Epitome of stupidity

[FlamingoTutu]

http://www.gazette.net/article/20150520/OPINION/150529792&template=gazette

 

[Hydroscopic]

This article is just.., wow.

At a recent public hearing on the tax proposal, lobbyist Bruce Bereano, representing the Maryland Association of tobacco & Candy Distributors, asserted that Montgomery County has overstepped its authority.

​

So, no one stepped up to say that having a tobacco and candy lobbyist represent might be a bad idea?

Electronic cigarettes are not just a fallback for smoking addicts. They’re also an entry point for the next generation of curious young adults, who are targeted with candy-like e-cigarette flavors.

Maybe we should ask the tobacco and Candy lobbyist to step up back up to the plate for this one.
/I'm cranky this morning and have no feral cats to throw at all the children "next generation of curious young adults" that we must save.

 

[rothenbj]

I can't believe I lived there once.

 

[NorthOfAtlanta]

Desk Murderers.

 

[supertrunker]

Won't they be crying when vapers do indeed cross the state line?

Incidentally, i have yet to see any justification for tax rates above that of sales tax, yet i have variously seen tax rates for e-cig gear mooted at between 30-70%.
I can only assume these numbers are plucked from thin air?

Nice to see an opinion piece totally devoid of any facts - that takes some talent!

T

 

[EBates]

Well I guess they had to do something. With the flood of sick e-cig users clogging up the local emergency rooms and Dr's offices. Surely all of these new tax dollars will lighten the burden e-cigs have created. Someone has to cover the costs of all of the heart, eye and poisonings flooding the county, state and nation. The county leaders Surely have the Best Interests Of the County Folk in mind. With leaders like these I know soon they will be Protecting the County Residents with more taxes on food, water, and anything else they See As Evil. Thank God for fine folks like these placed on earth 'To Protect Us'. As we all know the only effective vaccine for Evil is Taxes.

 

[CarolT]

What a brain-dead POS. And it was probably dictated by someone from the National Cancer Institute.

 

[nicnik]

http://www.gazette.net/article/20150520/OPINION/150529792&template=gazette

Poor writing, poor thinking, and the nerve to say "But we can’t justify the reasoning that revenue outweighs public health." That is exactly what they are doing. This apparently was written by their editorial board, not some guest writer. No name attached.

 

[Jman8]

From the article:

Perhaps electronic cigarettes are meant to be a safer, filtered-down version of their tobacco brethren. Still, they currently contain nicotine — satisfying a smoker’s craving — but don’t have the tar and carbon monoxide that come from smoking conventional cigarettes.

Even if they’re considered less dangerous, though, they aren’t safe.

The federal Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. surgeon general say there is great uncertainty about the safety and risks of e-cigarettes. The FDA is pushing for measures to regulate sales and marketing.

We do know, though, that e-cigarettes often contain nicotine, which is highly addictive and can damage heart cells, affect the immune system, alter brain growth and carry other health risks. In addition, studies have found potentially unsafe chemicals in e-cigarette liquid and high levels of formaldehyde, a carcinogen, in e-cigarette vapor.

Because of these health concerns, we believe it’s appropriate to tax and regulate e-cigarettes in the same way as tobacco products .

Color coding emphasis, mine. Cause I like to highlight unreasonable justifications and tear them apart. It's like a sport really.

First, I'm now convinced that an article is ANTZ leaning if it manages to put "nicotine" and the words "highly addictive" within the same sentence. But kudos to this article for mentioning nicotine once first without having to state that obvious bias. Though, the record will show that no, they don't ALWAYS contain nicotine, and therefore, umpteen other points in this article or ones like it are over the top by their own standards. Never mind all the healthy implications of nicotine and the relative safety of it compared to say, I dunno, water. People drown in water. Thus water kills.

The blue part manages to go from "meant to be safer" to "aren't safe" to "we don't know" (uncertainty), to potentially unsafe, to 'these concerns' justify regulating eCigs in same was as tobacco products. When it seem more clearly to be justification for a) you really don't know what the heck you are talking about (even with regards to concept of safety) and b) you really ought not be in the business of advocating taxes and regulation. But as long as you are, I'll be glad to stay in the business of advocating an underground market that I contend will arguably be more safe than what this brand of idiocy is about to bring forth.

 

[stevegmu]

What will people say when it is cloud chasing which is attracting kids, rather than flavors? That will be next and will be indefensible...

 

[ravensierra]

Research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that e-cigarette aerosol, commonly called vapor, can contain chemicals

Tax dollars hard at work

 

[nomore stinkies]

Love the deadly nicotine rant. I wonder if they called Big Pharma and told them the horrors of nicotine in their products. Maybe I should forward it to them just in case they didn't know that their addictive deadly "tobacco" product should also be taxed because of it's severe, debilitating side effects. Stupidity is right.

 

[EBates]

Love the deadly nicotine rant. I wonder if they called Big Pharma and told them the horrors of nicotine in their products. Maybe I should forward it to them just in case they didn't know that their addictive deadly "tobacco" product should also be taxed because of it's severe, debilitating side effects. Stupidity is right.

But you don't understand, the fine folks at the FDA and BP have done a magic dance and had the Pope bless their nicotine. All this has resulted in Evil-Free Nicotine. Nothing's too good for BP customers.

 

[caramel]

Just wondering.... if nicotine extracted from tobacco is a tobacco product, what would be the classification of nicotine extracted from cigarette butts?

 

[ravensierra]

Just wondering.... if nicotine extracted from tobacco is a tobacco product, what would be the classification of nicotine extracted from cigarette butts?

Conventional wisdom would have you think they can't tax it twice?

Doesn't apply to the NZ govt though, there is a tax on a tax on a tax on petrol here

 

[BlackCat7]

Damn... That article seemed extremely uninformed, and badly sourced... I hope the bill doesn't pass and that this article doesn't encourage people to think of vaping as a 'sin' like the article stated... I also really question why people aren't up in arms about the nicotine gum, lozenges, and patches that use the same nicotine... I once bought tropical fruit flavored nicotine gum to take on a plane when I was still smoking and it's no different than vaping except that nicotine gum doesn't have a good track record with helping people quit, or at least it hasn't worked for anyone I know while I know over 20 people who have quit with vaping... Why can't people see that the problem is really that it works and less smokers means less money for big tobacco and big pharma?