I just hate to think here I've found a viable alternative to smoking, that I can do without quitting, and some tard could come along and say, no, you can't do it any more, go use cigarettes even though they're 4,000 times more deadly.
When I think about this matter - which is frequently - I come back to the same conclusions: We know
vaping is healthier for us than smoking, and while it is not as healthy as quitting the nic habit altogether... it is an "acceptable" alternative to many people, and even many non-smokers when they understand it. We know it. They know it.
Money is the motivator and driving force behind bans, not concern for our health, or those around us. We know it. They know it.
"They" are already busy pushing a lot of mis-information and not-so-near-truths. We know it. They know it.
Even though we do not have long term evidence to support claims that vaping is a safer and healthier alternative to smoking, we have a huge number of early test subjects ;o) willing to testify (even preach) to the positive impact vaping has had in their lives; Versus the long established evidence of the negative impact smoking can have on a life in the same relatively short amount of time. We know it. They know it.
They seem to be anxious to nip it quick, as if to make vaping and us go away before too many people discover it as an alternative. Makes sense - we are on the front line of a major threat to the established and powerful tobacco companies. We would be fools to assume or believe that they are not pushing FDA (and other orgs) activity and opposition. We know it. They know it.
I believe our best move is to continue to sign petitions, support opposition to bans, give (grow) business to juice and hardware vendors, learn as much as we can about vaping, share as much as opportunity allows, invite other smokers to discover it themselves, speak against ban attempts, and against weak arguments from the FDA, seek more public (media) attention, roll out our own propaganda machine - and most importantly KEEP VAPING shamelessly.
Then, if and when they ban in your area - get on these forums, network, get hardware and juice from where you can and distribute where you can - its not simply a matter of defending our freedom to choose to vape versus smoke, but one of preserving the opportunity for anyone to choose a healthier alternative to smoking regardless if it hurts a company or organization financially.
I choose to vape to be respectful of non-smokers around me, to preserve my health (while enjoying it as I see fit) and not compromise the health of those around me, because I enjoy the experience of vaping, and I believe that
it is the alternative that could bring one of the most destructive habits we know to its knees in a heartbeat....
I believe we (vapers and vendors) are in the unique and rare position of being right, both morally and ethically, in the face of an industry who profits from our self destruction and suffering, and we should be ready to put it on the line in defense of what we know to be right.
I'm with you too, in that I wouldn't want "some tard" to "come along and say, no, you can't do it any more" - I just think that we should stay focused on supporting the communities building around vaping, the emerging businesses, and protecting our rights to choose vaping as an alternative; Not so much how we might work around or through bans... take them on toe to toe and make a lot of noise the whole way through.
Just my
