New York Does Not Believe in Dancing
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 11:06 PM

Last year Vice Squad stumbled across the fact that New York City establishments serving food or drink cannot also host dancing (even of the spontaneous sort by customers) unless the establishments have acquired a special "cabaret" license. The numbers of legal NYC dance houses are on the rise, we are now happy to report (or repeat, rather). Another dance parade is scheduled for May 17 to protest the draconian anti-dance legislation. A pro-dance activist [imagine that we have gotten to the point where there can be such a thing as a pro-dance activist] claims that the real problem is noise, not dance, and that the smoking ban is responsible for a New York noise boost -- as Vice Squad recently noted for Paris. Speaking of the Paris smoking ban, there's a claim that Paris clubs are learning what London pubs learned after the smoking ban went into effect: smoke covers up the ambient smell of these establishments, and that can be a good thing.

Labels: Britain, dancing, France, New York, smoking ban

 
Has the Smoking Ban Deeply Altered Paris?
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 9:55 PM

Well, the City of Light apparently is awash (a' la Illinois) in those not quite enclosed shelters that, being outside, allow people to smoke. A recent British visitor, writing in the Guardian, notes that "some of the terraces [patios connected to bars/restaurants] seemed to be almost entirely enclosed: six smoking tables would be set within cellophane walls – a scene unfortunately reminiscent of an oxygen tent."

One of the unintended consequences of smoking bans is the opportunities that congregating outside have given smokers to socialize. There's a flip side to that particular consequence, however, one that Paris currently is experiencing: the newly outdoors socializing is making it harder for Parisians who reside near eating and drinking establishments to sleep.

Labels: France, smoking ban

 
Ringing In Another Set of Smoking Bans
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 9:52 AM

Chicago and Paris join the public smoking ban club today; in Paris, the city authorities are distributing "pocket ashtrays" so smokers won't throw their butts on the ground. (Another new law further reduces the Paris-Chicago cultural divide: dogs are now welcome to the outdoor sections of Chicago restaurants.) The Illinois smoking ban does not exempt casinos, so some fiscal authorities are already budgeting for reduced tax revenues from existing casinos -- though the plans to expand gaming in Illinois continue to develop. Fort Worth's new smoking ban does not extend to bars -- and in a last-minute alteration, bingo parlors (a Vice Squad obsession) are exempt, too. Speaking of bingo, in New York, as of January 1, you can organize a fun bingo game in a senior center without fear of imprisonment -- just don't let the players smoke.

Labels: bingo, Chicago, France, gambling, Illinois, smoking ban

 
More Reaction to Sun's Light on Buprenorphine
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 9:51 AM

A few days ago Vice Squad mentioned the Baltimore Sun's investigative reporting on buprenorphine, an opioid commonly used to treat heroin addiction (which is rife in Baltimore). One part of the series concerns France, where buprenorphine is widely prescribed to addicts. This part of the series, like other parts, has attracted critical commentary from the treatment community. Today's letter (scroll down a bit) from two French addiction workers expresses dismay about both the story and the Sun's Public Editor's tepid endorsement. Their letter points out some information that did not appear in the Sun story:

Opioid substitution treatment now covers about 70 percent of drug users in France, and most receive buprenorphine. This change in policy has achieved:

• An 80 percent reduction in heroin overdose deaths (from 500 to 100 per
year).

• A 75 percent reduction in HIV prevalence among drug users (from 40
percent in 1995 to 11 percent in 2004).

• A 75 percent reduction in drug-related crimes.

Causality is always tricky, but it does seem that buprenorphine has been a very successful treatment for heroin addicts in France. Incidentally, much of the Sun's concern about buprenorphine "abuse" draws upon heroin addicts who purchase street bupe to stave off withdrawal when they cannot afford or access heroin. This use may not be undertaken under a physician's care, but it is far from clear that it constitutes "abuse" in the usual sense. (Though in the drug policy world, the abuse of "abuse" is common.)

Labels: addiction, buprenorphine, France

 
Speeding Along the Demise of French Home Distilling
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 6:29 PM

There is a rural tradition in France of orchard owners distilling high-alcohol fruit brandies, eaux de vie. But these home distillers are in serious decline, as the French government has been restricting the right to make tax-free distillations. Those whose production right -- it only amounts to 20 litres of 50 percent alcohol per rightholder -- was grandfathered in decades ago have not been allowed to bequeath that right, so many of the distillers are literal grandfathers. Nevertheless, French law is set to change on January 1, and the aged alcohol producers will either have to pay a 7.25 euro per bottle tax, or give up their traditional hobby. Seems a bit heavy-handed.

Here are some photos of the production technique for eau de vie, along with some commentary on the fear instilled by the French alcohol tax collection authorities.

Labels: alcohol, France, taxes

 
Mr. Prokhorov has been released
- posted by Michael @ 5:54 PM

The Russian oligarch who was arrested on Tuesday in Courchevel, France, has been released. We can all relax. It's still apparently legal to wine and dine young women and even offer them lodging. I do hope that the French police had a better reason for arresting and holding all those people in jail for a couple of days than what they revealed. But I have no evidence of that.

Labels: France, Russia

 
Russian oligarch arrested in France
- posted by Michael @ 7:14 PM

One of the richest men in Russia and the world, Mikhail Prokhorov, 41, was arrested with 27 other people, including several young women, in a French ski resort of Courchevel. Apparently, all the women were let go soon after the apprehension, but Mr. Prokhorov and at least some of his friends are still held in custody in Lyon. So far, no charges have been filed. It will be interesting to see what these not so poor Russians are charged with, if anything. It seems that it might be soliciting prostitution or perhaps even (God forbid!) drug possession. (Prostitution itself is not apparently illegal in France, but solicitation is.) From the available information, it appears that the Russian women who were initially apprehended with Prokhorov and others were not prostitutes. Moreover, the Bloomberg article referred to above quotes Lyon's state prosecutor as saying that "[t]he possibility of gifts, dinners and lodgings in five-star hotels being offered to the women is ``part of the investigation.'' Wow. By this standard, most American males might be guilty, except, of course, we would need to replace "five-star hotels" with something more affordable such as one's appartment. But perhaps there will be more serious charges involved. One interesting thing is how little information seems to be available on the web about all this in English. When I googled "Prokhorov prostitution" I did not see any entries on the first page that related to this story. I guess why should anybody really care that a guy who has $7.6 billion is arrested for (presumably) soliciting prostitution? In any case, the French authorities are going to make a statement about this case tomorrow and perhaps I will say more about it then.

Labels: France, prostitution, Russia

 
Back From Paris...
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 12:59 PM

...where the French are smoking a whole lot less, it seems. Tax increases were the main impetus for declines in sales of cigarettes in France of more than 13% in 2003 and a further 15% in 2004. Even past cigarette consumption is declining in France: a cigarette has been smudged out of a photograph of Jean-Paul Sartre in a poster advertising an exhibition at the Bibliotheque Nationale. The decision to doctor the old photo was made in part to make sure that the poster would not violate a law against tobacco advertising.

Vice Squad has been lightly tracking French smoking trends since the tax increase.

Labels: France, marketing, solipsism, taxes, tobacco

 
French Tobacco Sales Plummet...
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 7:34 PM

...and existential philosophy threatened. OK, I made up that philosophy part. But remember when the French tobacconists went on a one-day strike last October? No one can accuse them of not understanding their own interests. From the BBC:

Heavy tobacco taxes, introduced as part of a French health drive, have triggered a 20% drop in cigarette sales in the country, official figures show.

The cost of a pack of cigarettes has surged 30% since the anti-smoking campaign began in October last year.

Cigar sales are up, incidentally. And even more incidentally, I have switched my official Vice Squad e-mail address from my University of Chicago to my Google mail account, as you will note by checking the sidebar. No doubt you will read all about this momentous change in tomorrow's papers.

Labels: France, solipsism, taxes, tobacco

 
Three Quick Alcohol-Related Items
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 3:45 PM

(1) "French may classify wine as food, not alcohol" -- This will allow the circumvention of controls on alcohol advertisements. The short linked article also notes the drastic decline in wine consumption in France: "Forty years ago, the average French consumer drank 134 bottles of wine a year, compared to only 77 today."

(2) Slovak towns must adjust to life after alcohol, tobacco taxes. It isn't that their residents have stopped consuming these vicious goods; rather, Slovakia's entry into the EU, it seems, precludes municipalities from imposing their own taxes on these items.

(3) The Alaskan village of Togiak has an alcohol-sniffing dog named Rex. Alcohol sales and imports have been prohibited in Togiak for twenty years, but some folks still try to smuggle in the contraband to resell to some of the 825 villagers. Liquor apparently sells at a huge markup thanks to the ban, with a bottle costing $10 in Anchorage going for some $150. Wow. The town has a drug-sniffing dog, too. Actually, three police dogs (the third is for search-and-rescue, and was thrown in for free by the Huntsville, Alabama supplier) but only two human officers. The police chief "originally hoped to use the same dog to sniff out alcohol and drugs but was cautioned that, for legal reasons surrounding search and seizure laws, a dog shouldn't be trained for both." It does sound as if the police in Togiak are more attentive to legal niceties than are many of their brethren in the drug prohibition world: "Random searches of incoming bags and mail are unconstitutional, so he [the police chief] can't search every bag. And if he finds something suspicious and Rex indicates signs of booze, the person must consent to a search or the city needs a search warrant."

Labels: alcohol, dogs, EU, France, search, taxes

 
Will the Prostitutes Be Next?
- posted by Jim Leitzel @ 11:41 PM

Sharp-eyed Vice Squad friend Michael Alexeev passes along this CNN.com story on the one-day (October 20) strike by French tobacconists. They are upset about a recently implemented tax rise on cigarettes that has caused prices to increase 20%. High-quality cigarettes have seen their price increase from 3.90 to 4.60 euros per pack after implementation of the higher tax.

According to the article, an earlier 16% tax hike last January led to an 8% fall in cigarette sales. If by the 16% increase they mean that the retail price went up by 16% -- it's unclear in the article -- then an 8% decline in sales indicates a price elasticity of (minus) 0.5%, which is in line with many previous estimates. The article mentions, however, that the fall in sales is not matched by a fall in consumption, as illegal imports or other unrecorded acquisitions make up for most of the decline in official sales. This, too, is in line with some earlier studies, though the extent of the substitution is quite large here: the article says that consumption fell by only 1 or 2%, despite the 8% decline in sales.

In keeping with tradition, the strike involved roadblocks, this time at the border crossing with Germany. Apparently much of the tax avoidance has been accomplished through purchases in neighboring countries (Germany, Spain, Belgium) with lower taxes on cigarettes.

Update, October 21, 2003: Today's Chicago Tribune also includes an article about the tobacconists' strike. "Some 20 million French smoke -- over a third of the population -- as do 50 percent of youths aged 15-24, the highest rate in the European Union, government figures show." The non-virtual version of the article also notes that this summer, a minimum purchase age of 16 was established for tobacco products in France.

Labels: EU, Europe, France, tobacco