Black riders have again been seen in the Shire.  Creatures that once were representatives of the people, now mere extensions of the will of the state, seeking blood and treasure to shovel into the insatiable entitlement maw of Mordor.  This time, they are coming for the blessed Longbottom leaf…

Imagine my shock upon reading this at JRCigar:

A new bill has been introduced and is pending in Congress, H.R. 4439, that would amend federal law established by last year’s S-CHIP expansion. The bill proposes raising the federal excise tax rate on Pipe Tobacco to be equal to the tax rate on roll-your-own Cigarette Tobacco.

The federal pipe tobacco tax is currently $2.8311 per pound, which represents a 158% increase from the pre-S-CHIP tax of $1.0969 per pound. The proposed bill would increase the tax on pipe tobacco to a whopping $24.78 per pound!

$24.78 per pound. Evidently, Congressman Steve Cohen (D-Mordor/TN) has decided to end the plague of pipe smoking in this otherwise great republic.

The sad thing is this isn’t really about pipe tobacco at all.  Phillip Morris and the rest of Big Tobacco are upset at the rebranding of roll-your-own and hookah tobacco as ‘pipe tobacco’ to avoid taxes aimed at cigarettes.  They are none too concerned with destroying the gentle pastime of pipe smoking in the process.  Plus, those pipe smokers tend to be a conservative lot.

And it’s a mismatch…

HT John J. Miller in The Corner

I know that many of you in SA Land are inherently suspicious of economics (having, as it does, only a limited impact on abortion), but some of us think it’s kind of important. If you are part of this group, I ask your indulgence.

The Heritage Foundation has recently released a brilliant, easy to digest issue backgrounder that reminds us that government does not create jobs or wealth, nor can it provide stimulus to the economy. It can only shift money from productive areas to less-productive areas, which inhibits economic growth. I think this is a must read piece and a reminder that, mandate or no, the Democrats are destined to repeat the failures of the past (with the help of some Republicans).

Bonus: The article also explains why Bush’s “tax rebates” in 2001 were a bad idea.

The Texas Public Policy Foundation has just released a study comparing the economic environments of the big boys, Texas and California. I would make a big deal out of it, but I don’t see anyone being all that surprised to find out that, per capita, Texas has lower taxes, less regulation, less government spending, and faster income and population growth than its Left Coast rival. The TPPF determined that Texas is better suited to handle economic downturns in the general economy and is generally better able to avoid fiscal crises. I suspect Gov. Schwarzenegger has already figured that out.