I'll be foregoing this week's pipe smoking tip to discuss this very urgent matter. Just as I have discussed in a newsletter a few months ago there is serious pending and passed legislation that has been introduced that will forever change the way tobacco is sold and purchased ... or shall I say DONE AWAY WITH. The two bills in question are HR2824 and S1177. Both were originally drafted to prevent cigarettes from being sold across state lines, with incorrect or no tax and to minors. It is also stated that the individual state are not receiving their share of the Master Settlement due to online and phone/mail order sales. The Master Settlement never made any form of tobacco except cigarettes liable in the first place. Having spoken to many cigar and pipe smokers about these bills I did notice a certain distain for cigarettes and a somewhat lax attitude concerning the bills. It was always my contention that all smokers have to stick together and that "they" would find a way to make the bills inclusive. Well folks, they have. S1177 has recently passes the Senate and includes "any tobacco product". S1177 ((Sec. 3) Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the transmission in the mails of any tobacco product, including cigarettes and smokeless tobacco) has taken away your right to purchase tobacco via the web AND phone orders and has made the act of doing so a felony. HR2824 currently does not contain the "any tobacco product" amendment but you can bet it's on the way. Our last, best and only opportunity to do something about this is to get off our butts and write, call and/or fax our state senators and representatives and expressive our disapproval of these bills before they become law. Here are two web sites where you can find all the contact info you will need, http://www.house.gov/ and http://www.senate.gov/. Act now before it's too late and stock up now, whether from us or another dealer just in case.