The Death of Liberty – One Cigar at a Time

The Death of Liberty – One Cigar at a Time

By:  Dan Mirabella, aka “CigarManDan”    -    10-20-2013

There aren't many things that really get my blood boiling these days, short of maybe Sophia Vergara and good Indian food.  But something has really tripped my trigger lately and it is completely driving me, well pretty much nuts.

Those political representatives, that band of senile nitwits, that we voluntarily place in office to serve and protect our civil rights and liberties under the constitution of our great nation, have once again joined to remove yet another of our freedoms and liberties.  These great thinkers of our time; have been totally jobbed by the power drunken fools at the FDA.  As a result, these Pork minded meat-heads are now performing the classic over-stretch; as they now regulate the Cigars we smoke, the way that we shop for them, how we order them, pretty much everything. 

                                                                         

H.R.1256

Or as it’s known by its formal name, “The Tobacco Control Act” reached the floor and was brought to vote back on June 12, 2009.  The purpose of this bill was claimed to be the protection of the public health by providing the Food and Drug Administration with certain authority to regulate tobacco products. 

Protect children you say?  Stop the spread of Tobacco products among teens?  Prevent manufacturers from using additives to keep people addicted?  Educate on the true dangers?   Man, all that sounds so good that every conscientious and reasonable politician would say “Sure, hell yes, what a great idea”.  Take the vote, pound the gavel, and then we are off to the local watering hole for a few stiff drinks on our way to a nice cozy, lobbyist sponsored dinner.  Sorry folks, there is a lot more to this story.

Our Rights

Well, guess what got buried in this health forward, sensible legislation?  They expanded the provisions of this law to include rolled tobaccos, which our beloved fine Cigars now fall, within this vague and expertly shrouded law.  Are you also now confused based on the source rationale that they provided above?  Well, me too. 

Last time I checked, I have never seen children or even teens trying to sneak into a Cigar Store Humidor to buy a $10-$20 fine Nicaraguan or Ecuadorian hand rolled Cigar.  I have never had a teen ask me if I could reach the upper shelves of the Humidor to hand them down a Churchill, or Toro, or Presidente style Cigar.  Maybe someone somewhere has seen a rebellious group of kids sneak off into the woods to spark up a fine Davidoff, or a Rocky Patel, or Corona brand Cigar, but I sure as heck haven’t.  Further, a significant condition of this law is the ban of flavored Cigars completely.  So if you fall into that very large group of Cigar enthusiasts who enjoy an Amaretto flavored Cigar, or a Bourbon infused tobacco leaf, you are completely out of luck under this terrible law.  This will hurt the industry, drive up prices, and limit our selections, all based on some stuffed suit’s ill conceived conjecture that it will somehow lead to Cigar smoking by teenagers and minors.  That’s bad, really bad.

More personally, the ability to visit a fine Cigar store, walk through a humidor, admire the stock, ask questions, and learn from both management and fellow shoppers cannot be duplicated.  This law will make that entire experience illegal, and outlaw walk-in humidors in their entirety.  We would be forced to make purchases from across a glass case, talking to a salesperson, who may or may not, have any idea what they are talking about, or even care.  It really doesn't take a neurosurgeon moonlighting as a rocket scientist to see that this will all but kill your local Cigar shop, hurting the very foundation of our industry.

OK fine, maybe these cubical dwelling bureaucrats have seen something that we all haven’t.  Maybe they aren’t really trying to sell us swamp land in South Florida, so let’s move on.  Oh yes, what about the other protection minded fairy-tale?  Nice try politicos, but Cigars are NOT infused with any chemicals whatsoever to keep people addicted to them.  That would actually be rather difficult to do, since Cigars do not lend themselves to the same manufacturing processes as Cigarettes.  There are blending issues, aging, sustainability, transport, and control problems with even beginning to try to implement such a devious and vile practice.  Most of all, the basic difference is that people, aka voting aged adults, smoke cigars for the pure pleasure, not because they are being chemically induced into needing to.  It really is for the love and enjoyment that one extracts from fine Cigars.  So poof, there goes the other justification that the FDA had forwarded to gain a strangle hold over the Cigar smoking public. 

Ok, Then Why?

That’s pretty east to answer.  The same reason that most people do anything.  For the money of course.  The trick is in how they are trying pull it off without lifting the curtain. 

First, the Cigar industry is experiencing a run of unprecedented growth.  Inventories are abundant, sales are vibrant, and growth is steady.  This has been the case for approximately a decade, attracting the attention of a Congress that has been handcuffed in identifying and enacting new areas of tax revenues.  However, this was not always the case.  In the decade preceding it, the industry was in an extended tailspin.  Inventories were rotting and burned, sales orders could not be filled due to a severe lack of product.  Even when sales were completed, the product was average in quality at best.  Countries other than Cuba had not yet perfected the seeding, germinating, growing, picking, processing, and distributing processes that we enjoy today.  These countries now rival, and may even exceed Cuba’s Cigar making quality today. 

Second, all we need to do is to look at the types of people that smoke Cigars.  Your average demographic generally falls to the average middle to upper class male.  They fall somewhere within the 30-to-60 year age range?  I would say that is a fair enough assumption. What does this demographic generate plenty of?  You got it, money.  Money, that the government has not been able to easily get their hands on historically.  So what better opportunity to create a direct path to unrealized taxes than to build some conditions deep within a Health and Safety legislative initiative? 

Put these two components together and you have a perfect storm resulting in a hungry and needy governmental wolf staring down a fat juicy new tax lamb.

Who else benefits?  Well beside the government, this would allow the Cigarette industry, its powerful lobbyist army, and a crowd of self centered political appointees to offset the tremendous loss in cigarette sales revenue, justifiably heaped upon them by actions directly attributable to only themselves!   They have suffered tremendous losses from regulation and compensatory legal payouts from unsuccessful litigation. They received their just desserts, for infusing addicting laden chemicals into their product for the sole purpose to maintain addiction, to ensure a sustainable financial future.  Justice served, until these governmental dimwits opened an entire new road of financial recovery for these Cigarette manufacturing monsters.  Typical successful Governmental initiative strategy, no good deed shall go untarnished. 

How can the government hammer this home?  They control the import, transport, and sales processes.  Create additional laws and processes that will make it practically impossible for Cigar manufacturers to export their products, receive them at a United States port of entry, and transport them to market.  Uncle Sam will now control counts, types, components, display, customer access, and purchase processes.  This will all equate to large tax revenues, while trampling all over the concepts of both free enterprise and personal freedoms.  The end result will be much higher product costs, lower inventory counts, and limited selection for the consumer.  The classic recipe for Government inspired catastrophe.

                                                                    

So What Can We Do?

Please use the two links below to reach out to your local Politicians to let them know your views and concerns:

http://capwiz.com/cigarrights/dbq/officials/ – Find your local representative
http://cigarrights.org/# – Voice your opinion, add your name to the petition!

Don’t let your personal freedom and liberty be taken away in the name of new tax revenues.  None of the reasons that the FDA or Congress has provided in applying the conditions for “The Tobacco Control Act” apply to Cigars.  They are simply applying another back door hidden tax and attempting to put a direct stranglehold on the world of fine Cigars.  Therefore, we need to do something.  In addition to the two links above, write, call, picket, discuss, and advertise the injustice of this ill conceived government control of the things we love.  Not just for this issue, but anytime your personal freedom is violated or curtailed.  Don’t allow them kill liberty, one Cigar at a time.                           

                                           

LaPaloma Vintage Reserva Toro Connecticut Cigar- A review by CigarManDan

I received this Cigar as part of a Sampler pack order that I made with the Thompson Cigar Company.  The LaPaloma is a private label line produced by Thompson.  I was looking forward to trying out this Cigar as it was the only Cigar of the order that was not a national brand, and shared the familiar Davidoff Gold highlight on white label color scheme.  So, this Cigar was starting out with a couple of strikes against it, as this similarity was going to probably difficult to meet or exceed.

Upon first look, this Vintage Reserva Toro Connecticut model has a very nice color mix, falling somewhere between a tan and an olive colored wrapper.  The Cigar has very handsome wrap lines with no splitting or cracking visible.  Mine was a typical Toro style, advertised at 6”, with a nominal length of 5 ¾”.  It measured to a 50 Ring Gauge.  It has a nice sweet type fragrance at the head.  So far, so good.

I toasted the head with my trusty Alec Bradley table top lighter.  We were off to a nice even start, with and even draw, and that slightly sweet flavor making a slight emergence.    At about 1-inch through, the ash is stiff and flaky, with no re-lights or touch-up lightings necessary. 

I am noticing that much of the flavor to this Cigar is again that hinting, far off tease that sort of pokes you and runs away before you can catch it.  It leaves this experienced Cigar smoker considering this as a possibly good option for a person just finding the world of Cigars.  The flavor is very mild, the structure is excellent, and the ash and draw remained consistent throughout the smoke.  The entire duration lasted about an hour.

This is clearly an affordably priced offering from Thompson and may be an option for the Cigar rookies or intermediates out there.   Experienced smokers may want to look elsewhere for a budget Cigar, as it will leave you looking for slightly more robust and complex flavors.   If you fall into this category, I would suggest when ordering from Thompson, the Victor Sinclair Cabinet 99’, the Rocky Patel Autumn Series, or maybe a PDR 1878 Cubano Especial Natural.  Those are always reliable at a very reasonable price point.

I fully support online ordering, but where possible please never pass up an opportunity to help out your local Cigar retailer by giving them your patronage.  Share their experience and insights, browse their selections, and maybe even make a few new Cigar friends along the way.