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When is a crime not a crime? — 6 Comments

  1. Saw the Tweet on Dick’s feed. Was impressed at the quality of machinery and what must have been a substantial capital investment.  Also they are using the Mayfair branding without any warning labels.

    What I draw from this is they have a ready market for their prodigious output and actually intend for their customers to know they’re not duty paid or EU compliant.

    As Mayfair is a budget brand they don’t need to use complex or expensive mixes, just  virginia and burley plus a touch of flavouring and additives.

    While I fully agree it’s likely this is one of many, I doubt the others will be as sophisticated.  To stay in this business long term it’s crucial to keep it small and move production frequently.  Something that’ll fit in a lock up garage is ideal. And keep the number of operatives low as well as handsomely rewarded.

    Those they never find, thankfully.

    • I really was impressed by the sophistication of the operation.  Not only was there massive capital investment but a ton of expertise.  That machinery is not the kind of thing you can carry in your hand luggage?

      My hope is that at some stage those in power will realise that taxation is far too high and that they are actually losing out to these alternative sources [I refuse to call ’em criminals!].

      • Personally I doubt we’ll ever see any relaxation by the authorities. At least not while we continually vote for the same political parties.

        And again I’m with you that they’re not criminals; the price of ingredients alone make it impossible to ignore the opportunities of making stupendous profits.

        The people they catch are most likely small fry. The real brains and money will be well removed.

        How they shift their stock may yield more, if they had details on site, which I doubt. Certainly there will be hundreds involved in retailing the cigarettes,  so I hope for their sake that sort of information was kept secure, otherwise a stack of businesses may be landed with a visit from the fuzz.

  2. Alan Watts said “All government is, is the current mot successful criminal gang.”

    Bang on the money.

  3. That’s just the sort of immigration we all need – independent, entrepreneurial, creative, hard-working, market-focused, customer-satisfying, non-benefits-claiming.  So your Gubmint then turns them into criminals and spends £50k a year to keep each of them in jail.

    Please send them across the Irish Sea, we need more of their type to offset some of the millions permanently sucking on the UK Welfare-teat.

  4. “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

    You’d think after the failure of alcohol prohibition in the USA and the “war on drugs” that politicians would realize that policing peoples personal lives is an expensive waste of time. Are they really as stupid as they look?

    But then punitive taxation/prohibition also means bigger budgets for coppers and prison screws (and more opportunities to have their palms greased), more opportunities for politicians to grandstand and be seen to be “doing something”. Maybe they’re not so stupid after all.

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