungs, suggests a 20-year study that bolsters evidence that marijuana doesn’t do the kind of damage tobacco does.”
  
  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/10/marijuana-and-lungs-study_n_1197854.html
  
  Report this comment
- woodyee
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:14pm
  Thanks for the info, fellows! What IS the by-product of burning the substance? Most would answer THC, but that’s a small part of it.
  
  What is the toxic substance? It is THC, and the other stuff that is the by-product of burnt stuff. If THC were not toxic, it would’nt affect you like it does.
  
  Where do the THC and other by-products go when inhaled? Into the lungs. Are they beneficial substances to the lungs? No, otherwise you’d be ENCOURAGED to smoke it. If it is NOT beneficial, then it is detrimental.
  
  I’m no scientist, I’m only stating an opinion based on reasonable deduction. I think the “study” was a crock full of meadow muffins, just like East Anglia’s global warming “study”, just like the studies that “prove” illegal aliens are a plus for our country, yadayadayada…
  
  Report this comment
- woodyee
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 2:21pm
  Just did a little research and found this interesting read on WebMD – http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/marijuana-use-and-its-effects
  
  Report this comment
- Dismayed Veteran
  Posted on January 25, 2013 at 2:01pm
  Senior Drill Instructor Jackson:
  
  Smoke them if you got them, maggots.
  
  Ah, the good old days when there were actually cigs in the C Ration box.
  
  I do believe smuggling cigs to Oregon could turn a profit. How does this impact Native American tribal areas?
  
  Report this comment
HotFixIt
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:34pm
These crazy lunatics are crawling out of the woodwork now that ‘O’ is fully embedded and able to do anything he wants… they are emboldened to let their crazy ideas into the light of day. It is really getting to be a bumpy ride. …. hang on!

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brntout
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:34pm
Hey Oregon, That fault line your rep is toying with, is not so far away.You need to save yourselves and squash this idiot now before we come out and do the Kabookey Dance on the San Andreas fault line, for you like Caulifornia will be leagues under the sea.

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Unbelievable
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:32pm
Just one more tiny step toward complete Government control.

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BlackCrow
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:32pm
But smoking pot is OK? You know it ain’t right doing that stuff and not sharing.

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- RJJinGadsden
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:43pm
  BLACKCROW, Yeah, that’s the funny part.
  As for me, I do not now, nor have I smoked anything. Cigarette smoke is thoroughly repulsive, and aggravates my allergies. But, I am anything but one of these anti-smoking zealot elitists. In my opinion, if you want to smoke, you have that right. And, I will stand up for your right to smoke if that is what you wish to do.
  But, the real crazy thing is just how will these nanny state leftist deal with the lose of so much tax revenue? Expect fuel and food taxes to increase, as well as anything else they wish to target.
  
  Report this comment
Mapache
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:31pm
Now, if a doctor prescribes cigarettes will he: 1) able to be sued by the patient if they suffer ill health consequences 2) lose his medical license as they would be in violation of “do no harm” and prescribing a dangerous drug with NO health benefits 3) or will cigarettes be classified as a “end of life” drug to ease the pain and suffering of a terminal patient 4) can taxpayers sue the doctor for increasing taxpayer subsidized and supported health services? Just asking….

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AmericanStrega
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:29pm
So how is the State of Oregon going to replace all the tax revenue they get from smokers?

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- Wino911
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:39pm
  Excellent question! They use the cig tax to fund healthcare. The jails are underfunded and real criminals are being let out early. What next alcohol? Using plastic bags? Not picking up your dogs poop? Crazy liberals are destroying the entire West Coast…
  
  Report this comment
- Rowgue
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:40pm
  The fining of people that are smoking illegally of course.
  
  Report this comment
- right-wing-waco
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:43pm
  They will start a “breathing” tax. You will be taxed on how many breaths you take each day and it will be monitored with an attached device that will be illegal to remove. (Tongue removed from cheek)
  
  Report this comment
kaydeebeau
Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:28pm
isn’t this one of the states that just passed legalizing marijuana – so smoking pot is good smoking cigs is bad according to a leftist? I thought the issue was smoking regardless of the substance – silly me

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- SquidVetOhio
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:34pm
  Any reputable lung specialist will tell you that marijuana is more harmful to the lungs than tobacco. We all know why they do this. Tobacco companies donate to Republicans. Nothing more, nothing less.
  
  Report this comment
- brntout
  Posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:40pm
  Everyone wants to one-up Caulifornia. Race to decay. New York,now what was that states name…What the heck has it contributed… Still can’t think of it’s name,except the libs are in control..Will be dancing on the fault line…..
  
  Report this comment

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