Hello everyone, welcome to my clearing house for the past week’s worth of e-cigarette news items. This week has once again been a tremendous week for e-cigarette news as the 2nd largest city in the US has decided to let moralistic crusaders win in their pursuit of denormalizing e-cigarettes. There’s other news too, though much of it involving pretty shaky logic. Speaking of shaky logic, be sure to check out my latest myth busting post in case you missed it. Enjoy your news.
Some Stoners Blame eCigs for LA Vaping Ban
An interesting post showed up in the LA Weekly blogs section today. The reporter interviewed some patrons of a random dive bar in LA. The focus was primarily around one guy who was pissed that the vaping ban includes marijuana vaporizers as well. The patron blamed the attention e-cigarettes have gained for attracting the ban police. His argument is that e-cigarettes let out plumes of vapors while pot vaporizers are fairly low key and his days of getting baked at the bar will soon be behind him.
And here I thought toking up made you more mellow.
Vaping Subculture Coming to an End | West Coast Sound | Los Angeles | Los Angeles News and Events | LA Weekly
Study Can't Determine Link Between eCigs and Tobacco, Does Anyway
NPR seems to be getting itself in a position to challenge the HuffPo as the source for left-leaning anti-ecig news items. The latest touts a biased study that looked at the last two years’ of the CDCs youth smoking surveys (you know, the ones that were already exaggerated). According to the story, the study of the surveys found a link between tobacco and teens who try e-cigarettes.
Yet, at the end of the article, it’s noted there’s no way to determine whether ecig use or tobacco use came first, but somehow they know e-cigarettes cause kids to try tobacco.
Teens Who Try E-Cigarettes Are More Likely To Try Tobacco, Too
Laying Prohibitionists Moral Superiority Complexes Bare
It seems that there’s an interesting unintended consequence behind some of the high profile e-cigarette bans. LA in particular seems to have brought insight out from the woodwork. A piece in Slate recently took a look at the rationale behind the ban and how utterly idiotic the gateway conspiracy theory is. More or less, the author concluded that the desire to ban e-cigarettes comes from an emotional, moralistic place and not a place based on science.
Essentially, people are enjoying vaping and we just can’t have that.
The Moral Panic Over E-Cigarettes Intensifies. Chill Out, People.
Prohibitionists Operate on Superstition
A lot has been made of the LA smoking ban which recently passed. One author made some very interesting observations about the travesty that took place in the City of Angels. Specifically, it seems that the people in favor of such bans are buying into a medieval belief that if something looks like another thing, they must both be the same. As in e-cigarettes sometimes look like cigarettes so they must be destroyed just the same.
Magical beliefs spawn e-cig bans
CASAA Call to Action: Overbearing Ban in MA Town
This particular action is a local one for a town in Massachusetts. But, because it is such an overreaching ban and the fact that these things tend to spread around the state like a plague, it’d be a good one to keep an eye on.
CASAA: Local Alert! Newton, Massachusetts Ordinance E-Cigarette Use Ban, Flavor Ban, Restrict Place of Sale, Increase Age of Purchase to 21
E-Cigarette's Real Addiction - Sin Taxes
Much hype has been made about the potential addictiveness of e-cigarettes as well as their alleged ability to corrupt our otherwise non-smoking youth. So far, there seems to be only one real addiction problem with e-cigarettes. That problem would be states’ addiction to sin taxes.
As people stop smoking in favor of vaping, they also stop paying for sin taxes. Those taxes are needed to pay for anti-smoking measures and… football stadiums. Without the taxes, the states are getting a little bit of the cold sweats it seems.
E-cigarette debate is really about money – ‘sin taxes’ in particular
Prohibitionists Confused by Wack Lingo of Kids These Days
Apparently, kids use different words for stuff. Who’d of thunk it. Not various health officials according to a recent, and oddly lengthy New York Times article. Some kids prefer to refer to e-cigarettes as vape pens or hookah sticks or wollygumpers (I guess). Some don’t even think they’re using e-cigarettes at all. This of course has health officials worried that they’ve under-exaggerated their claims of e-cigarettes destroying the kids of today.
That’s totes cray cray if you ask me.
The emergence of e-hookahs and their ilk is frustrating public health officials who are already struggling to measure the spread of e-cigarettes, particularly among young people. The new products and new names have health authorities wondering if they are significantly underestimating use because they are asking the wrong questions when they survey people about e-cigarettes.
via E-Cigarettes, Under Aliases, Elude the Authorities – NYTimes.com.
The Fall of Los Angeles - We didn't have a chance
Make that 3 major cities who have instated knee-jerk reactions to e-cigarettes despite no known ill effects of vapor. The City of Angels is the newest member of the vapor prohibition club. The City Council voted unanimously to fold e-cigarettes into traditional smoking rules.
So for the kids, e-cigarettes will be banned indoors (and in parks, beaches and probably your mom’s house). The one sliver of good news is vape shops are still open season, so there’s that.
L.A. E-Cigarette Ban Approved | The Informer | Los Angeles | Los Angeles News and Events | LA Weekly
Washington state: e-Liquid Tax, Now at 75% Passes Committee
Here’s a not really good news, bad news story for you. Washington state originally proposed a staggering 95% tax on e-cigarettes. After spending some time in committee where the testimony of advocates was heard, a compromise amendment squeaked by the committee by just 1 vote. The new and improved version lowers the tax to a merely punitive 75%
But, hey if you can get a doctor to prescribe e-liquid (which isn’t prescribable) they’ll waive the tax. No word on whether or not you can get the same tax break by bringing an actual unicorn with you at the time of purchase. The bill will now go through the rest of the democratic process, more info to follow as it’s made available.
E-cigarette tax passes committee
FDA To Hold Public Listening Session
Foreshadowing of things to come? The FDA announced on its website that they are holding a public listening session on tobacco products in San Diego this April 5th. The public is encouraged to register and provide presentation on the scientific regulation of tobacco products.
Topics include keeping kids off tobacco (of course). Be sure to pay attention to your favorite advocacy group for further details.
Public Listening Session for the Office of Science, Center for Tobacco Products, FDA
Swanky London Hotel Goes Vape Friendly
The modern K Hotel in London has just gone 100% vape friendly. Through a partnership with UK e-cigarette brand Vapestick, the London hotel will not only sell e-cigarettes at the desk and lounge, but will also allow vaping pretty much everywhere on property. They even have options to buy Vapestick’s products via the room service menu.
Now I just need to figure out how to arrange a review of an all-vaping hotel.
K West Hotel & Spa stubs out complaints with introduction of VAPESTICK
MN eCig Use Ban Makes the Rounds
Despite testimony from advocates, the Health and Human Services Committee in the Minnesota State Senate has approved a bill that would ban e-cigarette use much the same way it bans smoking now. One member of the committee attempted to remove the use ban but was overridden. There are still several steps the bill must go through before it would come up for a vote.
The justification for the bill? The “we don’t know” arguement. I guess Minnesota needs to get working to start banning a whole lot more things if no proven health risks is enough to trigger a ban.
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Are e-cigarettes the next public health menace or a safe alternative to the real thing?
That question is at the core of a debate that is winding its way through the State Capitol.
The latest stop for a bill that would include a ban on e-cigarettes in public places was the Senate’s Health, Human Services and Housing committee.
On Monday night, the committee voted in favor of the bill. It still has a long way to go on the legislative road, but another senate hearing is scheduled this week.
via E-cigarette ban gets boost from Senate committee.
Big Tobacco and the Harm Reduction Buggy Whip
Old habits die hard it seems. Despite Big Tobacco being invested in e-cigarettes in one way or another, the companies are still experimenting with alternative harm reduction methods. The Wall Street Journal covered Phillip Morris’ attempt at fusing the e-cigarette and the analog into one single unit, because, that’s why.
The cigarette maker hopes to market the thing somewhere, possibly Europe starting next year.
How the Cigarette Industry Plans to Make Tobacco Grow Again
RJR to Sponsor SxSW - I'm Sure That Won't Raise Any Hackles
Vuse, the e-cigarette offering by RJ Reynolds just issued a press release announcing they will be a sponsor at the popular music-turned-tech-fest that is South by Southwest. Vuse will have advertising and people at selected events during the music portion of the festival.
I’m sure that advertising at music events won’t at all bother prohibitionists who cite, along with tasty flavors, sponsorship of music events to be proof positive of a conspiracy to hook kids. Double that for an actual tobacco company doing it.
Download (PDF, 264KB)
Just in case the document embedder doesn’t work (again) you can download the PDF here.
Yep, NPR Still On the Prohibitionist Train
NPR recently ran a story about e-cigarettes. In the piece they invited all the prohibitionists to sling soundbites into people’s radios. The latest bee in the bonnet is how e-cigarettes are apparently being marketed to kids. You know, cause adults don’t like joyful things particularly models in impossibly tiny bikinis.
That’s particularly a concern for people who think teenage boys don’t access the internet because the ad showed up in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition. I’m going to guess that if nobody made a big deal of it, the ad probably would have mostly gone unnoticed. But now people are going to want to check it out to see what all the excitement is about.
At least it feeds nicely into the paranoid delusions of prohibitionists.
E-Cigarette Critics Worry New Ads Will Make ‘Vaping’ Cool For Kids
ALA Feels Senators Overreach Falls Short
Here’s an interesting little nugget of information found in a throwaway line in a local news article. The piece was about local vapers reactions to the crusading Senators determined to end run both the FDA and possibly the constitution by making the FTC the tastemakers of e-cigarette marketing. As is typical, the piece notes that the usual group of prohibitionist societies are all for trampling the rights of free speech.
That’s not the interesting part. That comes courtesy of an ALA spokesperson who states “If young teens are able to get it on the Internet, then there is no stopping them.”
E-cig marketing bill upsets some
NJoy Receives $70M of Funding on Valuation of $1Bn
You’re used to hearing stuff like this for the latest social media startup or whatever. Now it’s translated to the e-cigarette industry. NJoy just received a private round of funding for $70 million dollars based on a company valuation of $1 Billion (with a B). While peanuts compared to tobacco companies, I think this does take the company out of the small business category.
It doesn’t seem likely NJoy will be snatched up by any Big Tobacco companies any time soon.
Read more on the New York Times Dealbook Site
Most Harmful eCig Provisions Stripped from Utah Bill, Sponsor Vows Revenge
The Utah bill that would have crippled the ability for people in the state to get their hands on e-cigarette products has been reworked into a kinder, gentler version. An amendment to the bill stripped the provisions that would have eliminated online sales and applied arbitrary manufacturing standards that e-liquid companies not located in Utah would have to follow too.
The sponsor of the bill, Representative Ray vows he will work to make sure the bill that goes through the senate will be just as horrendous as his original bill. You know… kids.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/politics/57613922-90/cigarettes-ray-bill-gibson.html.csp
Deal of the Moment
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