Ban on shipment of tobacco for overseas!

So yesterday I received an e-mail from my senior leadership that says "Soldiers will no longer be authorized to have family members send them cigarettes or smokeless tobacco." Immediately I said "WTF?" and had to do some research on my own. Comes to find out that the government passed a new law that restricts the shipment of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco to locations overseas to include to Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. The cool thing about this rule though is this...IT DOES NOT AFFECT CIGARS! WOOOHOOO! For my other battle buddies this sucks!

Go here to read more

http://www.washingtonwatch.com/bills...1_SN_1147.html

[T.G]

Not much you can do if the brass has sent down a policy on it, but if you read that bill closely, you'll note that it applies only to sales and that non-commercial personal shipments are explicitly exempted.

(Sec. 3) Amends the federal criminal code to treat cigarettes and smokeless tobacco as nonmailable matter and prohibit their deposit into the U.S. mails. Requires the USPS to refuse to accept for delivery or transmit through the mails any package that it knows or has reasonable cause to believe contains any cigarettes or smokeless tobacco made nonmailable by this Act. Exempts from such prohibition: (1) cigars; and (2) mailings within the states of Alaska or Hawaii; (3) mailings for business purposes between legally operating tobacco businesses and by individuals for noncommercial purposes; or (4) mailings for consumer testing by manufacturers or the federal government. Requires the Postmaster General to issue a final rule to establish the standards and requirements applicable to tobacco products mailed for business purposes.

If I send you a gift of a carton of Marlboros for personal consumption, it's non-commercial since it's a gift, not a sale, and I paid all taxes when I purchased them, and you're not re-selling them.

[G G]

Great that you can still ship cigars, but it is a crying shame that they are putting those kind of rules in place AGAINST our own soldiers. I mean it's ok to go die for your country but God forbid if someone might try to send you some cigs or skoal or something like that. BOoooooooo again to our great leaders.

[replicant_argent]

you can touch on this thread, and yes... it is a giant bunch of panty-quivering Nanny State Bullsh!t.
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showthread.php?t=33529

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by ggainey

Great that you can still ship cigars, but it is a crying shame that they are putting those kind of rules in place AGAINST our own soldiers. I mean it's ok to go die for your country but God forbid if someone might try to send you some cigs or skoal or something like that. BOoooooooo again to our great leaders.

I think Adam's post showed that this is not the case, Greg.

[hotreds]

I have no "family members" in Iraq or Afghanistan. HUGHRAH!

ggainey, I agree! Its sad to see all these 18 and 19 year old Soldiers getting all shot up and **** and they STILL CANT HAVE A BEER! WTH!

Originally Posted by ggainey

Great that you can still ship cigars, but it is a crying shame that they are putting those kind of rules in place AGAINST our own soldiers. I mean it's ok to go die for your country but God forbid if someone might try to send you some cigs or skoal or something like that. BOoooooooo again to our great leaders.

[IBQTEE1]

I am getting ready to ship cigars and socks to my friend this week. You had me scared for a moment.

[G G]

Originally Posted by icehog3

I think Adam's post showed that this is not the case, Greg.

Carry on then mr. smartypants.

[nick2021]

I'm one of the people managing the contract for postal stuff in N Iraq...it shouldn't affect cigars, but I know leadership has been "hesitant" on this because it was briefed to the Sr leadership that somebody was caught trying to smuggle cuban cigars into the U.S. through mail (think it was 150-200 cigars)....it made it through the initial postal screening then got caught on the second screening. what's funny is those cigars were probably "fakes" like most of them out here are...

[ninjavanish]

I want to invent a time machine... go back to 1944... and put this law in front of FDR... send a copy to Eisenhower, Patton and MacArthur... I feel like they could have all used a good laugh.

If supporting our soliders ever becomes a crime. I'll be the first one to go to jail.

I realize the expemption still allows private parties to ship to soldiers from a "gifting" standpoint... but this is precisely the type of law they put into place in order to wedge open the door to passing a more restrictive law against our freedoms later on down the road.

[nick2021]

Originally Posted by ninjavanish

I want to invent a time machine... go back to 1944... and put this law in front of FDR... send a copy to Eisenhower, Patton and MacArthur... I feel like they could have all used a good laugh.

If supporting our soliders ever becomes a crime. I'll be the first one to go to jail.

I realize the expemption still allows private parties to ship to soldiers from a "gifting" standpoint... but this is precisely the type of law they put into place in order to wedge open the door to passing a more restrictive law against our freedoms later on down the road.

I totally agree!

[Swany]

Wow, I have not heard of this before. I guess we owe our thanks to those GREAT boys and girls in Washington, again, for making MORE laws.

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by T.G

Not much you can do if the brass has sent down a policy on it, but if you read that bill closely, you'll note that it applies only to sales and that non-commercial personal shipments are explicitly exempted.



If I send you a gift of a carton of Marlboros for personal consumption, it's non-commercial since it's a gift, not a sale, and I paid all taxes when I purchased them, and you're not re-selling them.

No worries.