Sin Taxes

I’m not sure if this is still a phrase…. But what it means is that the govt charges a tax for things like alcohol, cigarettes etc because they want to penalize people for using these products. The money is meant to go toward treatment (hospitals, rehab beds) of any health conditions the person using these products incurs. Or for infrastructure.

Sounds good, right? Except the govt also sells these products, or licenses companies to sell them (ie. duty free shops) , making them more available to the people. And now we can add marijuana too (dispensaries). It’s completely contrary to their intended purpose of regulating/reducing behaviour, to provide the sin, then charge for actually engaging in the sinful behaviour, don’t you think? They are profiting off the sin they claim to condemn.

Which makes it far easier to take a Libertarian/Anarchist view that the govt shouldn’t exist. And if they do, it shouldn’t be allowed to tax us. At least not for our ‘bad’ behaviour.

What do you think about sin taxes?