Unprofessionalism at its best

The end of last week saw a minor bruhaha in the rightosphere over the worst news headline I’ve seen in a long time.

Bush Butt Probed, Cheney in Charge

It was written by “The Staff” of Axess News and overflowed with snide and childish remarks full of Bush Derangement Syndrome as well as a bit of Cheney Derangement Syndrome. Some folks called for Google, who featured it atop their news page, to drop Axcess News from their list of sources.

I found it funny, though probably only because I haven’t watched any if the Porky’s films in years. And it gave me reason to venture over to Axess’ site. Where I found this jewel by Alan Caruba

Taxing the Joy Out of Life

With exquisite irony, the box in which my favorite cigars arrive has a picture of the White House emblazoned on its cover and, underneath, the words, “Casa Blanca.” I smoke Presidentes, a Dominican Republic handmade cigar. They are identified as a “luxury cigar.” Given the current cost of the two boxes I enjoy every month that is an apt description.

Reports out of Washington, however, indicate that Congress has proposed raising taxes on premium cigars. The increase would be 20,000 percent. No, that is not a typographical error. 20,000 percent! It would raise the cost of a cigar astronomically.

The justification offered by the Democrat-controlled Congress is that it needs to waste…er…raise an extra $35-billion to $50-billion for “the state children’s health insurance program. The program distributes payments to the states to help buy coverage for kids not poor enough for Medicaid.” Yet another costly social welfare program among the others currently broke or shortly to be utterly bankrupt.

Watch out for Congress to go after “Big Candy” as a threat to the health of “little children” who must be “protected” against “excessive sugar consumption” (while insuring that the U.S. sugar industry continues to receive a subsidy that requires Americans to pay more for sugar than any other nation on earth.).

Before someone begins to assail me for smoking cigars, let me note that my Father smoked a pipe until he died and his father smoked a pack or more of cigarettes before he died. Both were well into their 90’s at the time of their demise and it occurred to me when I began smoking in college that I probably would not be adversely affected if I smoked as well. I took up cigars while serving in the U.S. Army. They are probably the only indulgence I have left as I verge on the seventh decade of my life.

There is a reason we celebrate living in “the land of the free” and that is, presumably, that the government designed by the Founding Fathers was supposed to leave us alone. The Constitution does not grant Congress the power to determine what or how much we eat, whether or not we become obese, whether we smoke, whether attending too many rock concerts can harm one’s hearing, or any other aspect of our presumably private lives.

Reading the whole thing would be beneficial to your mental wellness.

I’ll let Axcess slide if they keep publishing things like this.