Missouri Cigarette Taxes Remain Lowest in the Nation

Missouri cigarette taxes remain the lowest in the nation since South Carolina raised their rate to 57 cents last summer. The Show Me State's rate of 17 cents is now by far the lowest in the nation - the nearest is Virginia that is almost double Missouri's at 30 cents. The highest in the nation is New York at an astonishing $4.35 PER PACK - pushing the average price for a pack of smokes in NYC to $11. By way of comparison, the average price of a pack of cigarettes in Missouri is around $4. Sin taxes have long been a touchy subject in Missouri (the beer tax hasn't been raised in over 40 years either).

A strong lobby and a State Constitution that demands a public referendum on major tax increases is behind the low tax. Missouri's last try at raising the tax in 2006 was narrowly defeated by a 51% to 49%. With Missouri's adult smoker rate hovering around the 25% mark, it's clear that even non-smoking Missourians value keeping taxes low.

Democratic Representative Mary Still from Columbia is trying again in 2011 to raise the tax. She is trying to skirt the public vote by allowing a 12 cent increase per year over 8 years. (The formula that demands a public vote would be side stepped by the incremental rise). As a Democrat, she is, of course diabolical by nature. Though she stands little chance of succeeding with a Republican Majority in both houses, and a Governor, though a Democrat, who has pledged not to raise any taxes, her disdain for the masses is obvious.

The problem with raising cigarette taxes (besides the fact that all taxes should be as low as possible), is that it hurts less educated, lower income people. The very folks that Democrats are supposedly fighting for.

Medical Marijuana & Kansas City - Legal Explanation

Medical Marijuana to be Legal in Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri?
by Kansas City News

First of all, I don't think that everyone understands exactly what legal medical marijuana means for states like California, whose popular medical marijuana districts like Los Ganjales are making headlines and documentary studies alike.  What most people don't understand about the medical marijuana law is this:

If the STATE passes the law that it is legal to purchase, grow and use marijuana, then residents can obtain a prescription from a "doctor" and purchase medical marijuana at a "dispensary" and it is legal under the STATE law.  Now, it is still illegal, regardless of your state's law to grow, purchase or use marijuana under FEDERAL law.  So, let's say you live in a state where medical marijuana is legal, you purchase some marijuana with your prescription and are driving in your car with it.  If a STATE law officer pulls you over and finds the marijuana and you have a prescription you are fine.  However, if a DEA officer pulls you over or raids your home, it doesn't matter whether it is legal in your state, if you have a prescription or what, you are going to jail.  It is still against FEDERAL law to purchase, grow or possess marijuana, regardless of what your state law says.


This is why, in California, several marijuana "dispensaries" get raided every once in awhile by Federal DEA agents.  They confiscate all of the company's computers, products and money - at will.  They can come in any time they want, without a warrant, and take everything.  They can also arrest anyone they want, whenever they want for growing or possessing marijuana, regardless of state law.


So, even if Kansas or Missouri makes medical marijuana legal, you will still be looking over your shoulder for the DEA on the Federal level, and I can't imagine that court date going very well for you.  Basically, they are saying that it's legal, and yet it's not really legal at the same time.


On the last bill proposed by Gail Finney (D) in Kansas to legalize medical marijuana, which read "An Act enacting the medical marijuana act; providing for the legal use of marijuana for certain debilitating medical conditions; providing for the registration and functions of compassion centers; authorizing the issuance of identification cards; providing for administration of the act by the department of health and environment." failed on May 28th, 2010.


On the last bill proposed by Missouri which read "Changes the laws regarding the classification of marijuana as a controlled substance and allows the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes under certain conditions." the bill "died" when legislature adjourned without voting on the bill at all on May 30th, 2010.

I. Fifteen states and DC have enacted laws that legalize medical marijuana:

State	Year Passed	How Passed (Yes Vote)	Fee	Possession Limit	Accepts other states' registry ID cards?
1. Alaska	1998	Ballot Measure 8 (58%)	$25/$20	1 oz usable; 6 plants (3 mature, 3 immature)	unknown1
2. Arizona	2010	Proposition 203 (50.13%)	unknown2	2.5 oz usable; 0-12 plants3	Yes4
3. California	1996	Proposition 215 (56%)	$66/$33	8 oz usable; 18 plants (6 mature, 12 immature)5	No
4. Colorado	2000	Ballot Amendment 20 (54%)	$90	2 oz usable; 6 plants (3 mature, 3 immature)	No
5. DC	2010	Amendment Act B18-622 (13-0 vote)	*	2 oz dried; limits on other forms to be determined	unknown
6. Hawaii	2000	Senate Bill 862 (32-18 House; 13-12 Senate)	$25	3 oz usable; 7 plants (3 mature, 4 immature)	No
7. Maine	1999	Ballot Question 2 (61%)	$100/$75	2.5 oz usable; 6 plants	Yes6
8. Michigan	2008	Proposal 1 (63%)	$100/$25	2.5 oz usable; 12 plants	Yes
9. Montana	2004	Initiative 148 (62%)	$25/$10	1 oz usable; 6 plants	Yes
10. Nevada	2000	Ballot Question 9 (65%)	$150 +	1 oz usable; 7 plants (3 mature, 4 immature)	No
11. New Jersey	2010	Senate Bill 119 (48-14 House; 25-13 Senate)	**	2 oz usable	unknown
12. New Mexico	2007	Senate Bill 523 (36-31 House; 32-3 Senate)	$0	6 oz usable; 16 plants (4 mature, 12 immature)	No
13. Oregon	1998	Ballot Measure 67 (55%)	$100/$20	24 oz usable; 24 plants (6 mature, 18 immature)	No
14. Rhode Island	2006	Senate Bill 0710 (52-10 House; 33-1 Senate)	$75/$10	2.5 oz usable; 12 plants	Yes
15. Vermont	2004	Senate Bill 76 (22-7) HB 645 (82-59)	$50	2 oz usable; 9 plants (2 mature, 7 immature)	No
16. Washington	1998	Initiative 692 (59%)	***	24 oz usable; 15 plants	No

[Editor's note: 12 of the 15 states require proof of residency to be considered a qualifying patient for medical marijuana use. Only Oregon and Montana have announced that they will accept out-of-state applications. It is unclear if non-residents will be able to apply to be qualifying registered patients in Arizona until the rules are determined by ADHS. Karen O'Keefe, JD, Director of State Policies for Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), told ProCon.org in a Nov. 2, 2010 email that "Patients and their caregivers can cultivate in 13 of the 15 states. Home cultivation is not allowed in New Jersey or the District of Columbia and a special license is required in New Mexico. In Arizona, patients can only cultivate if they live 25 miles or more from a dispensary."]

Snow Ball Catholic Charities of Kansas City 37th Gala

Catholic Charities of Kansas hosts 37th Annual Snow Ball at The Hyatt Regency
by Kansas City News

Well, let's start by pointing out the obvious. We attended the Snow Ball this year and found ourselves in a room full of over 1500 people...and they were almost all...well, white. There is nothing wrong with this in theory except the cover of the Catholic Charities website has two minority children pictured front and center. It is great that the group is helping out the underprivileged families in our community, but it's a little ironic that their fundraiser, appropriately called the "Snow Ball" didn't have more than a handful of minorities in attendance. In fact, one of the only minorities in the room was on the stage looking like she was half dead...

The black female lead singer of what was billed as "The Karen Davis Project" was definitely not Karen Davis, unless she put on about 150 pounds and aged 30 years overnight. This lady, whoever she was put on absolutely NO show and stood motionless and expressionless throughout the band's lackluster performance. The fact that this woman was so boring was made even worse by a live video feed that plastered her dead-like face on several giant video screens around the ballroom. The female singer wasn't the only problem, the band was cheesy and generic and they made desperate attempts at performing some modern hits when it was clear that they were far too old to pull those songs off (average age of the band members was around 55 years old). There's nothing cool or "hip" about a 55 year old guy playing a little toy looking keyboard with two fingers attempting to recreate a Lady Gaga song - then add the dead looking female singer (not moving at all) trying to sing the song. This band was a train wreck. Another band came on after this band - they were called Four Fried Chickens and a Coke - but pretty much the minute they took the stage the crowd was leaving the event. The Snow Ball has been using the same tired old entertainment for years and many of the attendees left as soon as they got a look at the band.

The attendees of the Snow Ball by Kansas Catholic Charities obviously represent the "old money" in Kansas City and we interviewed a few of them as they were exiting the event. Some actually walked by with their noses in the air and wouldn't acknowledge us at all, while others gave generic answers to our questions while staring coldly ahead, never making eye contact. I suppose that paying money to attend an event like Snow Ball counts for their "kindness" contribution to Kansas City, and they can pretty much go back to acting like stuck up royalty when it's over. The Catholic Charities as an organization may not be racist, but isn't it odd that in a room full of 1500 people in Kansas City we were hard pressed to find more than three or four minorities? Hmmmm....

Snow Ball - yep, that's what it was alright.

Catholic Charities is a great organization that helps out thousands of children in need, and we actually donate to their charity each year, but the Snow Ball just seemed a little over the top - almost as if the entire neighborhood of Hallbrook (which is where we live also) showed up to attend. I suppose in hindsight, not many minorities could afford to pay the ticket price to get in to Snow Ball, except maybe the Chiefs players.

Mizzou and Kansas State Both Seeking Needed Victories

The Kansas State Wildcats travel to Columbia to take on the Tigers in a rare Monday Matinee game today at 4:30. It should be a great game between two teams that came into the season with very high expectation in conference play. Missouri is 15-3, but has already lost two conference games to only one victory. Kansas State, also 1-2 in conference play, has been a disappointment so far this year having been ranked third in the country at one time, they have since dropped to 20th after losses to unranked Florida, Oklahoma State, and UNLV.

Both teams see this as a must win to keep their Conference Championship hopes alive - the loser of this game would likely have to run the table in the Big 12 to have a chance. Of course, that's assuming Kansas stops being the luckiest team in the history of sports and actually loses a few games.

The Tigers are awfully tough at home, and with Clemente sidelined for The Wildcats, Missouri should hold the edge in this one. But of course Missouri has let a couple of games slip away with bad mistakes at crunch time losing in overtime to Georgetown and Texas A&M. If Kansas State can stay close until the end, anything can happen. I'll say Missouri by 8.

Ferret Bites Off Sleeping Baby's Fingers

A 4 month old Grain Valley, MO infant is in critical condition after a pet ferret bit off 8 fingers early Monday. Only the child's thumbs and part of a pinkie remain. The parents awoke to the baby crying at 2:30 AM and found the ferret next to the baby. The child's father picked the ferret up and threw it, killing the animal.

The Grain Valley Police reported that the mother fell asleep in the same room as the child, and the father in another room and both were awoken in the middle of the night. in recent months, animal control authorities have made several visits to the residence to investigate complaints relating to dogs on the premises. The landlord at the address also said she told them to get rid of the ferret because it was in violation of their lease as they already had two dogs.

In any case, a ferret, or any animal around an infant unattended is a recipe for disaster. What a sad story for this kid, crippled for life because of his parents bad choice. Anyone interested in a Ferret as a pet should check out this helpful owner's manual I found - which by the way says children under 6 are not recommended for ferrets, and infants "are a particular problem. Some ferrets seem to be attracted to the high pitched cries of babies."