K
Kizzy
Guest
Monday, Oct. 20, 2003
You almost have to feel sorry for the infamously rude smokers of France. Fed up with yet another tax increase, tobacco shops protested today by closing, and the heavily addicted frogs are going nuts.
Ninety percent of the country's 34,000 vendors joined the unprecedented "day of mourning" for what they declared a dying trade.
"Your tobacco vendor is fighting for survival," read a notice taped outside several Paris smoke shops.
"Just great!" wailed Hakim Hachouche, a dancer frantically searching for tobacco on his way to rehearsal. "I can't have a cigarette even if I want to pay more for it."
The average price for a pack jumped from $4.60 to $5.40 and will soar to $6.30 in early 2004.
Selfish Frenchies continue to violate the ban on smoking in hospitals, airports and other public places, but the gendarmes are finally cracking down.
Twenty million frogs smoke, more than a third of the population, and half of those ages 15-24 are addicted.
So, how come the French government waited so long to attack the health problem? The answer is greed. The government used to own the lucrative tobacco industry. Now that it's private enterprise, time to confiscate as much money as possible and put it out of business!
Story Link
Go frogs, stand your ground, don't give them an inch... 
You almost have to feel sorry for the infamously rude smokers of France. Fed up with yet another tax increase, tobacco shops protested today by closing, and the heavily addicted frogs are going nuts.
Ninety percent of the country's 34,000 vendors joined the unprecedented "day of mourning" for what they declared a dying trade.
"Your tobacco vendor is fighting for survival," read a notice taped outside several Paris smoke shops.
"Just great!" wailed Hakim Hachouche, a dancer frantically searching for tobacco on his way to rehearsal. "I can't have a cigarette even if I want to pay more for it."
The average price for a pack jumped from $4.60 to $5.40 and will soar to $6.30 in early 2004.
Selfish Frenchies continue to violate the ban on smoking in hospitals, airports and other public places, but the gendarmes are finally cracking down.
Twenty million frogs smoke, more than a third of the population, and half of those ages 15-24 are addicted.
So, how come the French government waited so long to attack the health problem? The answer is greed. The government used to own the lucrative tobacco industry. Now that it's private enterprise, time to confiscate as much money as possible and put it out of business!
Story Link
Go frogs, stand your ground, don't give them an inch... 
