Am about to pursue my nefarious actionism for smokers

Because... I went out to my tobacconist today. And the owner had blazing angry eyes, and said, 'You have to look at this pamphlet.'

And I thought, 'Oh, cripes, WHAT NOW????'

(Don't forget that I'm an official retired person, and pensioners are famed to be real curmudgeons...)

'LOOK at this! They are going to wipe out my whole profession! Sign the petition!'

'Um, errrm... what is this about???'

'You're only gonna get one sort of cigarette, I will have to sell it under the counter, I wouldn't even be able to TALK to you, (whereupon I said, 'That'll be the day...') they're only going to allow one sort per brand, no ads on the packages, and BANISH THE VENDING MACHINES!'

So I asked, 'Who IN HELL would want to ruin a whole branch of industry like that?' (My blood pressure was going up...)

The EU in Brussels. (The Parliament there is our equivalent to D.C.)

Now they have some crazies there as well. Like trying to make a law about the allowable angle of curvature in a certain sort of cucumber... and that is NOT a joke. Or the permissable amount of salt in a Preztel. Both defeated, but still you gotta wonder....

The new proposal would... wipe out the livlihood of every tobacconist EU wide, which of course would increase the illegal business of dealing with cigarettes of dubious provenence... and hurt our local tobacco growing industry, and yes, we have that in my region as well.. they've gone bat-shit crazy.

So he practically was in hysterics, and asked me to sign the petition.... which is in English, but those fighting back have published one in German. Good going.

So---as a nicotine polluting nasty smoker who has taken one ban after the other... I think it is time to put in my two cents. I told Peter this noon-time, and when I got to the part about the vending machines, he went into shock. 'We've ALWAYS HAD vending machines. We Austrians won't take it lying down!'

I said, 'Well, I hope you're right. But you know us, moan and bitch and mutter 'kann man nichts machen...' (defeatist. can't do anything about it.) 'But now there are the internets, and better to open your mouf now than to bitch about it later, Peter.' He said, 'You're right.'

BTW... his smoking was two cigars a year on special occasions. And they had to be Havanas. So now am off on my merry way to 'sign ze papers, being the old man...'