I received the following in an e-mail. Does anyone know the weblink or contact info for Lincoln Anderson?
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Unfair Electronic Cigarette Ban In New York - Call Your Senator Now
The New York state assembly just voted to ban electronic cigarettes. There is still hope to email the Senate health committee whose vote has not taken place yet and the governor who can veto the bill
Published on April 28, 2010
by Lincoln Anderson
(OfficialWire)
NEW YORK, NY
(photo) Linda Rosenthal Banned Electronic Cigarettes
On April 25th, The NYS assembly voted to ban electronic cigarettes. The vote was 125-0 in favor of the ban. The bill will now be voted on by the health committee and then moved up to the senate, then to the governor's desk(call him). Electronic cigarette users are highly concerned with the New York State assembly's motives on why they are banning this safer, more innovative alternative to traditional smoking. Especially considering that many users sent in emails and called into the assembly in opposition of the bill. There is also ability to view the open legislation online on a .gov legislation website. There was many comments left by e-cigarette users who were not in favor of the bill. After watching a live video of the vote. It seemed that there was no opposition to the bill, and not one assembly men or women voiced the concerns of the people they are supposed to be representing. The comments of many citizens were ignored by the assembly and the bill was passed anyway. I even personally wrote my representatives with my concerns and I did not see any of these topics I was concerned with, discussed by my representative at all. Something seems to have kept everyone silent and unanimous in this matter Here is a link to the open legislation:
S7234 - NY Senate Open Legislation - Prohibits the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors and items not defined as a tobacco product or approved by the FDA as a tobacco use cessation or harm reduction - New York State Senate
The people are saying that Linda Rosenthal, who is the sponsor of this bill, is highly misinformed regarding this industry and her motives are questioned by citizens and voters throughout the state. It does not look like she will be a very popular candidate for the smoking community in the upcoming election, along with Matthew Titone who threw his "Protect the Children" spin into the debate as he claimed his 11 year old daughter has the ability to buy electronic cigarettes in malls, which is very improbable, and his claim is also lacking proof of any sort.
Rosenthal went on to say that underage kids can buy electronic cigarettes from malls in Albany, but she did not present any proof regarding this, instead just made the claim. We followed up at a popular Albany mall and when we arrived we saw a sign (in a highly visible location) that says you must be 18 or over, and they asked for identification. This means Rosenthal publically made a false claim about companies in a public political forum. We asked people their thoughts on this, and many defined it as "highly unprofessional", and "very dissapointing" that a political representative would slander someones business in such a way.
Examining some of the facts surrounding the electronic cigarette, the most compelling piece of positive evidence came from a recent petition and report submitted to the FDA by the American Association of Public Health Physicians (AAPHP). This is the governing body of doctors for our country, so surely they know what they are talking about and have the factual information to back their statements. In this report they were quoted in saying:
The AAPHP Task Force, on the basis of extensive literature review and analysis (Attachment A1), has concluded that a national harm reduction initiative, based partly on the potential attractiveness of E-Cigarettes to current smokers, could save the lives of 4 million of the 8 million current adult American smokers who will otherwise die of a tobacco-related illness over the next 20 years
(Attachment Ai). This could result in a situation in which, 20 years from now, there would be less than 10,000 tobacco-related deaths per year in the United States instead of the current 400,000+ per year.
It is imperative that users contact the senate health committee members who will be voting on this electronic cigarette ban, they must know the benefits that people have experienced with electronic cigarettes and why they should not ban them.
We need all electronic cigarette users and critical thinkers to start sending faxes and making phone calls. The freedom to purchase electronic cigarettes, an amazing alternative to deadly tobacco, is at stake here.
The ban has a few reasonings behind it, mainly due to this FDA report, which many people have blasted over and over again.
http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/ScienceResearch/UCM173250.pdf
