Victor Lindquist, Owner of the Maine Tobacco Shop in Bangor has seen regulations change in the less then 2 years his shop has been open. Mostly the banning of products like clove cigarettes and some flavored cigars.

He and smokers have watched as the tax on cigarettes continues to rise.

According to Rob Walker's piece The Tax Burden on Tobacco, "More then half of the cost of cigarettes in Maine goes to the government."

And some smokers, like Monica Bishop a Bangor Resident, take it as a personal insult. She says,

"There's so many things that they could tax but they're just trying to hit the smokers because they know there's a lot of them."

In Canada and other countries graphic pictures have been added to the labels of cigarettes. In Maine smokers haven't been able to smoke in a public place since 2004, and smoking in cars with anyone under the age of 16 was banned in 2008.

According to Maine law Private clubs, such as the Elks and American Legion, are only open to members and their invited guests so they are not considered "public places" and smoking is allowed there if the club so chooses.

The cigar shoppe in Bangor claims to be the only establishment in the area where people can come in and light up.

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