Sin Tax Increases Applauded: Thailand

[Narratio]

Obviously my medication is low as I'm still a bit puzzled by the concept of a 'sin tax'... I mean, in the Bible, the Book of Romans somewhere (I forget) it says that "the wages of sin is death". So committing a sin gets you paid in 'death' and thus the government will now tax death.

Hmmmm. Even for the Shin' clan that seems a bit much... NURSE! More medication please!

[NoshowJones]

It is shocking to treat the poor like this.

These people have few pleasures in life. No cinemas, no bowling that they can visit or afford.

Satellite TV is unaffordable

It's a disgrace when all other household costs are rising too and the vast majority have no increase in income to offset it.

Shame on you PTP

Hmmm - so your now advocating the government sets up some sort of scheme to increase the incomes of the lowest paid in society.

If the Thai government wants to know about raising taxes from alcohol. cigarettes and owning cars, they should get in touch with past British governments, particularly Labour, and they will get all the help they need, in fact, I'm sure Gordon Brown would be pleased to come to Thailand and make speeches, at a price of course while still drawing his MPs salary.

[h90]

I agree alcohol and smoking are bad, but people should be allowed to do so. But then they have to pay for their own sickness and stuff resulting from it. So in a way if the extra tax is for healthcare of smokers its ok.

How about people consuming sugar, salt,tea and coffee, medication, msg, fat, fast food? And how about those who think ketchup is a vegetable?

I always eat french fries with ketchup as vegetables are healthy

Those skinny things and ketchup should be left to kids. BTW tomatoes are a fruit, not a vegetable. I hope that when you eat real chips you have the good taste and savoir faire to know that they should be smothered in malt vinegar, preferable Sarson's.

shame on me!! yes of course the fruits! Is ketchup technically than a jam?

with malt vinegar.....yes when I was young they teached me in an irish pup...big french fries which are soft and you poor a lot malt vinegar and salt over them.

I loved it, but from all people I know I was the only one....

[h90]

Obviously my medication is low as I'm still a bit puzzled by the concept of a 'sin tax'... I mean, in the Bible, the Book of Romans somewhere (I forget) it says that "the wages of sin is death". So committing a sin gets you paid in 'death' and thus the government will now tax death.

Hmmmm. Even for the Shin' clan that seems a bit much... NURSE! More medication please!

that would be an idea for europe...we have tax on everything but they forgot tax on dieing.....

[gamini]

Whiskey, Gin and Brandy are still a lot cheaper than in Europe. And Beer is much cheaper than Malaysia, So we should not complain

[Moruya]

It is shocking to treat the poor like this.

These people have few pleasures in life. No cinemas, no bowling that they can visit or afford.

Satellite TV is unaffordable

It's a disgrace when all other household costs are rising too and the vast majority have no increase in income to offset it.

Shame on you PTP

Yes, of course, the approx 20 million people close to or on the subsistence level , are crying out for satellite TV and bowling lanes above all else..................

The government makes a perfectly sensible fiscal and social health decision and for you it is a disgrace and a shame on them.

The constant linkage is predictable and boring.

I think Moruya may have been indulging in a bit of sarcasm but it's not always easy to tell.

When governments put up tax on tobacco and alcohol there's always the possibility that they're doing it to get more revenue rather than out of concern for the population's welfare. I'm certainly no fan of this government and I do have my suspicions about their reasons but without any evidence I would say give them the benefit of the doubt. I do wonder how much is taxed and how much is smuggled bearing in mind the corruption here?

They seem to be targeting imports again though which is just protectionism but that's just normal here.

On occasion you would be quite right to accuse me of sarcasm or any number of similarly devious machinations. In this case that's not the intention.

When I look at the UK or Aus where I have spent a lot of time, the sociologists blame a lack of things to do as the reason for drugs and petty crime. Are they right? Not sure.

When I was a kid, TV was new and there was not that much for kids to watch. There were ample parks around where you could take a football and kick it around. We had fun. Mum and dad had some quiet and we got exercise. There were no computers. We made our own fun up trees, fishing, inventing games etc.

When I look up country at what they have today it's not dissimilar. Terrestrial TV is pants, computers are not really widely available. The big difference is work and education. Education isn't really pursued and work opportunities are poor.

What has the PTP done about that? Nothing. Kids opportunities are awful.

I have a real problem identifying anyone in a village of 700 who has benefited from any policy changes

[Moruya]

shame on me!! yes of course the fruits! Is ketchup technically than a jam?

with malt vinegar.....yes when I was young they teached me in an irish pup...big french fries which are soft and you poor a lot malt vinegar and salt over them.

I loved it, but from all people I know I was the only one....

Haha. Big fat chips, salt and vinegar. Classic food

[h90]

Cigarettes are as addictive as heroin so increasing the price will not have the desired effects.

Make it an illegal class 1 drug and legalize marijuana.

don't be ridiculous. I was for many years a heavy smoker. When you stop after 15 years, you have an urge to smoke, yes, but that is all and it fades away after 7-14 days.

And I wouldn't murder or prostitute myself for the next cigarette....

So it is not as addictive as heroin

[alanferdi]

Why do these activists spout such bs.

Half of all offenses are caused by alcohol???????

How blind...the taxes are aimed mostly at the imported drinks. The implications... drink even stronger raw alcohol and an incentive to brew the old home made recipes. Like taking away refined water and giving tap water to circulate. To stop drinking is to educate people to live a better lifestyle. Who are they aiming at.... the Yaba street vendor or the licensed Shops.... Politics and education or the lack of both.

[alanferdi]

<p>

The additional revenue will be spent on Health and Education, I trust?

Of course! It will be used to make some educated Shinawatras bank accounts more healthy.

And which members of the Shinawatra family would that be? Degrees and doctorates bought for cash don't count. Nor do exam cheats.

Edited August 23, 2012 by alanferdi

[alanferdi]

you can clearly see that : farang fire water, more bad than thai fire water, huhhhhhhhhhh (indian saying)

that is why it has to be taxed more

My brain is lead to the same conclusion by this "wise" decision. Work it the logic.. who are they taxing - Farangs!!!! Tourist!!!! and the perhaps a fraction of the 16-20 million people in the cities.... the Taxi drivers and the farmers are not into Jack Daniels and the stuff... Right... Hmmm Clever Red brain! chinawhatrum.... sounds like Chinese or What

[Thai at Heart]

The least they could do is let sugar reflect the real price instead of subsidizing it domestically if they want to achieve a health benefit.

[visionchaser45]

All these increases accomplish is to stimulate the black market for these products. People in the U.S. break into businesses just to steal cigarettes. Practically all of the cost of a package of cigarettes is tax money. I want to know what gives governments the right to discriminate between manufacturers of consumer products, taxing some products more than others.

Edited August 23, 2012 by visionchaser45

[RogueLeader]

Why can't they just admit that it's trade protectionism? It's not like they're looking for an IMF bailout.

[tonglen]

If you cannot stop heroin, ya-ba or ya-ice by making them illegal AND a hefty price tag to match, how will a sin-tax stop a cheaper, legal product from being used? It wont.

As pointed out by other posters, it will only mean these locals cutting corners on other items - nothing more.

The government can stop addictions like they can stop floods - not at all.

[stingray]

They could go for prohibition and see how that works out. It cost close to 10.00 dollars a pack for cigarettes in the states and people still smoke.

Every country the same. Goverments always uses "excuses" to increase taxes. Cigarette Taxes, Alsohol Taxes, Petrol Taxes, etc. What a goverment would do, if no one smookes drinkes or drive a car anymore?

[masterbiker49]

It is shocking to treat the poor like this.

These people have few pleasures in life. No cinemas, no bowling that they can visit or afford.

Satellite TV is unaffordable

It's a disgrace when all other household costs are rising too and the vast majority have no increase in income to offset it.

Shame on you PTP

Tax on air is NEXT. TIT

[weegee]

They could go for prohibition and see how that works out. It cost close to 10.00 dollars a pack for cigarettes in the states and people still smoke.

Guess you havent bought a pak in OZ.....$10 is cheap. You have to save up for a month to buy a carton....lol.

[Moruya]

It is shocking to treat the poor like this.

These people have few pleasures in life. No cinemas, no bowling that they can visit or afford.

Satellite TV is unaffordable

It's a disgrace when all other household costs are rising too and the vast majority have no increase in income to offset it.

Shame on you PTP

Tax on air is NEXT. TIT

VAT will be next. From 7% to 10%

The PTP makes no attempt to impose income tax on any but the 20% who currently pay as that would lose votes. The increase in minimum salary would have been the ideal time to get those people into the system.

[Grumbles]

I think if the governments want to raise taxes to collect revenue then that is up to them. What I really object to is the BS they spout about wanting to force people to quit.

If they wanted people to quit they should outlaw the sale of tobacco & alcohol. But how much money in taxes will they miss out on?

Be straight about it &lt;deleted&gt;. (This goes for all the hypocritical, money grabbing governments everywhere, after all, they all use the same script.)

[Grumbles]

It is shocking to treat the poor like this.

These people have few pleasures in life. No cinemas, no bowling that they can visit or afford.

Satellite TV is unaffordable

It's a disgrace when all other household costs are rising too and the vast majority have no increase in income to offset it.

Shame on you PTP

Tax on air is NEXT. TIT

Australia's carbon tax???

[Bagwan]

Drinking Gin n Tonic with a lemon or lime twist is a SIN...Holy Mother of Mary...I better do all my Hail Marys to get ahead. All you good

Catholics need to start doing your HAIL MARYS.

Ah, What the Hell, coz their ain't going to be any Gin n Tonics with a lemon or lime twist. In Heaven.

Oh yes as I recall, one of the 5 basic precepts of Buddhism is No Alcohol!

It looks like everyone is doomed!!!!

The only reason that G&T is not available in heaven is because Princess Margaret has drunk all the gin.

[Thai at Heart]

Drinking Gin n Tonic with a lemon or lime twist is a SIN...Holy Mother of Mary...I better do all my Hail Marys to get ahead. All you good

Catholics need to start doing your HAIL MARYS.

Ah, What the Hell, coz their ain't going to be any Gin n Tonics with a lemon or lime twist. In Heaven.

Oh yes as I recall, one of the 5 basic precepts of Buddhism is No Alcohol!

It looks like everyone is doomed!!!!

The only reason that G&T is not available in heaven is because Princess Margaret has drunk all the gin.

And if there was any left, Queen mum was busy pickling herself in it, rest her soul.

[Bagwan]

Obviously my medication is low as I'm still a bit puzzled by the concept of a 'sin tax'... I mean, in the Bible, the Book of Romans somewhere (I forget) it says that "the wages of sin is death". So committing a sin gets you paid in 'death' and thus the government will now tax death.

Hmmmm. Even for the Shin' clan that seems a bit much... NURSE! More medication please!

that would be an idea for europe...we have tax on everything but they forgot tax on dieing.....

Ever hear of death duties? My wife's aunt's husband died last year and HMG took 35% of his pension fund payout in tax. Bastards.

[hyperdimension]

it will hurt the poorer Thais most of all as many have ciggies & booze as their only pleasures.

Poor Thais should quit alcohol and cigarettes and take up cannabis as their new pleasure. It is much less harmful* than many other drugs (including alcohol and cigarettes, especially if it's ingested instead of smoking) and can be grown easily (it's a weed) in their back- or front yard, providing a constant supply. The ongoing expenses would be much lower than for other drugs (possibly almost nothing), leaving more money for food. Growing plants for own consumption is in line with the "sufficiency economy" philosophy.

I think a shift from alcohol to cannabis use would also reduce violence and accidents in society.

* Quantifying the RR of harm to self and others from substance misuse: results from a survey of clinical experts across Scotland

Edited August 24, 2012 by hyperdimension

[visionchaser45]

"It is much less harmful* than many other drugs..." Yeah, it would be less harmful if it weren't for the long prison sentence and possible execution you face in Thailand for going that way.