Tobacco companies and public health advocates, longtime foes in the nicotine battles, are trying to turn the situation to their advantage. The major cigarette makers raised prices a couple of weeks ago, partly to offset any drop in profits once the per-pack tax climbs from 39 cents to $1.01.
Medical groups see a tax increase right in the middle of a recession as a great incentive to help persuade smokers to quit.
The pricing moves raised eyebrows. “That’s nothing more than greed,” said Kevin Altman, an industry consultant who advises small tobacco companies. “They weren’t required to charge that until April 1. They are just putting that into their pockets.”
Responded Phelps: “We raised our prices in direct response to the federal excise tax increase, and people who are upset about that should find out how their member of Congress voted, and contact him or her.”
Some policy analysts have questioned the wisdom of boosting tobacco taxes to finance health care for children. They argue that the fate of such a broad program should not depend on revenues derived from a minority of the adult population, many of whom have low incomes and are hooked on a habit. The tobacco industry is also warning that the steep increase will lead to tax evasion through old-fashioned smuggling or by Internet purchase from abroad.
Cigarette smokers continue to be the most persecuted group in America.
It is safe to say that anyone who pushes these Cigarette Tax increases has never shared a bottle of red and some smokes with a French Model Girl. Nor enjoyed what happens succeeding.
That being said, they have no authority to make these decisions.
Manny Pacquiao’s name is being floated as one of the top contenders of Floyd Mayweather Jr. if ever the former pound-for-pound king decides to come out of retirement.
Golden Boy Promotions chief executive officer Richard Schaeffer said Mayweather, who retired after beating Ricky Hatton in 2007, could pick from four high-profile opponents if he decides to once again climb the ring this year.
A Mayweather-Pacquiao match would pit the reigning pound-for-pound champion against the former title holder.
Mayweather was undefeated in 39 fights, with 25 knockouts, when he retired.
Pacquiao holds a 48-3-2 win-loss-draw record with 37 of his wins by way of knockout. He is currently training for his upcoming fight against Hatton on May 2 in Las Vegas.
Schaeffer said Pacquiao would solidify his hold of the pound-for-pound title if he beats Hatton. “I don’t care who you put in front of (Pacquiao), big or small, he would be the pound-for-pound champion.”
He added that a Mayweater-Pacquiao match will be a huge draw in Las Vegas. “To put (Pacquiao) and Mayweather together, it would be for all the marbles. If you think about it, even if you were a casual fan, you would have to get excited about them.”
Others being considered are Hatton (45-1, 32 KOs), “Sugar” Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) and Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs).
Hatton is eyeing a rematch against Mayweather after suffering a ninth-round technical knockout (TKO) loss in their December 8, 2007 fight. He could earn that rematch if ever the British boxing superstar upsets Pacquiao.
“Just imagine the huge draw of a sellout crowd at Wembley Stadium in London with 100,000 people if Hatton would beat Pacquiao,” said Schaeffer. “It (Hatton-Mayweather) would be a huge, huge, historic fight.”
I somehow slept on this one. I think I was down in Buenos Aires heisting or something. (Well, not really “slept on” the tracks, but the Mixtape as a whole).
Listen, its pro-bono.
Wale: The Beast Of The Beltway Mixtape
Fresh.
He even kills Jay on the “I know” beat and skewers Kanye on the “Good Life” beat.
Track list:
1.Intro
2.Go mode feat. bun b
3.Fish n’ chips
4.Big spender
5.Another freestyle
6.Flashing lights
7.From md freestyle
8.Dangerous girls feat. danger (m.a.f. mash-up)
9.I know d.c.
10.Kiss kiss (remix)
11.Nike boots
12.Good life (dc remix) feat. kanye west & t-pain
13.Get it
14.W.a.l.e.f.r.i.e.n.d.s. feat. justice (m.a.f. mash)
Finalists for the James Beard Foundation were named Monday: http://www.jbfawards.com/nominees.html. Winners are announced on May 4th at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall in New York.
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The only ones I really pay attention to are the Restaurant and Chef Awards.
Here they are with my comments and picks below in Bold.
Restaurant and Chef Awards
OUTSTANDING RESTAURATEUR AWARD
Tom Douglas
Tom Douglas Restaurants
Seattle
Keith McNally
Balthazar, Lucky Strike, Morandi, Pastis, Pravda, and Schiller’s Liquor Bar
NYC
Richard Melman
Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises
Chicago
Drew Nieporent
Myriad Restaurant Group
NYC
Stephen Starr
Starr Restaurants
Philadelphia
Keith McNally in a landslide. Sure Stephen Starr’s Morimoto is dope, but Balthazar is one of the illest restaurants in the USA.
Either Paul Kahan or José Andrés. Suzanne Goin’s Lucques I thought was an airball. Blackbird is mindblowing, but if I have to choose, its going to be Ferran Adrià’s understudy, José Andrés. The Spanish just can’t be touched right now. And that goes for Chefs and International Playboys.
OUTSTANDING RESTAURANT AWARD
Babbo
NYC
Chef/Owner: Mario Batali
Owner: Joe Bastianich
Boulevard
San Francisco
Chef/Owner: Nancy Oakes
Owner: Pat Kuleto
Fore Street
Portland, ME
Chef/Owner: Sam Hayward
Owner: Victor Leon and Dana Street
Highlands Bar & Grill
Birmingham, AL
Chef/Owner: Frank Stitt
Jean Georges
NYC
Chef/Owner: Jean-Georges Vongerichten
Owner: Phil Suarez
I am down with Jean Georges, but its a toss up between Boulevard and Babbo. If I have to pick one, I give it to Boulevard by a nose (I swooped too many super fly Sophito Girls out of there, so its hard for me to go against). Never been to Portland, ME or Birmingham, AL so I can’t comment on those two.
Mighty Show Stoppers – Hippy Skippy Moon Strut
RISING STAR CHEF OF THE YEAR AWARD
Nate Appleman
A16
San Francisco
Sean Brock
McCrady’s
Charleston, SC
Johnny Monis
Komi
Washington, D.C.
Gabriel Rucker
Le Pigeon
Portland, OR
Michael Solomonov
Zahav
Philadelphia
Sue Zemanick
Gautreau’s
New Orleans
Either Sue Zemanick’s Gautreau’s or Nate Appleman’s A16. I have heard tons of good things about Nate Appleman’s cooking from my peers and I enjoyed it myself, but Sue Zemanick’s Veal Chop with an fly New Orleans Exotic Dancer put it on top for me.
The Bazaar by José Andrés at SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills
Los Angeles
Chef/Owner: José Andrés
Owners: SBE
Corton
NYC
Chef/Owner: Paul Liebrandt
Owner: Drew Nieporent
L2O
Chicago
Chef: Laurent Gras
Owner: Richard Melman
Momofuku Ko
NYC
Chef/Owner: David Chang
Scarpetta
NYC
Chef/Owner: Scott Conant
Staying away from this one. Need to do more case studies on Momofuku Ko, The Bazaar by José Andrés, L2O and Corton.
OUTSTANDING PASTRY CHEF AWARD
Gina DePalma
Babbo
NYC
Kamel Guechida
Joël Robuchon at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas
Pichet Ong
P*ong
NYC
Nicole Plue
Redd
Yountville, CA
Mindy Segal
Mindy’s HotChocolate
Chicago
I can appreciate the art, but who cares about Pastries?
OUTSTANDING WINE SERVICE AWARD
Bin 36
Chicago
Wine Director: Brian Duncan
Blackberry Farm
Walland, TN
Wine Director: Andy Chabot
Le Bernardin
NYC
Wine Director: Aldo Sohm
Patina
Los Angeles
Wine Director: Eric Espuny
Picasso at Bellagio
Las Vegas
Wine Director: Robert Smith
Either Aldo Sohm from Le Bernardin (the only place in the US I will eat seafood on a Monday) or Robert Smith from Picasso at Bellagio. I still think this award should go to Mark Slater of Citronelle.
Living Funk – Silver Black Summer Day
OUTSTANDING WINE AND SPIRITS PROFESSIONAL AWARD
Dale DeGroff
Dale DeGroff Co., Inc.
NYC
Merry Edwards
Merry Edwards Wines
Sebastopol, CA
Garrett Oliver
The Brooklyn Brewery
Brooklyn, NY
John Shafer and Doug Shafer
Shafer Vineyards
Napa, CA
Julian P. Van Winkle, III
Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery
Louisville, KY
Not even sure I have been to any of these states unless I was “passing thru” during my “distribution” days. And even then, I am pretty sure I took a more southern route.
Best Chef: Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH)
Koren Grieveson
Avec
Chicago
Arun Sampanthavivat
Arun’s
Chicago
Bruce Sherman
North Pond
Chicago
Michael Symon
Lola
Cleveland
Alex Young
Zingerman’s Roadhouse
Ann Arbor, MI
Koren Grieveson of Avec. Where the heck is Shawn McClain of Spring?
Best Chef: New York City (Five Boroughs)
Michael Anthony
Gramercy Tavern
Terrance Brennan
Picholine
Wylie Dufresne
WD-50
Gabrielle Hamilton
Prune
Gabriel Kreuther
The Modern
Wylie Dufresne. Because he is so trippy. Just playing.
Best Chef: Northeast (CT, MA, ME, NH, NY STATE, RI, VT)
Rob Evans
Hugo’s
Portland, ME
Clark Frasier and Mark Gaier
Arrows
Ogunquit, ME
Michael Leviton
Lumiére
West Newton, MA
Tony Maws
Craigie on Main
Cambridge, MA
Marc Orfaly
Pigalle
Boston
Never been to any of those spots or even those states in the last year. Although I am intrigued by Pigalle.
Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)
Maria Hines
Tilth
Seattle
Joseba Jiménez de Jiménez
The Harvest Vine
Seattle
Ethan Stowell
Union
Seattle
Cathy Whims
Nostrana
Portland, OR
Jason Wilson
Crush
Seattle
Didn’t go to the great Northwest last year.
Best Chef: Southeast (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, WV)
Hugh Acheson
Five and Ten
Athens, GA
Linton Hopkins
Restaurant Eugene
Atlanta
Mike Lata
Fig
Charleston, SC
Bill Smith
Crook’s Corner
Chapel Hill, NC
Bob Waggoner
Charleston Grill
Charleston, SC
Lets say Linton Hopkins’ Restaurant Eugene just because I heard good things from one of my old running partners who seems to frequent The Home of The Pimps, Players and Money Makers.
Chuck Brown & The Soul Searchers – If It Ain’t Funky (1979)
Best Chef: Southwest (AZ, CO, NM, NV, OK, TX, UT)
Paul Bartolotta
Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare at Wynn Las Vegas
Sharon Hage
York Street
Dallas
Ryan Hardy
Montagna at the Little Nell
Aspen, CO
Claude Le Tohic
Joël Robuchon at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas
Andrew Weissman
Le Rêve
San Antonio
I have dug Paul Bartolotta’s joint since it first opened. Many great meals and nights there. Defeated a very heavy media-hyped up Professional Poker Player/ Playboy there too. Straight Peeled him for his girl right at the bar even before I finished my tuna carpaccio.
Best Chef: South (AL, AR, FL, LA, MS)
Zach Bell
Café Boulud at the Brazilian Court
Palm Beach, FL
John Currence
City Grocery
Oxford, MS
John Harris
Lilette
New Orleans
Douglas Rodriguez
Ola
Miami Beach, FL
Michael Schwartz
Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink
Miami
I have actually wanted to go to City Grocery for a long time, I just never seem to find myself in Oxford, MS. Pick either Lilette or The Savoy housed Ola. Rodriguez is The G on nouveau Latino and Cubano cuisine.
Authorities in Spain said they have seized a 42-piece dinner set made from 42 pounds of cocaine and arrested the intended recipient.
Police said a 35-year-old Spanish man, identified only as JVLL, was arrested and charged with an offense against public health after police seized the package in an international operation coordinated with Venezuela, where the package originated, The Times of London reported Friday.
Investigators said they believe the man was forced to become involved in the cocaine trade by drug traffickers in Venezuela.
Police said the cocaine had been destined for sale in Catalonia, Spain.
According to the police, parcels sent in the post are a popular method of smuggling medium-size shipments of cocaine.
The drug can be diluted within liquids. Another method is to impregnate clothing or other materials with the cocaine.
Two weeks ago, Spanish police arrested a Chilean man with a broken leg whose “plaster cast” had been made with the illegal substance.
