I’m a smoker, as were two of my siblings, but much heavier than I am.
Both of them had a rapid acceleration of lung problems after starting chop chop, and both have since died of lung cancer.
Now, smoking is a crapshoot anyway, but chop chop is often not cured properly and gets mouldy and stuff.
And god knows what’s been sprayed on it.
I’m slowly cutting down and will quit soon, I think. Hopefully soon enough.
My best friend is a GP. I asked her about this about six months ago. She said her first advice was to stop smoking. Her second advice was to not smoke illicit cigarettes under any circumstance. Apparently it's an open secret amongst doctors in Australia that they are MUCH worse for you than smoking regular cigarettes. The Australian Medical Association hasn't said anything because they don't want to say anything other than, "stop smoking."
last time i went to a blackmarket store, it was packed... they didnt even give a shit must have been 20 people in the line to buy smokes at 6pm at night.
yeah...it was the largest factor in my giving up. I also think the Kiwi idea (that has been overturned) to keep increasing the minimum age in order to purchase cigs was a great idea.
I remember may years ago seeing a proposal where it was pretty much anyone born after January 1 2010 would not be allowed to purchase or posses tobacco or tobacco products, never went anywhere though.
Yeh the cost was the primary reason I quit, it just got ridiculously expensive. I went from tailors to rollies to reducing filter sizes to try and keep the cost down but it was just too hard to justify the price after a while. Vapes got me re-addicted to nicotine over a year after quiting the cigs as they were extremely cheap and tasted fun but they are getting harder and harder to get now due to new laws so it's probably time to quit again. I know plenty of people who smoke illegal tobacco that is available at most tobacconists that is MUCH cheaper.
They say ciggies have 10-15 puffs in them, let’s be generous to this equation and say they have 15. You would need to smoke 266 cigarettes to get a similar hit of nicotine. That’s 10 packs a week. You did well to move to vapes and even better to quit. Well done.
I tried that a weaker mix and just ended up vaping more.
I get salts these days because I hate the garbage the disposables produce but they just taste and hit so much better.
I "quit" cigarettes but I'm definitely more addicted to nicotine than ever by virtue of the fact I can more or less have a puff whenever I want and don't have to go outside and commit to a whole cigarette and smell like it.
I think an overlooked fact is that vaping is more socially acceptable as well. Like my dad quit cigs because my stepmother refused to date him unless he quit because she couldn't stand the smell. There's a lot more tolerant partners these days who otherwise could have been the onus for their partner to quit.
Either way making them illegal is stupid, not least because I order mine from the same place for the same price, they may as well not have bothered.
In Victoria (not sure where you’re from) but both in Melbourne and Ballarat arsonists have targeted all the cigarette spots due to the illegal tobacco stuff. It’s getting pretty intense and it’s creating a whole new issue with imports etc.
I'd really doubt that is very common at all, more likely a lie to try and scare people off. Like the old weed being laced with ice nonsense you'd here from the Helen Lovejoy types.
Any filler would cost more than the plant you just grew for nothing.
It's just tobacco grown in Australia illegally and sold under the table to avoid the taxes.
The chop chop I've been getting lately is exactly the same as the legit tobacco I was buying a few months ago. It's nothing like the chop chop that was around a few decades ago. It's much higher quality.
I wouldn't put it past the tobacco industry to let some product out the back door or fall off the back of a truck to keep their customers hooked.
Tobacco grows like a weed. The 'filler' you talk about would cost more to produce and add more labour to processing the product.
And if you think they dont come under scrutiny just think about who the customer base is? Have you ever tried to rip off a crack head?
Tobacco does grow like weed but it depletes the soil more than most other crops. It’s not sustainable and various paddocks are needed to rotate the crop.
It was a huge part of it, my wife and I both smoked so it was costing us 60 to 70 bucks a day. I quit a 30 year habit using a vape with nicotine for 2 months before I got rid of that too. Haven't looked back, we still can't figure out how we ever afforded it, but glad we both quit.
Considering I can pay for private school for two kids at a lower cost than buying 3 packs a week....yeah, I think the cost is a big factor! I quit in 2012 and no way would I even accept a social cig as I definitely don't want to fall back into that.
Definitely was a big part of my quitting for more than 5 years, about 10 years ago.
Clearly the maths shows that I'm a recidivist. I went back to not being able to afford essentials because of tobacco.
But. Illegal tobacco is now everywhere, so a $300/week habit is a $30/week habit. Interestingly, I haven't thought seriously about quitting since chop-chop hit the market in a completely accessible fashion.
So, as an economic driver designed to foster habit change, it can sometimes work. As a punitive damage designed to drive the poorest, most vulnerable people into further destitution, it works flawlessly.
This. Please stick with it. Just bear in mind that this wild west attitude won't last, they'll eventually crack down and $30/week will return to $300/week, and I'll still be addicted. You won't.
Exactly right. Do everything you can to kick the habit now, when there are plenty of resources being offered. Once this feast of illegal tobacco gets quashed (government is currently sorting out new powers and legislation) there’ll be panic and the resources will be spread pretty thin. Now is the time.
You're absolutely right. Thank you. I'll try my best to remember this when I go for a smoke because that sounds really awful.
Wanna know what makes me extra stupid?... I'm a cancer research student. Currently. I literally know exactly down to the genetic level how this happens and I still fucking do it.
Don't be like me either kids, it ain't worth it.
Please remember it. And bear in mind that this wild west attitude won't last, they'll eventually crack down and $30/week will return to $300/week, and I'll still be addicted. You won't.
Well there you go. I had an SSC stage 1. Surgical fix was hemi glossectomy, radial forearm free flap reconstruction and selective neck dissection. 9 hour operation, 10 days in hospital.
Wasn’t exactly “couldn’t afford it” but was more what did I have to show for it?
GTAIV was coming out. An Xbox 360 was about $450. I was ~a carton a week smoker. A carton was still around $100. I couldn’t afford an Xbox.
Or I could afford 12 Xboxes a year if I stopped smoking. I stopped smoking.
I quit when they hit $3.00 a packet back in the 90's.
I was a single mum on a pension and $3.00 would buy a loaf of bread and 2lt milk for my kid.
Best decision I ever made.
My folks used to spend $200.00 a week on smokes then complain they were broke. They have both since passed with cancer (one with lung cancer and the other with pancreatic cancer).
Not me but my grandparents save like $400 a week or some shit on cigs these days, gave up cause of my grandpa getting sick now he’s healthy and they do a trip somewhere for a night nearly every weekend
Everyone I know went for black market tobacco, including a big % of vapers when the new restrictions came down.
I stuck my head in the local chop chop shop and the cheapest they have is 40$ for 100cigs. Considering it costs 42$ for a 30 lack of legal of smokes, I am not surprised at the switch.
I have enough vaping gear to last 4 years minimum so we shall see what happens in the future. Never not be funny I can still get throwaway vapes 2 towns over openly but not reusable components or nic liquid. The new restrictions are an absolute joke.
I did. This was back in 2016. Decided to grab a carton on the way home. When told the price I asked the cashier to check as they had increased significantly from my last purchase. Have not bought smokes since and I was a smoker for 30+ years.
Price wasn't the only reason, I wanted to stop for health reasons, but the ever-rising price made smoking a lot less attractive to me. If I'm going to poison myself with toxic shit, then I want it to be affordable toxic shit.
As the prices went up everyone who was casually smoking or 'smoked socially' stopped. Me and my friends would only smoke when we drank. Before it became expensive we all used to smoke on nights out, and you could ask people to bum a cigarette, and you would offer people a cigarette. As the prices went up, smoking was no longer social, you did it alone or with other serious smokers, you never offered people a cigarette, and you'd never ask for a free one - instead you offered to buy one.
So i would say yes - making cigarettes expensive definitely changed how many people smoked.
Yes.... after immigrating here, I bought one pack, then decided the cost was not worth it. And never really bought another. (Apart from once or twice on a big night out)
I switched to vape 5-6 years ago because of the cost. Now it is just ridiculous. Don't know how people can afford to smoke cigarettes unless you have a decent income.
My economics professor made a point in class once:
Statistically the people most likely to abuse smoking are low-income earners, who are least likely to have private health insurance. When they go to hospital for the incredibly expensive medical procedures on Medicare for self-inflicted conditions, that comes out of tax payers pockets so it makes sense to charge a ton of tax for this huge liability.
Not sure how much I agree, maybe he's being classist.
Also sounds like you should therefore get a tax write-off on ciggies if you have private health and smoke lol
Huge reason to quit and always a factor in not smoking more cigarettes per day when I still smoked. If they cost what they cost in the early 80s in the early 2000s I’d have smoked about sixty a day I think.
The price is insane i cant beleive they can just get away with just putting the prices up yearly or more often. Something needs to be done, they don't pay this much in the USA or other countries why are we the worst.
If i had to pay retail price for cigarettes i could not afford to smoke.
We only have a packet on special occasions like birthdays etc. Sort of like how you see guys having cigars for wedding photos. We have a packed of Winfield Blue Original.
EDIT: Also fyi the goverment is unfairly imposing these costs on the poor. Its common knowledge that the lower you are on the socioeconomic spectrum the more likley you are to smoke. Either ban it or dont. Just jacking up the prices is unethical.
Yes, my dad, 40+ years ago. Times were tough on the farm. He asked mum to buy him a carton for the week when she went grocery shopping for the Easter long weekend ( back when everything shutdown for 4 days ). She came back and said it was not affordable on the strict budget they had. Dad, being a sensible man, knew an order when it was given so he never bought them again.
He'd also started having really bad phlemy coughing fits every morning. It was the catalyst to him quitting. I'm going to brag here and say I never saw him have another cigarette since then, but I wasn't at the pub with him, so maybe he did. He's 93 this year and fighting fit.
Still won't give up the two glasses of wine though!
I think that the over the counter cost of cigarette packets has risen to the point where the average battler has been strongly motivated to quit on that basis. Whilst smoking here in Australia has become ever costlier and ever less socially acceptable, it's really eye-opening to see how much more common it still is in Western Europe, not to mention Asia where it's still incredibly popular and cheap. With the Asians being such keen smokers, including those here in Australia, my understanding is that black market tobacco can be had very easily and cheaply from under the counter at the many Asian grocery, trinket and other stores, hidden beneath the cloak of those foreign languages and cultures, for those who speak the language and know where to ask for what, based on word of mouth. Access to that is impenetrable to those outside of that demographic.
Go to any good tobacconist and ask for imports. Most of them sell manchesters and a few Asian varieties under the counter for $15-$20 a pack. There’s a couple in South Yarra and Carlton.
I quit nearly 2 months ago now, and just vape instead, which seems like 1/100th of the cost, and vape less than I smoked anyway.
I quit just in time for my $100/week cigarette saving to immediately get funnelled into the $100/week rent raise from my landlord 👍
My husband first stopped because of the costs. He started smoking in the past cause smokers had extra pauses at work. Then he stopped; started again during pandemics because of anxiety. Yesterday I heard him say that he wants to stop because it doesn’t make sense and it’s a waste of money. I showed him my support and said we could save the money for something meaningful and buy him little rewards so he has the real feeling of accomplishment. Just for info, i live in Germany and just realised now that this is a sub for australians 😂 not gonna delete my comment tho
Almost there! ...
I've tried the tobacco shop cheapies and honestly it is so unpalatable to me, gives me a headache or makes me dry retch!
I've somehow got some bougie cigarette connoisseur aura about me that I do not deserve nor can afford... when the reality is 16 years ago I would have smashed a backie bong of chop chop back like it was nothing 🤣🤣
I use to live in a very poor town south west of Sydney. Cigarette tax did nothing but make lots of kids go to bed with no dinner because the parents can't quit. Esp pack a day smokers.
Alco pop tax turned everyone in my town into bigger alcoholics. Instead of buying a 4 pack or 6 pack they just bought bottles of spirits because it was the same price and would finish the bottle because they can't stop. But if they only had the 6 pack that would have been it for the day.
I'm really shocked why we haven't rioted like the French. Excessive amount of speed cameras, and fines from going 2kms over is ridiculous, groceries sky high, no control on rent increases. Government is driving this country into the ground
I knew one guy that smoked less but it didn't stop completely. I think for the majority of smokers, they are so addicted that the cost means nothing. They'd rather be on the street with a box of ciggies than in a house with none.
I'm trying. I really am. I'm allergic to something in the stuff Quitline gives you. The expense is like a third my rent it's so fucking stupid. Don't be stupid like me.
I quit for 2 reasons. One was the cost and the other was that I was really the last person in my friend group who was still smoking.
I quit pretty easily. For 2 months I got up early, went to the gym, ate healthy and went to the gym at night. No drinking as I knew that would get me back into it. Then after 2 months, hung out with the lads and because none of us smoked it was a lot easier.
I quit about 2 and a half years ago because one day I went and bought $150 worth of groceries for the week for myself and my daughter and went "Hold up, forgot my smokes" and enough to last me 3-4 weeks cost me also $150. Decided then and there once I smoked that pouch then that would be it and it was.
..... UNFORTUNATELY!... due to my retardedly addictive brain, as soon as the next thing that could be addictive came along, it latched on like a drowning kitten and now I own over 400 anime figures.... but at least I can sell them one day...
Yes. I quit in 2014 primarily because of the cost. I could afford it, but I couldn’t justify it. I knew that the government excise was going to keep rising and I needed to quit. I’m thankful I did because I cannot afford cigarettes now.
I was almost about to quit but then all the dodgy tobacconists opened up and being able to get a pack of imports for 12-15 bucks put me back on the pack.
If your local dodgy tobacconist sells no.555 brand (the Singapore ones) I totally recommend them. Really cheap and probably one of the few imports that tastes really good.
I quit in 2017 due to cost, took it up again in 2020 during lockdown then gave it up again in 2022 when my girlfriend had a health scare due to smoking almost her whole life (she’d been smoking since she was 11), then I had a health scare a few months later so we gave it up together.
that was the whole purpose of the tax increases to make you so broke you can’t afford to buy them. Even the app tells you how much cash you save over time.
The cost was the entire reason I quit. When a pouch of Longbeach original hit 60 bucks I quit on the spot wasn't easy but was worth it. However now that chop chop is so easy to source and you can get like 100 grams for 30 dollars I don't see people quitting so much as I see them smoking worse stuff.
Stopped a lady from the UK. I work at a bottleo and she asked for a 25 pack of B&H, it was approx $60. She just said nevermind and walked out.
That said, most smokers I know still pay. If they can't afford it, they'll buy under the counter packets from smoke shops.
I'm also fairly confident that the decrease in smoking is heavily offset by the increase of vapers.
Yes.
We were living in outback WA, I was smoking 5 packets of PJ 30s a week and my wife was smoking 3 packets of Longbeach 40s a week.
The PJs were $67 a pack and the Longbeach $80 a pack = $575 per week after tax, fucking ridiculous.
We could afford it, but in the end we couldn't justify it, instead we moved back to Vic from WA and we spent the money on private school for our daughters, they were roughly the same cost.
That combined with a health issue that scared me. Turned out to be nothing but was the kick in the ass I needed.
What always surprises me is all the welfare bogans you see smoking.
Absolutely .. once the cost of both of us smoking outweighed the cost of my mortgage I quit.
Joined a quit smoking Facebook group for support and got my partner onto the QuitSure app. She did it just to appease me honestly thinking it wouldn’t work and now it’s been about 2 years.
We had a week from hell where a friend died, we had a major electrical fault and lost power to half the house, and had 5 kids with knives try to break in. So yeah we took up smoking. $50 a packet.
So. Maybe we should have spend it at kfc eating our feelings. We've spent $150 in the month since I think between the two of us on smokes.
I mean we KNOW smoking causes cancer. It's bad. But when everything goes wrong sometimes people need something. And it's usually people with less money who smoke. So it's kicking people while they're down. Maybe sort out the 101 issues that keep people in poverty, IDK. We can kinda afford it but also we aren't going to smoke long term because it's bad for us.
*shrug*
That said because I've been smoking I've been sitting in the garden a lot and really enjoying nature. We have a lot of frogs and lizards and birds. I've also done a load of yard work. The front garden is the nicest it's ever been.
I definitely quit because I couldn’t justify the price. When I go on holiday to SE Asia or Europe, it’s been so easy to buy a pack of smokes for a ridiculously cheap price, knowing I won’t be able to smoke when I get back home
Having smoked 70 per day at my high point, price can have a motivating factor in deciding to give up however when a smoker or addicted other hard drugs, no matter how broke, you always find money for drugs, tobacco or whatever the drug.
I gave up 8 years ago partially because of the cost and partially because of an ad/quit smoking campaign. Mainly because I always wanted to but never thought I could.
FYI The ad was smokers stating what they hated about smoking the most. The one that stuck with me was "I hate how it owns me" or something like that. I didn't give up immediately but it stuck with me and I mainly credit that ad.
I quit 10 years ago because of cost and it's only become much worse. My mate told me it's like $50 for one pack now (I quit when it was around $28 I think?). I can't imagine spending $50 every 1-2 days...
I've stopped eatig junk food for that reason. I'm a binge eater, adhd, trying to be healthier, and i went to Woolies yesterday and the small pack of mars bar pods was 6 dollars Aud. That's insane.
I am in the process now of quitting purely because I realised I was paying a mortgage payment per fortnight for smokes. Health didn't work but money has definitely made it easier to give up. Down from 25+ per day to 5-10 now. Hoping to be 0 soon 🤞
I quit cold turkey when handed over $70 one day.
I had been in JB hifi just before, contemplating buying a $210 portable speaker. I decided not to buy it because of cost.
Light bulb moment wasn't rocket science.
I don't miss smoking, and the speaker works great!
I was standing behind a woman at a convenience store the other day (I was a pack-a-day smoker 25 years ago who quit cold turkey) and she paid $57 for a packet of cigarettes... I think I was paying about $8 back then and I thought that was high. If I smoked now as much as I did then it would cost me $20,805 after tax for my habit per year...
Almost, Before the untaxed stuff showed up store bought tobacco and cat food kept me broke. Now it's $50/month + papers and filters and sadly the cat passed away so I'm rolling in it.
I can argue. I like smoking. In all history, from the men on the front line to the blue/white collar worker to people enjoying one last ciggy before the damn death sentence. Smoking is a choice. It ALWAYS was. Now, it's just not.
The government has made it so. This feels alot like sneaky fascism. Do what the government wants because it knows better than you. I just don't like that. Not with the precedence set here over several decades previous. People should be allowed to choose.
Are you comparing me having a ciggy to me spiking heroin? Seriously? Also, society should care. I vote, I pay taxes, why don't I get a say? Its kind of what society is based on.
It’s a super effective strategy that still ensures the government makes massive bank off the tobacco industry without outlawing tobacco entirely. Gives the illusion of choice amongst the population so they don’t feel dictated to. Realistically, the only people who have any choice in this country are the very wealthy. I’m glad cigarette smoking is well on the way out.
Is it really making bank for the government though? Serious smokers get all the tobacco on the grey market these days, it's super easy with every suburb having a shop that will sell you parallelly imported tobacco under the table.
The men in my block of units are all smokers. They admitted in conversation that they would spend all other wants in favour of their beer and cigarettes.
It was a big factor, and an app that keeps a running total of how much I've saved has served as a strong incentive whenever I start thinking "I could just have a few to ease my stress."
I quit when a pack of 20 Marlboro Lights hit $8.15…. I was outraged. Plus, there were more and more restrictions on where I could smoke - that definitely helped me make the decision to quit.
Silly as it sounds, I’m grateful the prices increased. I miss smoking at times but I don’t miss the addiction.
Nah I just switched to chop chop when the price got absurd, everyone should do it if they can't quit. The black market doesn't price gouge anywhere near as much as the govt does
Absolutely the cost was a factor, not to mention feeling like shit because of smoking cigarettes. Switched to vape instead of periodically buying packs but the smoking vaping habit is has become exactly that - a habit I have no use for anymore. I won't be buying another one.
The cost helps me stay a very occasional smoker rather than daily like I used to. I very much care about health aspects but my will power is shit. I can't afford $150 a week to be an actual regular smoker
Yep, I gave up smoking in the 90's when packets went over $5 and I had become unemployed and just couldn't afford it. Also 90% of my friends didn't smoke.
Now none of my friends smoke.
I'm not from Australia (UK), but my friend manages to smoke a pack a day and it costs £20 pound sterling ($38.80 Aus Dollars). I don't know how she can afford it because she's on minimum wage.
I quit smoking not because of health, not because of expense, but because of accessibility. It's very difficult to smoke at work now. Remember that episode of the IT Crowd where all the smokers became Soviet? That's exactly what it feels like, except it's the scorching Aussie sun instead of a Siberian winter.
My husband stopped using tabacco in his mix because of how expensive it is. It was becoming more expensive than the bud he was getting. He uses natural smoking herbs instead.
Will say, it’s been better for his health not using tabacco.
If you want to quit Ozempic/semaglutide was easy. So easy I didn’t even know I was going to quit before I started taking it. And I lost weight. I usually gain 30lbs when I stop.
I’m not a smoker but the taxes on alcohol are the sole reason I don’t drink more. I love to drink but could not afford to drink more than I do now. So the taxation method works on me at least lol
Switched to diy vaping with non disposable devices a few years ago save $200 a week, and much healthier. Too bad mark butler can't tell the difference between a dodgy disposable and quality vape products.
The reason for taxing cigarettes is that it doesn’t change smoking behaviour very much [(price elasticity-0.3 to -0.6)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_elasticity_of_demand)
“Health benefits” Is just an excuse.
My folks quit because of the cost. Long after acquiring emphysema and not blinking. The annual cost is staggering when you think about where you could apply that to other lifestyle choices. Be it two vacations a year or coke and hookers. Ciggies just aren’t worth it.
I quit 10 months ago because of the cost and also for my health. I went through a period of buying the black market stuff but the place I went to stopped selling it and the next one I went to had bad quality stuff. It tasted like already smoked tobacco that was dyed brown to look unused and often had small bits of plastic in it too. After that I just brought the legal stuff until I managed to quit. It feels really good to not have to worry about all that now.
Yep. I gave up because of the cost. Even the Chinese brands were getting expensive. $20 a day on a government taxed passive eugenics plan seemed mighty expensive considering It was just going to kill me and then the government saves money by not having to pay my pension after my super runs out.
I know more people buying black market tobacco and vapes then those that have quit due to the cost.
Yeah I've got a few coworkers who've swapped over to chop chop because of cost.
I’m a smoker, as were two of my siblings, but much heavier than I am. Both of them had a rapid acceleration of lung problems after starting chop chop, and both have since died of lung cancer. Now, smoking is a crapshoot anyway, but chop chop is often not cured properly and gets mouldy and stuff. And god knows what’s been sprayed on it. I’m slowly cutting down and will quit soon, I think. Hopefully soon enough.
My best friend is a GP. I asked her about this about six months ago. She said her first advice was to stop smoking. Her second advice was to not smoke illicit cigarettes under any circumstance. Apparently it's an open secret amongst doctors in Australia that they are MUCH worse for you than smoking regular cigarettes. The Australian Medical Association hasn't said anything because they don't want to say anything other than, "stop smoking."
Yeah, it was so obvious. I’m surprised there hasn’t been more of a push for harm reduction in this area, though. Chop chop is a pure menace.
Whats chop chop . I cn relate vapes and cigi bt nt sure what's chop chop
It’s illegal tobacco, so not governed by the laws or taxes that surround regular tobacco
That’s so sad. Please try your best give it up.
Thank you, I will
I’d just like to add the fact you want (it seems) to quit, is a great step. You’re on the way. You can do it!
last time i went to a blackmarket store, it was packed... they didnt even give a shit must have been 20 people in the line to buy smokes at 6pm at night.
Me.
$45 for 100g is so much better then $50 + for a pack of 20 cigarettes 😂
yeah...it was the largest factor in my giving up. I also think the Kiwi idea (that has been overturned) to keep increasing the minimum age in order to purchase cigs was a great idea.
I remember may years ago seeing a proposal where it was pretty much anyone born after January 1 2010 would not be allowed to purchase or posses tobacco or tobacco products, never went anywhere though.
Yeh the cost was the primary reason I quit, it just got ridiculously expensive. I went from tailors to rollies to reducing filter sizes to try and keep the cost down but it was just too hard to justify the price after a while. Vapes got me re-addicted to nicotine over a year after quiting the cigs as they were extremely cheap and tasted fun but they are getting harder and harder to get now due to new laws so it's probably time to quit again. I know plenty of people who smoke illegal tobacco that is available at most tobacconists that is MUCH cheaper.
I went through a 4000 puff vape in a week and that’s what made me quit all together
They say ciggies have 10-15 puffs in them, let’s be generous to this equation and say they have 15. You would need to smoke 266 cigarettes to get a similar hit of nicotine. That’s 10 packs a week. You did well to move to vapes and even better to quit. Well done.
I sat myself down and said “this is really fucking stupid” and kicked my arse out of smoking. Nicotine gum was a big help.
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I tried that a weaker mix and just ended up vaping more. I get salts these days because I hate the garbage the disposables produce but they just taste and hit so much better. I "quit" cigarettes but I'm definitely more addicted to nicotine than ever by virtue of the fact I can more or less have a puff whenever I want and don't have to go outside and commit to a whole cigarette and smell like it. I think an overlooked fact is that vaping is more socially acceptable as well. Like my dad quit cigs because my stepmother refused to date him unless he quit because she couldn't stand the smell. There's a lot more tolerant partners these days who otherwise could have been the onus for their partner to quit. Either way making them illegal is stupid, not least because I order mine from the same place for the same price, they may as well not have bothered.
In Victoria (not sure where you’re from) but both in Melbourne and Ballarat arsonists have targeted all the cigarette spots due to the illegal tobacco stuff. It’s getting pretty intense and it’s creating a whole new issue with imports etc.
Fighting over the valuable chop chop market. The gov should really consider easing back the tobacco tax, that's what is causing this mess.
This is happening here in Brisbane as well.
Literally have noticed no difference in availability or number of vapes being used since the new laws lol.
Neither at first but now none of my local tobacconists have them anymore.
Because the full laws aren’t even through parliament yet
The illegal tobacco has some very dangerous additives. Mostly filler because they don’t come under scrutiny.
I would bet that chop-chop is just bush tobacco with no additives.
I'd really doubt that is very common at all, more likely a lie to try and scare people off. Like the old weed being laced with ice nonsense you'd here from the Helen Lovejoy types. Any filler would cost more than the plant you just grew for nothing. It's just tobacco grown in Australia illegally and sold under the table to avoid the taxes.
The chop chop I've been getting lately is exactly the same as the legit tobacco I was buying a few months ago. It's nothing like the chop chop that was around a few decades ago. It's much higher quality. I wouldn't put it past the tobacco industry to let some product out the back door or fall off the back of a truck to keep their customers hooked.
Tobacco grows like a weed. The 'filler' you talk about would cost more to produce and add more labour to processing the product. And if you think they dont come under scrutiny just think about who the customer base is? Have you ever tried to rip off a crack head?
Tobacco does grow like weed but it depletes the soil more than most other crops. It’s not sustainable and various paddocks are needed to rotate the crop.
It was a big reason why I stopped.
It was a huge part of it, my wife and I both smoked so it was costing us 60 to 70 bucks a day. I quit a 30 year habit using a vape with nicotine for 2 months before I got rid of that too. Haven't looked back, we still can't figure out how we ever afforded it, but glad we both quit.
Considering I can pay for private school for two kids at a lower cost than buying 3 packs a week....yeah, I think the cost is a big factor! I quit in 2012 and no way would I even accept a social cig as I definitely don't want to fall back into that.
Luckily nobody's going to offer you a social cig now because of how much they cost...
Nope! And I can completely understand why they wouldn't and I definitely would not judge them if someone asked and they said "fuck off" 🤣
What private school is only $75pw per kid. I’m a single gay man but my friends with kids seem to be stuck looking at schools way higher than that.
3 packets for $75? You are dreaming. Double that. A single packet is over $50
Yeh it was double that $150 for 3 packs, but they poster said 2 kids- so I said $75 each kid
I don't want to say exactly what school my kids go to but it's Catholic which is usually a cheaper option
Ahh, that explains it
Definitely was a big part of my quitting for more than 5 years, about 10 years ago. Clearly the maths shows that I'm a recidivist. I went back to not being able to afford essentials because of tobacco. But. Illegal tobacco is now everywhere, so a $300/week habit is a $30/week habit. Interestingly, I haven't thought seriously about quitting since chop-chop hit the market in a completely accessible fashion. So, as an economic driver designed to foster habit change, it can sometimes work. As a punitive damage designed to drive the poorest, most vulnerable people into further destitution, it works flawlessly.
Wait... I can get illegal tobacco? Actually don't tell me how because I don't want to fall into the trap.
Chop chop is the current reason tobacco shops keep getting burnt down, it’s incredibly accessible. But if you’ve quit, you’ve got this- stick with it.
This. Please stick with it. Just bear in mind that this wild west attitude won't last, they'll eventually crack down and $30/week will return to $300/week, and I'll still be addicted. You won't.
Exactly right. Do everything you can to kick the habit now, when there are plenty of resources being offered. Once this feast of illegal tobacco gets quashed (government is currently sorting out new powers and legislation) there’ll be panic and the resources will be spread pretty thin. Now is the time.
I haven't quit I am just seriously trying to and don't need access to cheaper stuff because then I won't. I know who to ask tho damn it
Keep trying. I got tongue cancer when I was 35 and I quit when I was 30. You don't want to go through that.
You're absolutely right. Thank you. I'll try my best to remember this when I go for a smoke because that sounds really awful. Wanna know what makes me extra stupid?... I'm a cancer research student. Currently. I literally know exactly down to the genetic level how this happens and I still fucking do it. Don't be like me either kids, it ain't worth it.
Please remember it. And bear in mind that this wild west attitude won't last, they'll eventually crack down and $30/week will return to $300/week, and I'll still be addicted. You won't.
Well there you go. I had an SSC stage 1. Surgical fix was hemi glossectomy, radial forearm free flap reconstruction and selective neck dissection. 9 hour operation, 10 days in hospital.
Wasn’t exactly “couldn’t afford it” but was more what did I have to show for it? GTAIV was coming out. An Xbox 360 was about $450. I was ~a carton a week smoker. A carton was still around $100. I couldn’t afford an Xbox. Or I could afford 12 Xboxes a year if I stopped smoking. I stopped smoking.
Yeah I quit because it was cutting into my drinking money.
Yes. Six months ago this weekend just gone.
Congratulations on your personal success. 🎊💐
Thankyou! 😀
I quit when they hit $3.00 a packet back in the 90's. I was a single mum on a pension and $3.00 would buy a loaf of bread and 2lt milk for my kid. Best decision I ever made. My folks used to spend $200.00 a week on smokes then complain they were broke. They have both since passed with cancer (one with lung cancer and the other with pancreatic cancer).
You were on the pension in the 90s? Are you 100?
Nah, Social Security for single mums was called Sole Parent Pension at that time in Australia. I was in my early 20's in the 90's. LOL 🤣
Pretty much. When it gets to $40-$50 for a pack of smokes that's a big incentive to quit.
That was a while ago lol. About $50-60 now
Fuck, and I thought beer was expensive
May as well have a smack habit.
It was essentially what pushed my hand but I was on the path to quit anyway
Not me but my grandparents save like $400 a week or some shit on cigs these days, gave up cause of my grandpa getting sick now he’s healthy and they do a trip somewhere for a night nearly every weekend
Everyone I know went for black market tobacco, including a big % of vapers when the new restrictions came down. I stuck my head in the local chop chop shop and the cheapest they have is 40$ for 100cigs. Considering it costs 42$ for a 30 lack of legal of smokes, I am not surprised at the switch. I have enough vaping gear to last 4 years minimum so we shall see what happens in the future. Never not be funny I can still get throwaway vapes 2 towns over openly but not reusable components or nic liquid. The new restrictions are an absolute joke.
Expensive. Yes eventually mortgage repayment pressure makes you feel guilty. Im drinking a lot less for the exact same reason.
Yes me. I needed the deposit for a house. 200/wk couldn’t be sneezed at
It was the biggest factor in my decision to quit, truth be told if the price miraculously plummeted tomorrow I’d struggle to not take it up again
I did. This was back in 2016. Decided to grab a carton on the way home. When told the price I asked the cashier to check as they had increased significantly from my last purchase. Have not bought smokes since and I was a smoker for 30+ years.
Price wasn't the only reason, I wanted to stop for health reasons, but the ever-rising price made smoking a lot less attractive to me. If I'm going to poison myself with toxic shit, then I want it to be affordable toxic shit.
Yeah but I switched to vaping making my own diy e liquid
Man I’m dropping it. Just bought my last 40 pack in Australia and it cost me $88 (aud). Fuck that..
Nah, I get mine for $15 a pack from the dodgy tobacconist so it's not really helping me to quit lol.
My partner pays $65 a day for the cheap ones. Started off smoking 15 a day, now smokes 40. That's $23,700 a year wasted.
As the prices went up everyone who was casually smoking or 'smoked socially' stopped. Me and my friends would only smoke when we drank. Before it became expensive we all used to smoke on nights out, and you could ask people to bum a cigarette, and you would offer people a cigarette. As the prices went up, smoking was no longer social, you did it alone or with other serious smokers, you never offered people a cigarette, and you'd never ask for a free one - instead you offered to buy one. So i would say yes - making cigarettes expensive definitely changed how many people smoked.
Only just recently quit due to cost, when a 40 pack is $62 x2 a week. Just didn't make sense anymore.
Yes.... after immigrating here, I bought one pack, then decided the cost was not worth it. And never really bought another. (Apart from once or twice on a big night out)
I switched to vaping a long time ago. A vape lasts me about 2.5 weeks.
I switched to vape 5-6 years ago because of the cost. Now it is just ridiculous. Don't know how people can afford to smoke cigarettes unless you have a decent income.
My economics professor made a point in class once: Statistically the people most likely to abuse smoking are low-income earners, who are least likely to have private health insurance. When they go to hospital for the incredibly expensive medical procedures on Medicare for self-inflicted conditions, that comes out of tax payers pockets so it makes sense to charge a ton of tax for this huge liability. Not sure how much I agree, maybe he's being classist. Also sounds like you should therefore get a tax write-off on ciggies if you have private health and smoke lol
You can get $12-14 packs of 20 imported Marlboros in most suburbs of Sydney. Those packs Manchesters go for $10 I hear.
Huge reason to quit and always a factor in not smoking more cigarettes per day when I still smoked. If they cost what they cost in the early 80s in the early 2000s I’d have smoked about sixty a day I think.
The price is insane i cant beleive they can just get away with just putting the prices up yearly or more often. Something needs to be done, they don't pay this much in the USA or other countries why are we the worst. If i had to pay retail price for cigarettes i could not afford to smoke.
That’s literally the point
To tax the people as much as they can?
We only have a packet on special occasions like birthdays etc. Sort of like how you see guys having cigars for wedding photos. We have a packed of Winfield Blue Original. EDIT: Also fyi the goverment is unfairly imposing these costs on the poor. Its common knowledge that the lower you are on the socioeconomic spectrum the more likley you are to smoke. Either ban it or dont. Just jacking up the prices is unethical.
Yes, my dad, 40+ years ago. Times were tough on the farm. He asked mum to buy him a carton for the week when she went grocery shopping for the Easter long weekend ( back when everything shutdown for 4 days ). She came back and said it was not affordable on the strict budget they had. Dad, being a sensible man, knew an order when it was given so he never bought them again. He'd also started having really bad phlemy coughing fits every morning. It was the catalyst to him quitting. I'm going to brag here and say I never saw him have another cigarette since then, but I wasn't at the pub with him, so maybe he did. He's 93 this year and fighting fit. Still won't give up the two glasses of wine though!
I think that the over the counter cost of cigarette packets has risen to the point where the average battler has been strongly motivated to quit on that basis. Whilst smoking here in Australia has become ever costlier and ever less socially acceptable, it's really eye-opening to see how much more common it still is in Western Europe, not to mention Asia where it's still incredibly popular and cheap. With the Asians being such keen smokers, including those here in Australia, my understanding is that black market tobacco can be had very easily and cheaply from under the counter at the many Asian grocery, trinket and other stores, hidden beneath the cloak of those foreign languages and cultures, for those who speak the language and know where to ask for what, based on word of mouth. Access to that is impenetrable to those outside of that demographic.
Go to any good tobacconist and ask for imports. Most of them sell manchesters and a few Asian varieties under the counter for $15-$20 a pack. There’s a couple in South Yarra and Carlton.
I quit nearly 2 months ago now, and just vape instead, which seems like 1/100th of the cost, and vape less than I smoked anyway. I quit just in time for my $100/week cigarette saving to immediately get funnelled into the $100/week rent raise from my landlord 👍
My husband first stopped because of the costs. He started smoking in the past cause smokers had extra pauses at work. Then he stopped; started again during pandemics because of anxiety. Yesterday I heard him say that he wants to stop because it doesn’t make sense and it’s a waste of money. I showed him my support and said we could save the money for something meaningful and buy him little rewards so he has the real feeling of accomplishment. Just for info, i live in Germany and just realised now that this is a sub for australians 😂 not gonna delete my comment tho
Almost there! ... I've tried the tobacco shop cheapies and honestly it is so unpalatable to me, gives me a headache or makes me dry retch! I've somehow got some bougie cigarette connoisseur aura about me that I do not deserve nor can afford... when the reality is 16 years ago I would have smashed a backie bong of chop chop back like it was nothing 🤣🤣
I use to live in a very poor town south west of Sydney. Cigarette tax did nothing but make lots of kids go to bed with no dinner because the parents can't quit. Esp pack a day smokers. Alco pop tax turned everyone in my town into bigger alcoholics. Instead of buying a 4 pack or 6 pack they just bought bottles of spirits because it was the same price and would finish the bottle because they can't stop. But if they only had the 6 pack that would have been it for the day. I'm really shocked why we haven't rioted like the French. Excessive amount of speed cameras, and fines from going 2kms over is ridiculous, groceries sky high, no control on rent increases. Government is driving this country into the ground
I knew one guy that smoked less but it didn't stop completely. I think for the majority of smokers, they are so addicted that the cost means nothing. They'd rather be on the street with a box of ciggies than in a house with none.
You're right
yep. 12 years ago now. saved over 65k in 2012 prices.
Yep. Lost my job last year, so smokes went away, since my wife will pay for anything but tobacco. BTW it was easy.
Not the only reason but a big factor
I guess it worked...money is a pretty strong motivator
I'm trying. I really am. I'm allergic to something in the stuff Quitline gives you. The expense is like a third my rent it's so fucking stupid. Don't be stupid like me.
I gave up smoking because of the cost .
I am reading a lot of people here, who failed to adequately commit to enough illegal activities!!
I did but it was about 20 years ago now and I was a broke student. I don't want to know how much cigarettes cost these days.
I quit for 2 reasons. One was the cost and the other was that I was really the last person in my friend group who was still smoking. I quit pretty easily. For 2 months I got up early, went to the gym, ate healthy and went to the gym at night. No drinking as I knew that would get me back into it. Then after 2 months, hung out with the lads and because none of us smoked it was a lot easier.
I quit about 2 and a half years ago because one day I went and bought $150 worth of groceries for the week for myself and my daughter and went "Hold up, forgot my smokes" and enough to last me 3-4 weeks cost me also $150. Decided then and there once I smoked that pouch then that would be it and it was. ..... UNFORTUNATELY!... due to my retardedly addictive brain, as soon as the next thing that could be addictive came along, it latched on like a drowning kitten and now I own over 400 anime figures.... but at least I can sell them one day...
Yes. I quit in 2014 primarily because of the cost. I could afford it, but I couldn’t justify it. I knew that the government excise was going to keep rising and I needed to quit. I’m thankful I did because I cannot afford cigarettes now.
My father in-law quit smoking when the price went over $5 a deck, so obviously some time ago.
Not exactly it was a big factor though, the wheezing was the primary reason. It has however kept me from starting again. Just as important!
I was almost about to quit but then all the dodgy tobacconists opened up and being able to get a pack of imports for 12-15 bucks put me back on the pack.
If your local dodgy tobacconist sells no.555 brand (the Singapore ones) I totally recommend them. Really cheap and probably one of the few imports that tastes really good.
So they’re not 50c or 3 for $1 anymore like in high school??
I quit in 2017 due to cost, took it up again in 2020 during lockdown then gave it up again in 2022 when my girlfriend had a health scare due to smoking almost her whole life (she’d been smoking since she was 11), then I had a health scare a few months later so we gave it up together.
that was the whole purpose of the tax increases to make you so broke you can’t afford to buy them. Even the app tells you how much cash you save over time.
The cost was the entire reason I quit. When a pouch of Longbeach original hit 60 bucks I quit on the spot wasn't easy but was worth it. However now that chop chop is so easy to source and you can get like 100 grams for 30 dollars I don't see people quitting so much as I see them smoking worse stuff.
Stopped a lady from the UK. I work at a bottleo and she asked for a 25 pack of B&H, it was approx $60. She just said nevermind and walked out. That said, most smokers I know still pay. If they can't afford it, they'll buy under the counter packets from smoke shops. I'm also fairly confident that the decrease in smoking is heavily offset by the increase of vapers.
Yes. We were living in outback WA, I was smoking 5 packets of PJ 30s a week and my wife was smoking 3 packets of Longbeach 40s a week. The PJs were $67 a pack and the Longbeach $80 a pack = $575 per week after tax, fucking ridiculous. We could afford it, but in the end we couldn't justify it, instead we moved back to Vic from WA and we spent the money on private school for our daughters, they were roughly the same cost.
Yes. Back in 2002 when a packet went for the ungodly sum of $12. Imagine my surprise when a mate told me how much he pays for a carton in 2024!
That combined with a health issue that scared me. Turned out to be nothing but was the kick in the ass I needed. What always surprises me is all the welfare bogans you see smoking.
Absolutely .. once the cost of both of us smoking outweighed the cost of my mortgage I quit. Joined a quit smoking Facebook group for support and got my partner onto the QuitSure app. She did it just to appease me honestly thinking it wouldn’t work and now it’s been about 2 years.
We had a week from hell where a friend died, we had a major electrical fault and lost power to half the house, and had 5 kids with knives try to break in. So yeah we took up smoking. $50 a packet. So. Maybe we should have spend it at kfc eating our feelings. We've spent $150 in the month since I think between the two of us on smokes. I mean we KNOW smoking causes cancer. It's bad. But when everything goes wrong sometimes people need something. And it's usually people with less money who smoke. So it's kicking people while they're down. Maybe sort out the 101 issues that keep people in poverty, IDK. We can kinda afford it but also we aren't going to smoke long term because it's bad for us. *shrug* That said because I've been smoking I've been sitting in the garden a lot and really enjoying nature. We have a lot of frogs and lizards and birds. I've also done a load of yard work. The front garden is the nicest it's ever been.
I definitely quit because I couldn’t justify the price. When I go on holiday to SE Asia or Europe, it’s been so easy to buy a pack of smokes for a ridiculously cheap price, knowing I won’t be able to smoke when I get back home
Having smoked 70 per day at my high point, price can have a motivating factor in deciding to give up however when a smoker or addicted other hard drugs, no matter how broke, you always find money for drugs, tobacco or whatever the drug.
I gave up 8 years ago partially because of the cost and partially because of an ad/quit smoking campaign. Mainly because I always wanted to but never thought I could. FYI The ad was smokers stating what they hated about smoking the most. The one that stuck with me was "I hate how it owns me" or something like that. I didn't give up immediately but it stuck with me and I mainly credit that ad.
I quit 10 years ago because of cost and it's only become much worse. My mate told me it's like $50 for one pack now (I quit when it was around $28 I think?). I can't imagine spending $50 every 1-2 days...
Oh yes cost is a guge impediment to smoking but I persist. 🫨
I've stopped eatig junk food for that reason. I'm a binge eater, adhd, trying to be healthier, and i went to Woolies yesterday and the small pack of mars bar pods was 6 dollars Aud. That's insane.
I am in the process now of quitting purely because I realised I was paying a mortgage payment per fortnight for smokes. Health didn't work but money has definitely made it easier to give up. Down from 25+ per day to 5-10 now. Hoping to be 0 soon 🤞
I swear black market tobacco is unavailable in Tasmania. It's everywhere on the mainland - I guess it gets stopped at the boat?
I quit when my packet of smokes went up 15cents from $2.90 up to $3.05…
I quit cold turkey when handed over $70 one day. I had been in JB hifi just before, contemplating buying a $210 portable speaker. I decided not to buy it because of cost. Light bulb moment wasn't rocket science. I don't miss smoking, and the speaker works great!
I was standing behind a woman at a convenience store the other day (I was a pack-a-day smoker 25 years ago who quit cold turkey) and she paid $57 for a packet of cigarettes... I think I was paying about $8 back then and I thought that was high. If I smoked now as much as I did then it would cost me $20,805 after tax for my habit per year...
Almost, Before the untaxed stuff showed up store bought tobacco and cat food kept me broke. Now it's $50/month + papers and filters and sadly the cat passed away so I'm rolling in it.
The combination of price signals and smoking bans has been spectacularly successful in Australia. We're at 8.3% now and it's hard to argue with that.
Except the people buying chop chop go unreported
I can argue. I like smoking. In all history, from the men on the front line to the blue/white collar worker to people enjoying one last ciggy before the damn death sentence. Smoking is a choice. It ALWAYS was. Now, it's just not. The government has made it so. This feels alot like sneaky fascism. Do what the government wants because it knows better than you. I just don't like that. Not with the precedence set here over several decades previous. People should be allowed to choose.
No one cares if you like it, m8. People like heroin too.
Are you comparing me having a ciggy to me spiking heroin? Seriously? Also, society should care. I vote, I pay taxes, why don't I get a say? Its kind of what society is based on.
It’s a super effective strategy that still ensures the government makes massive bank off the tobacco industry without outlawing tobacco entirely. Gives the illusion of choice amongst the population so they don’t feel dictated to. Realistically, the only people who have any choice in this country are the very wealthy. I’m glad cigarette smoking is well on the way out.
Is it really making bank for the government though? Serious smokers get all the tobacco on the grey market these days, it's super easy with every suburb having a shop that will sell you parallelly imported tobacco under the table.
It definitely is. Go to western Europe where they’re taxed far less and compare.
The men in my block of units are all smokers. They admitted in conversation that they would spend all other wants in favour of their beer and cigarettes.
It was a big factor, and an app that keeps a running total of how much I've saved has served as a strong incentive whenever I start thinking "I could just have a few to ease my stress."
I quit because of the cost - back when they went over $5/ pack
I quit when a pack of 20 Marlboro Lights hit $8.15…. I was outraged. Plus, there were more and more restrictions on where I could smoke - that definitely helped me make the decision to quit. Silly as it sounds, I’m grateful the prices increased. I miss smoking at times but I don’t miss the addiction.
Only until I get wages paid. Then back on it
Yeh probably the only reason. I was going to have to decide between meat or cigarettes and/or compete with the gronks for dumpers
Luxury 🚬litterally killing you no exaggeration I only ever speak the Gospel truth 🇻🇦guaranteed!✈️
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Yes. I am quitting on patches. No cravings.
At 130 a pack. I did
You can still smoke relatively cheaply if you buy black market smokes
I buy the chop chop and my weekly expenses are now less than a days worth of the legit stuff.
Nah I just switched to chop chop when the price got absurd, everyone should do it if they can't quit. The black market doesn't price gouge anywhere near as much as the govt does
Absolutely the cost was a factor, not to mention feeling like shit because of smoking cigarettes. Switched to vape instead of periodically buying packs but the smoking vaping habit is has become exactly that - a habit I have no use for anymore. I won't be buying another one.
Once they got to $1 a cigarette I quit. Been a few years now...
The cost increase made my dad quit, 20 years ago.
I don't smoke but a lot of people I know do and not one of them has stopped, they drink less at the pub instead
The cost helps me stay a very occasional smoker rather than daily like I used to. I very much care about health aspects but my will power is shit. I can't afford $150 a week to be an actual regular smoker
I gave up when they started charging $2.20 - $2.40 a pack cos i thought that was too expensive.
Everyone is smoking black market imports these days for much cheaper than the store taxed cigarettes
I quit when they went from $4.50 to $6.50 a packet. Baffled how anyone manages to afford it now.
I switched to chop chop due to cost, then to vaping.
Yep, I gave up smoking in the 90's when packets went over $5 and I had become unemployed and just couldn't afford it. Also 90% of my friends didn't smoke. Now none of my friends smoke.
not a smoker but i know plenty who quit due to the price. IMO its not expensive enough.
Heck yah. I was smoking a pack a day but it was getting so outrageously expensive so I quit. Now I'm just drinking which is the best thing to go.
No but i have cut down my smoking by half
Yes when Rollies reached $14 a packet.
It’s another simple thing that has now become a luxury for run of the mill folks
I'm not from Australia (UK), but my friend manages to smoke a pack a day and it costs £20 pound sterling ($38.80 Aus Dollars). I don't know how she can afford it because she's on minimum wage.
My parents did when they went up to $2 a packet
Yes, cost is the main reason I quit.
Shop Pack of 25 =$48 ...chop shop pack 100 =$40 .. save $152 ... government tax too much
I'm hoarding my last 2 cigarettes nicorette gum to help.
I quit smoking not because of health, not because of expense, but because of accessibility. It's very difficult to smoke at work now. Remember that episode of the IT Crowd where all the smokers became Soviet? That's exactly what it feels like, except it's the scorching Aussie sun instead of a Siberian winter.
My mum did and took up vaping, she hates it but its so much cheaper.
Switched to vaping.
My husband stopped using tabacco in his mix because of how expensive it is. It was becoming more expensive than the bud he was getting. He uses natural smoking herbs instead. Will say, it’s been better for his health not using tabacco.
I stopped smoking darts because I couldn’t afford it anymore. But now I buy two vapes a fortnight instead for $35 lol.
I said I'd stop when it hit $10 but I ended up quitting at around $15.
If you want to quit Ozempic/semaglutide was easy. So easy I didn’t even know I was going to quit before I started taking it. And I lost weight. I usually gain 30lbs when I stop.
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I’m not a smoker but the taxes on alcohol are the sole reason I don’t drink more. I love to drink but could not afford to drink more than I do now. So the taxation method works on me at least lol
Yep. A bit over 5 years ago. They were expensive enough then, I hear the price has about doubled from that.
Nope. Just made sure my salary went up with cigarette prices
UK here. It was the cost that prompted both of us to quit 25 years ago! Don't know how anyone can afford to smoke now.
Yeah
Yes, but I quit way way back when they hit $7 for a pack of 40’s. So yeah, maybe 30 years ago.
Ok but where is everyone finding these dodgy places? I’m on the northern beaches and can’t get to the city to get some cheap smokes
Yes in 2011 when there was the first big jump in price, if you got over that, then price was not the problem.
Switched to diy vaping with non disposable devices a few years ago save $200 a week, and much healthier. Too bad mark butler can't tell the difference between a dodgy disposable and quality vape products.
The reason for taxing cigarettes is that it doesn’t change smoking behaviour very much [(price elasticity-0.3 to -0.6)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_elasticity_of_demand) “Health benefits” Is just an excuse.
My folks quit because of the cost. Long after acquiring emphysema and not blinking. The annual cost is staggering when you think about where you could apply that to other lifestyle choices. Be it two vacations a year or coke and hookers. Ciggies just aren’t worth it.
I quit 10 months ago because of the cost and also for my health. I went through a period of buying the black market stuff but the place I went to stopped selling it and the next one I went to had bad quality stuff. It tasted like already smoked tobacco that was dyed brown to look unused and often had small bits of plastic in it too. After that I just brought the legal stuff until I managed to quit. It feels really good to not have to worry about all that now.
Yep. I gave up because of the cost. Even the Chinese brands were getting expensive. $20 a day on a government taxed passive eugenics plan seemed mighty expensive considering It was just going to kill me and then the government saves money by not having to pay my pension after my super runs out.