A Tax Too Far

[jetsetter]

Reason blogger Katherine Mangu-Ward links to this story from RIA Novosti about a recently approved tax in Wallonia, a French-speaking region of Belgium. According to the report, the local government there, which represents some four million Belgian citizens, will now require all Wallonians to pay a 20 euro tax for the privilege of barbecuing. A barbecue releases some 50 to 100 grams of CO2 into the atmosphere, so the Wallonia government will discourage this eco-outrage with a tax, and will monitor compliance..."from helicopters, whose thermal sensors will detect burning grills."

It's hard to imagine that barbecuing could produce more CO2 than an enforcement regime that relies on helicopters--but the fact is, Europeans don't barbecue. They grill. Here in America, a real barbecue might put 100-times as much CO2 into the atmosphere over the course of a 12 hour session--perhaps making enforcement from above practical, though still completely ridiculous. Take The BBQ Guy, for example. He described his Fourth of July barbecue thusly:

I put 2 pork butts and three racks of ribs on the smoker at 8:15 p.m. The ribs finished up at 12:30 a.m. and the pork butts were taken off the smoker at 2:30 a.m. before I headed to bed.
Now that's a lot of CO2.


A real American barbecue. Courtesy of The BBQ Guy.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblog...ax_too_far.asp

BRUSSELS, April 3 (RIA Novosti) - The government of Belgium's French-speaking region of Wallonia, which has a population of about 4 million, has approved a tax on barbequing, local media reported.

Experts said that between 50 and 100 grams of CO2, a so-called greenhouse gas, is emitted during barbequing. Beginning June 2007, residents of Wallonia will have to pay 20 euros for a grilling session.

The local authorities plan to monitor compliance with the new tax legislation from helicopters, whose thermal sensors will detect burning grills.

Scientists believe CO2 emissions are a major cause of global warming.

http://en.rian.ru/world/20070403/62999935.html

The Euros are slowly but surly loosing their balls. I mean come on!!!

[tigger]

Now that is bullshit. Having to pay to fire up your grill/BBQ? Screw that. I'm sure a helicopter will emit more CO2 than a bunch of guys grilling in their back yards.

[watto]

hahaha. Silly French speaking Belgians... That's ridiculous.

[chaos386]

I'm going to wait for one of our Belgian members to chime in before I believe this story. I mean, come on, using helicopters to enforce a 20€ tax meant to lower CO₂ emissions?

It would be much simpler to have a tax on the coals you buy at the store, which I'm sure they already have.

[ioynerien]

April fools I'm guessing
If not, there must be some real Wallooneys out there

[Peter3hg]

Come on, did any of you seriously believe this.

BRUSSELS, April 4 (RIA Novosti) - The government of Wallonia has refuted allegations of plans to introduce a tax on barbequing in this Belgian French-speaking region.

Reports appeared in local media earlier in the month that a law had been approved to charge residents of the 4-million-strong region 20 euros for each grilling session beginning in June.

"We have repeatedly denied this information, which is nothing but an April Fool's Day joke. But we never imagined it would create such a fuss," said the press secretary of Wallonia's minister for agricultural, rural affairs, the environment and tourism.

The media had said the new law was needed as an environmental measure and cited experts as saying that between 50 and 100 grams of CO2, a so-called greenhouse gas, was emitted during barbequing. Scientists believe CO2 emissions are a major cause of global warming.

According to the allegations, helicopters, equipped with thermal sensors to detect burning grills, were to have monitored compliance with the new tax legislation.

April Fool's Day is celebrated in many countries April 1 by playing hoaxes and practical jokes on friends, enemies and neighbors. The practice is sometimes observed in mass media.

Belgian media was implicated in another practical joke last December when state television broke into its regular programming with a report that the Dutch-speaking half of the country, Flanders, had declared its independence and that the king and queen had fled.

Panic ensued, with frantic calls being placed by foreign embassies and Belgian citizens to the government demanding an explanation, and order was only restored when the state-owned RTBF television station admitted the report was a hoax.

http://en.rian.ru/world/20070404/63077075.html

[ryosuke]

i'd say that russian news agency accidently picked up some april fools news.

[jetsetter]

With all of the weird laws these days in the various European countries it seemed plausible.

[chaos386]

Originally Posted by jetsetter

With all of the weird laws these days in the various European countries it seemed plausible.

No it didn't, you're just gullible.

[mgkdk]

[WheatKing]

Originally Posted by chaos386

No it didn't, you're just gullible.

No they're the gullible ones.. i mean.. europe agreed to kyoto

Hows that working out anyway?

[bone]

^not

[Jacobfox]

You do have a better sens of humor about these things. About the closest that anyone in the US govt came to a really good joke was Karl Rove rapping at the White House correspondents dinner. I laughed.

[bone]

Originally Posted by jetsetter

With all of the weird laws these days in the various European countries it seemed plausible.

i wouldn't have been surprised if they actually had done this

[tigger]

Rofl, I got fooled, but this makes me feel better...

Originally Posted by WheatKing

No they're the gullible ones.. i mean.. europe agreed to kyoto

Hows that working out anyway?

[BlaRo]

Finally...a decent April Fool's joke!
Though at the rate things are going today, it really wouldn't surprise me that people took this seriously. I admit it, I fell for it ()because you Europeans probably are that silly ().

[countvlad]

There was a story running recently in the belgium media that belgium was being dissolved into france had been approved recently. In america as a joke all the news stations broadcast a story of an alien landing which caused wide spread panic.

[bone]

^eh? there was? didn't hear anything about that


the newsservice of the french speaking belgian TV station (does that make sense?), did make a (very convincing) documentary that the dutch speaking part had gone independant and that the king had fled the country

that was fun (and wouldn't be a bad thing if it actually happened imho)

and if there's anything i'm to dissolve in, it will be holland.
i want my coffeeshop next to my door!

[jetsetter]

Originally Posted by countvlad

There was a story running recently in the belgium media that belgium was being dissolved into france had been approved recently. In america as a joke all the news stations broadcast a story of an alien landing which caused wide spread panic.

That was quite a few decades ago and it was not meant to be a trick.

[Peter3hg]

Originally Posted by jetsetter

That was quite a few decades ago and it was not meant to be a trick.

War of the Worlds?