Yeah. No. That's just a very childish mindset to have about all this. If I'm at a restaurant with my family and one of you guys starts blowing big billowy clouds like some of those people at that expo were, I'm going to walk over to your table and ask you to stop. It's rude and disrespectful. I'm, obviously, a vaper as well and my wife is too. We like our vape just as much as the next guy here. But there is a time and a place for it. If you're at a place that doesn't allow vaping and local ordinance dictates that you receive a fine for vaping indoors if you don't follow the rules then you should have to pay the fine. Just like when you're driving down the road and a cop pulls you over for going 80 in a 65 zone or not stopping at a stop sign that had literally no traffic anywhere near it. Should you be fined for that? Yes you should. Telling the cop "Rules were meant to be broken" is just going to get you pepper sprayed and beat over the head with a baton and honestly when that story makes the 6 o'clock news, I'm gonna laugh at you for being an idiot.
It's interesting that you bring up speeding, because I was thinking of that when I wrote my rules were meant to be broken statement. People drive over the speed limit very close to "all of the time." I'm not saying anything newsworthy here, it is that common place. I am yet to receive even a warning for speeding in my life, so while I break this rule often, I'm not one that does it in a way that apparently is in need of a warning.
And like your restaurant example, I'd vape there, but perhaps not at the table. I'd probably go to restroom and am curious how you, a fellow vaper, would react to me vaping there, if you caught me, and there was rule of "no vaping on the premises." Would you tattle on me?
Regardless of your response, like speeding, I'm still going to do it. And still fairly confident I won't get caught. The people who vape (or speed) in a disrespectful way are not usually people I relate to well, but I also don't resort to position of "it's good society has rules and we need to punish / make example of the rule breakers." Yet disrespectful law breakers are usually the ones that are made an example with, as warning to all others. But 1000 people today could be busted for speeding in your location, and do you think this will stop people from speeding tomorrow in your location? I'm pretty sure you know the answer to that is no, and instead would take draconian measures and lots of technology to get to a point where no one is speeding ever again. Same goes with indoor vaping.
Just like traffic laws. Just like the places where you work and go to school and the places where you take your business have rules. You have to follow them or suffer the repercussions of your actions. If you're not man enough to own up to that then you're not man enough to be doing it in the first place. Of course, I'm also one of those guys, I'll take a quick stealth vape when I'm at the movies. There's no specific law or regulation about it here where I live but it is ultimately the decision of the owner if he/she doesn't want to allow it and I get caught sneaking a stealth vape and get asked to leave, guess what I do? I don't sit there and whine and cry and cause a huss-fuss about it. I just pack up my things and move on. Like any responsible adult would. I broke the rules knowing what the repercussions would be so when I do get caught I accept my punishment.
If / when I am caught, I will accept the repercussions. But because some rules are meant to be broken, then the actual rule in place is "don't get caught." Similar to how a teen might smoke even while there are clearly rules / laws in place against teen smoking. I wonder if anyone reading this has ever known a teenager that might smoke?
The people at that expo did little to no research on the rules there and ended up breaking them, mostly out of ignorance but who's fault is it that they didn't know? It wasn't the State of New Jersey's fault. Their laws are quite clear on the matter and are easy to find. It took me less than 5 minutes to find out what the laws were in 1 Google search. It wasn't the fault of the people enforcing the law. It's not their job to inform you of the laws. It's their job to enforce them. It is your job, average joe schmoe, to know what the laws are and what the repercussions are of breaking them.
The legislators of the NJ law are responsible for passing a law that is on the ludicrous side of things and one that a) will routinely be broken, b) rarely will be caught and c) stands a chance of being amended, if d) people are looking at the issue apart from ANTZ politics / rhetoric. Either way, the rule will be broken for as long as it is in place, and only time it will be looking like it is not is when these sort of things like the Expo occur where it is a gamble for organizers, but one they might wish to follow up with to counter opposition.
This "Rules are meant to be broken" mindset is what keeps giving the vaping community black eyes and making all of us look bad and by following that mindset and having a fog bank follow you wherever you go is going to have permanent repercussions on all of us. So that mindset of "My vaping isn't hurting anyone and I should be allowed to do it wherever" is actually hurting every vaper. Even the new guy who just started out a few days and picked himself up a cig-a-like kit so he can try to quit smoking and he hasn't even heard of ECF yet. You're hurting him. And if regulations get passed that crack down hardcore on vaping (the mythical Vape-ocalypse) it'll be because of people with the "Rules are meant to be broken" mindset and that new guy that just started with his first cig-a-like kit is not going to have the opportunity to vape at all and he'll end up getting stuck on analogs and like almost everyone that smokes, it will literally be the death of him. "Rules are meant to be broken" is going to get a lot of people killed. Maybe not directly but a lot of people will eventually die due to smoking related deaths and their blood is going to be on the hands of people like you who thought it was fun/cool/whatever to break the rules whenever you wanted to because "rulez is stoopid".
I obviously disagree with all of this, and am batting 1.000 in my indoor vaping experience of 4 years. So, if you wish to pretend it is me, or likes of me, that are ruining it for all vapers and getting people killed, so be it. I find that so politically naive it is not worthy of rebuttal right now, but I'll look forward to sparring with you on the many threads like this one that are sure to come forth.
