Boycott Companies That Pander to the Government

[ACM]

njoy announced plans to discontinue flavors. That's big news. I, personally, don't use flavors. I am fine with tobacco-type e-juice. But many people love their flavors, and if NJoy starts a precedent, then a major appeal of e-smoking for a lot of people will end.

This is a simple case of a company pandering to the government. In their own press release, NJoy says "there is not widespread evidence of the products being used by underage smokers." So what's the problem?

NJoy also says, "The move aligns the flavors offered by NJOY with those allowed for combustible tobacco cigarettes under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act." vaping does not involve combustion. It is not in violation of the act.

I think we should not encourage companies to cave in to the unfair, unreasonable pressure government is exerting on them in order to protect the jobs and tax revenue provided by the analog cigarette industry in America.

I say that if a company like NJoy is going to stop offering a full range of products for adult consumers to choose from, we should all find another company to do business with.

That's my $.02. Now flame away!

 

[Stephaniems]

I agree with you and I also 95 percent of the time vape tobacco flavors, but I do enjoy blackberry brandy now and then.

 

[MHR7331]

I wouldn't touch Njoy with a ten foot pole, so count me in

 

[ThaLadyD]

Me too!

 

[AllieBee]

I agree with you in principle ACM. However I also have to admit that Njoy's decision makes me think there may be more to this than meets the eye.

 

[ZoSo15]

I'm in. I never like cigarettes in the first place and have no desire to taste tobacco again.

That doesn't make me a child.

 

[ACM]

AllieBee, I would be 100% cool with NJoy's move if there were lots of cases on record of kids buying and using e-cigs. Kids have no business consuming nicotine in any form. I was a kid when I started smoking, and I regret to this day that I ever decided to swipe a smoke from my mom in the first place. So if NJoy was making this decision with the best interests of children in mind, I would support it.

But NJoy is, in my opinion, acting disingenuously. They state that there is no problem with kids e-smoking, yet they also say that the concerns about flavored e-juice attracting kids are legitimate. So which is it? Has NJoy been selling to kids or not?

If not, which is what I think, then there is no problem, and NJoy owes it to its customers to stand firm in the face of unjustified government pressure.

This decision by NJoy won't change the government's views on e-cigarettes. Legislation will continue to chip away at the industry until the e-cig is nothing more than a footnote in the history books.

And when all this "vapor" settles, you'll still be able to walk into any convenience store and buy a pack of Marlboros. And the government won't care about that at all.

 

[AllieBee]

@ACM

I don't think my post was clear enough. When I said I thought there may be more to this than meets the eye I wasn't referring to Njoy having evidence of kids buying ecigs, etc. What I was inferring was that I think Njoy might be privy to information about pending legislation that might have an impact on the future of their business and therefore taking precautionary steps to re-situate themselves and their product. Of course I may be way of base here, but I don't think they did this for any reason other than at the end of the day, business is business.

 

[quasimod]

I wouldn't touch Njoy with a ten foot pole, so count me in

That's cool, but what about Lunch-Box there, behind ya? If that fat little f*** keeps suckin' NJoy's j**z straight outta them G**-d****d pre-filled carts, you may as well just steal your mom's credit card and send that m*****f****r to their main office in Scottsdale, Arizona!

[/bad Jay and Silent Bob impression]

Anyway, count me in, and I'll help spread the word. Hopefully, enough damage to a company like this can send a message to the others.

 

[ACM]

No, AllieBee, I did get your point, and I think it's a valid one. It was my reply that was unclear. We're on the same page, though. We both see NJoy's move as a way to preserve it's ability to remain in business. And for that, I can't fault them.

But dropping product isn't the solution. I would have been impressed with NJoy if it stepped to the forefront of the industry by securing legitimate testing, repackaging its product with clear health warnings, dropping unfounded claims that vaping is "healthy", and avoiding any kind of misleading discourse on e-cigs as a possible smoking cessation product. And, in big, bold, red letters on its website: NJoy products are exclusively intended for purchase and use by adult smokers age 18 and over. We require all purchases be made by credit card, and we verify the age of all customers prior to processing shipments." (or something like that.)

Flavors are not the problem. If NJoy wants to do the right thing, they need to become the most responsible e-cig company in the industry, and they need to take steps to really, conclusively prove, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that their product is totally safe for inhaling and as an alternative to smoking.

Because, in the end, dropping chocolate e-juice is not what what's going to reverse all the bans being enacted countrywide.

 

[Mac]

This is going to be what you see all the industry giants doing very soon. Smoke51, Njoy, SE, Blu all of em. They are doing what their lawyers suggested.

I am so ...... at Njoy (and the rest of the ECA's leaders) right now that my first instinct is to say yeah screw them boycott them. But I am not sure that's the answer. They are most likely doing this under the advisement of an attorney. They have been backed into a corner by the federal government and are trying to make sure they survive the coming red tide of regulation. I certainly will NEVER use any product endorsed by the ECA. But them discontinuing flavors is not why.

 

[Thulium]

This is going to be what you see all the industry giants doing very soon. Smoke51, Njoy, SE, Blu all of em. They are doing what their lawyers suggested.

I am so ...... at Njoy (and the rest of the ECA's leaders) right now that my first instinct is to say yeah screw them boycott them. But I am not sure that's the answer. They are most likely doing this under the advisement of an attorney. They have been backed into a corner by the federal government and are trying to make sure they survive the coming red tide of regulation. I certainly will NEVER use any product endorsed by the ECA. But them discontinuing flavors is not why.

Well, considering that all my money gets spent on flavored juices that ECA members don't sell any more, this will be an easy boycott to implement. If anything, Njoy is boycotting me.

 

[ACM]

This is going to be what you see all the industry giants doing very soon. Smoke51, Njoy, SE, Blu all of em. They are doing what their lawyers suggested.

I am so ...... at Njoy (and the rest of the ECA's leaders) right now that my first instinct is to say yeah screw them boycott them. But I am not sure that's the answer. They are most likely doing this under the advisement of an attorney. They have been backed into a corner by the federal government and are trying to make sure they survive the coming red tide of regulation. I certainly will NEVER use any product endorsed by the ECA. But them discontinuing flavors is not why.

Fair enough. Perhaps an all-out boycott is a bit much. After all, we're all trying hard to keep this industry afloat right now so we can continue to enjoy the pleasures of smoking with less risk.

But at the very least, we should email NJoy and express our displeasure at their decision and suggest that maybe it's time for some company to take the lead in fighting to secure our right to vape.

The fact is, we're a grassroots movement. We have no power. We are all loosely connected individuals who, at best, are only able to write letters and send emails to Congress and state legislators, expressing our wishes to see vaping gain acceptance.

What is needed is a lobby, or at least a cohesive organization with the funding needed to actually pursue legitimate legal options for temporarily halting all of these knee-jerk bans.

NJoy would serve the public better by spearheading that kind of effort, rather than discontinuing product and crawling under a metaphorical bed to lick its wounds.

 

[Mac]

Fair enough. Perhaps an all-out boycott is a bit much. After all, we're all trying hard to keep this industry afloat right now so we can continue to enjoy the pleasures of smoking with less risk.

But at the very least, we should email NJoy and express our displeasure at their decision and suggest that maybe it's time for some company to take the lead in fighting to secure our right to vape.

The fact is, we're a grassroots movement. We have no power. We are all loosely connected individuals who, at best, are only able to write letters and send emails to Congress and state legislators, expressing our wishes to see vaping gain acceptance.

What is needed is a lobby, or at least a cohesive organization with the funding needed to actually pursue legitimate legal options for temporarily halting all of these knee-jerk bans.

NJoy would serve the public better by spearheading that kind of effort, rather than discontinuing product and crawling under a metaphorical bed to lick its wounds.

I agree 100% CASAA is pretty much our last hope for that unless a new group emerges.

 

[umop apisdn]

Hey! These things are new enough. Wouldn't it make a great message to set a precedent? The very first time a company withdrew flavors, they were boycotted out of business? Surely it would prove on our case that flavoring isn't just for kids, in a pretty bold statement.

 

[Travis798]

Well since this thread has been brought back to life, I'll post an email and response that I found on another forum.

Found this response from NJOY to an e-mail that was sent. Interesting.

Sent: Friday, December 11, 2009 3:30 AM
To: Amy Linert
Subject: NJOY to Discontinue Flavors, Takes Additional Steps to Prevent
Underage Electronic Cigarette Use

Dear Amy,

Haven't smokers been harassed enough? I have finally found something that allows me to stop inhaling combustibles into my lungs and now you take away my flavors? How dare you!

If you do this I will do my best not to purchase or sell your product. I am
an adult (50 years) and like ONLY non tobacco flavors.

This is just wrong. I wish companies had some balls and stood against the
nanny-state and fought for what they believed in. Stop taking choices away from legitimate customers.



From: Amy Linert [mailto:Amy.Linert@mcmurry.com]
Sent: Monday, December 14, 2009 4:51 PM
To: XXXXX
Subject: RE: NJOY to Discontinue Flavors, Takes Additional Steps to Prevent
Underage Electronic Cigarette Use

XXXXX, thank you for your note. We actually agree with your opinion about
flavors, about adults being given the ability to choose what's best for
them, and that someone needs to stand up for the industry and the consumers it serves.

In fact, no company has done more on these fronts than NJOY. We were the first to bring electronic smoking devices to the US public, we were the
impetus behind setting up the industry's association, we are leading the way on the science on electronic smoking products, and we are on the frontlines of the related legal and political proceedings in an effort to ensure that electronic smoking products stay on the market in the US.

We didn't make our decision about flavors without great consideration, the
most important one being the importance of finding a place that will allow
electronic cigarettes to stay on the market. Sometimes compromises are
necessary to achieve longer-term gains. Please don't lose faith, because we
sure haven't, and we will continue being the leader in the industry, a
responsibility which includes taking feedback to heart from people like
yourself.

Amy Linert

 

[ACM]

I would like to know more about how NJoy is "leading the way on the science on electronic smoking products, and (sic) are on the frontlines of the related legal and political proceedings in an effort to ensure that electronic smoking products stay on the market in the US". When they refer to the "science", are they referring to the testing that needs to be done to satisfy the FDA that these things are safe?

 

[SpottedPony]

Well, I am w you...I will never purchase any of their products. However, IF they had stated that they had developed and implemenented effective measures to ensure their product was not sold to teens....and that they encouraged all others to do the same - I would support thier business full bore!

Preventing teens from smoking is best accomplished by ENFORCING existing laws..such as ensuring tobacco products are not sold to teens.....not by worring about what tobacco products they are most likely to purchase!!!!!!! By worring only about what does and does not make products attractive to teens and not at all about ensuring laws are enforced....the FDA has made it clear that the object of its power grab of an unprecedented scope was not to prevent teens from smoking.