County wants to ban public e-cigarette smoking

[G_Jones]

Nothing makes kids want something more than telling them they cannot have it

 

[JonnyVapΣ]

Nothing makes kids want something more than telling them they cannot have it

Not just kids!
I still want a....oh forget it. I don't have all day...

 

[Demarko]

I've always liked the Stranger, used to keep a copy in the break room at work. (Where I could also vape tyvm!!!) Like it even more now.

 

[Petrodus]

King County BOH wins the Schrammie
KOMO News (Seattle)

Video and over 200 Comments: Click Here

 

[Petrodus]

Hempfest 2009
Seattle (KING COUNTY) Washington

King County hosts Hempfest every year
but bans E-cigarettes to protect the children



Seattle Hempfest 2009 Promo



View more (King County) Hempfest videos
Click Here

 

[JonnyVapΣ]

Maybe they don't realize you can get it in "candy flavor" now.

 

[Vocalek]

King County BOH wins the Schrammie
KOMO News (Seattle)

Video and over 200 Comments: Click Here

Loved the video. Nice to see that there are media folks who indulge in logical thinking.

I sent Ken Schram an email about the form letters folks have been receiving from Patterson with a link to the thread on "infuriating response." I also asked him to consider awarding a Schrammie to the FDA.

 

[t9c]

Hempfest 2009
Seattle (KING COUNTY) Washington

King County hosts Hempfest every year
but bans E-cigarettes to protect the children

Ahhh, OK that explains the BOH decision as some of these kids are probably theirs.

 

[Petrodus]

I sent Ken Schram an email about the form letters folks have been receiving from Patterson with a link to the thread on "infuriating response." I also asked him to consider awarding a Schrammie to the FDA.

NICE... Would love to see that video!
That video would make Ken FAMOUS...
Might also make him unemployed.

 

[Vocalek]

Received an "out of office" replay. Until January 3. I hope he doesn't think the issue is too stale by then.

 

[mauzey]

NICE... Would love to see that video!
That video would make Ken FAMOUS...
Might also make him unemployed.

Ken is a already famous here in the Seattle area for his opinions on many things, He won't lose his job here that's for sure. I am glad he's come down on the side of sanity on this issue. I don't agree with many of his crusades, but as they say my enemy's enemy is my friend today.

 

[Petrodus]

Ken is a already famous here in the Seattle area for his opinions on many things, He won't lose his job here that's for sure. I am glad he's come down on the side of sanity on this issue. I don't agree with many of his crusades, but as they say my enemy's enemy is my friend today.

Glad to hear his job is secure

He would become famous "Coast to Coast" because
the video would be all over the Net and linked
on every Pro Vaping website.

 

[QuikWgn]

I'm sure everyone in the area remembers the Seattle city ban on handguns in community centers from last year http://http://www.seattlepi.com/local/412301_guns14.html. They knew it wouldn't stand up in court so when he showed up with one they didn't arrest him or even give him a ticket because they didn't want it tested in court. I doubt if we all decided to invite the media and go 'smoke' our 'illegal black market' PV's withing 25 feet of the doors of the king County health department they wouldn't do a darned thing either. Seems like an interesting plan for a New Year's resolution!

 

[soarer425]

I just got the exact same exact message from Julia in response to my Testimony from last week.

Thanks,
Jeff~

P.S. I see she came up with the part about the "unregulated, black market e-cigarette products" what is that about?

Heh I got this exact same letter as a response. Gotta love the copy/paste.

 

[5cardstud]

I got one from her too.


Thank you for your email regarding the recently adopted e-cigarette regulations. As Chair of the Board of Health, I carefully reviewed the proposal and am confident that the unanimous Board decision is in the best interest of the public.



The new regulations do not ban the adult use of e-cigarettes in King County. Instead, the regulations:

· restrict the sales of e-cigarettes or any other unapproved nicotine delivery devices only to people 18 and older;

prohibit free or highly discounted electronic smoking devices or unapproved nicotine delivery products;
prohibit the use of e-cigarette devices in places where smoking is prohibited by law.
I support efforts to discourage youth from using nicotine devices such as e-cigarettes. In a recent test in Spokane County, 28 of 31 attempts to purchase e-cigarettes by minors were successful. These devices are sold in convenience stores and mall kiosks and come in candy flavors, making them even more tempting for youth. The FDA has warned that e-cigarettes can increase nicotine addiction among young people and may lead youth to try conventional tobacco products. The new regulations ban the sale of these devices to youth under 18 in an attempt to discourage nicotine use.



The new regulations also prohibit the use of e-cigarette devices in places where smoking is prohibited by law. E-cigarettes are virtually indistinguishable from the use of traditional tobacco products in public, increasing the likelihood that people will break the law by lighting up cigarettes because they see what appears to be someone smoking. This results in more people being exposed to secondhand smoke, which the Surgeon General recently announced has immediate health impacts. Even brief exposure to secondhand smoke can cause cardiovascular disease and could trigger acute cardiac events, such as heart attack.

The Board of Health convened a Tobacco Policy committee in June 2010 to review the evidence and develop new tobacco policies that respond to current policy opportunities and disparities in King County. The recent e-cigarette regulations were endorsed by the committee members.

There are many unanswered questions about the safety of these unregulated, black market e-cigarette products. The Board of Health took a reasonable step to protect youth in King County while federal authorities continue to look into these products.



Thank you again for your email. Please feel free to contact me with additional questions regarding this or any other matter in King County.



Sincerely,

King County Councilmember Julia Patterson – District 5

And believe me I have contacted her.

 

[5cardstud]

Here was my reply,

That was my point. You disregard all the data that supports the facts in this case that there is indeed no harmful chemicals being exhaled for some guys opinion to achieve your personal goals and further send people that quit smoking right back into a harmful environment they were fortunate enough to get out of and you call that good for the people? I applaud your ban to keep the children from buying them but not sending innocent citizens back into the lions den. Nancy Peloski also had your not care about the people attitude and they got rid of her. I can only hope the good people of King Co. have the same affect on your personal agenda.

Sincerely,

 

[Petrodus]

Kristin posted a comment on another thread which I will never forget.

Unfortunately, the zealots no longer care about "saving smokers."
They only care about "saving the children" from the "evils of addiction."
It doesn't even matter if the addiction is smokeless and has no worse
health risks than the caffeinate soda to which they are already addicted.
kristin

Fighting zealots with truth and science...Is fighting an uphill battle.

 

[D103]

"self-righteousness, by definition, is not at all amenable to truth, science or any other form of persuasion. Self-righteousness in and of itself is dangerous, destructive and divisive - self-righteousness with a lot of power and money is DEADLY!

 

[Petrodus]

Here was my reply,

That was my point. You disregard all the data that supports the facts in this case that there is indeed no harmful chemicals being exhaled for some guys opinion to achieve your personal goals and further send people that quit smoking right back into a harmful environment they were fortunate enough to get out of and you call that good for the people? I applaud your ban to keep the children from buying them but not sending innocent citizens back into the lions den. Nancy Peloski also had your not care about the people attitude and they got rid of her. I can only hope the good people of King Co. have the same affect on your personal agenda.

Frustrating...Ain't it?!

To quote kristin from another thread...

It's like rationalizing with a 2 year old on why she can't
have M & M's for dinner. You can give her all of the
logical, reasonable explanations and she still says,
"M & Ms!" and refuses to eat her dinner!
kristin

OK...I'm a kristin fan

 

[Vocalek]

The King County PR staff has been busy. In the latest article, the Board of Health breaks its arm, patting itself on the back.

King County health panel stamps out e-cigarettes : The Issaquah Press – News, Sports, Classifieds in Issaquah, WA

I left this comment, got a message that it needs to be moderated first.

It is a widely believed myth that e-cigarettes are targeted at youth and/or that the products are only used to "circumvent anti-smoking laws." Before enacting legislation, however, a conscientious politician should verify the facts.

It is difficult to believe that any member of the board of health came any closer than 100 feet of an e-cigarette in use. Anyone with a working sense of smell can discriminate between tobacco smoke and vapor. Smoke has a distinctive odor, both during and after use. In Virginia, where the Attorney General ruled that e-cigarettes are not included in the indoor smoking ban, there has been zero confusion. No smokers have lit up indoors because they saw an e-cigarette in use. In fact, what usually happens is that the smoker, who would prefer to stay inside where the climate is controlled, asks about the product and subsequently begins to consider making a switch to a much safer product.

The survey of e-cigarette consumers conducted by the Tobacco Harm Reduction organization found that "All respondents previously smoked and 91% had attempted to stop smoking before trying ecigarettes. About half (55%) were 31-50, while 32% were >50 years old. Most (79%) of the respondents had been using e-cigarettes for <6 months and reported using them as a complete (79%) or partial (17%) replacement for, rather than in addition to (4%), cigarettes."

So if 87% are older than 31 years, and 91% had attempted to stop smoking (65% tried more than 4 times to do so), the facts say that the target market is not young non-smokers. The target market is older people who smoked for decades and had difficulty stopping.

Article available: http://tobaccoharmreduction.org/wpapers/011v1.pdf

Julia Patterson claims that “The Board of Health’s responsibility is to create policies that foster the health and well being of our community, and today’s action will help achieve that objective." FDA-approved smoking cessation products have an abysmal success rate--7% at 6 months, 5% at 1 year, dropping to a mere 2% at 20 months.

If 79% of e-cigarette consumers have completely switched from inhaling deadly tobacco smoke to vapor that contains no tar, no carbon monoxide, no particulates, and none of the 4,000 chemicals created by the process of combustion, how is it in the best interests of public health to discourage use of the products? Banishing former smokers to the smoking section hardly seems to be in the best interests of their health. Such banishment also removes a powerful incentive for smokers to switch to a healthier life-style.