Dear Patrick,
I came across your blog post of May 10, 2009 (
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/44613277.html) on the topic of e-cigarettes. I felt compelled to comment, as I fear deeply that this lifeline will be yanked away from us, if the media doesn't come to our rescue! My comments were probably too long to post, so I wanted to email you directly, hoping to find a voice on a larger forum and a sypmathetic ear. E-cig users are a far larger group than anyone can imagine and growing every day. (
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum) Just about every smoker I've come across, just since I purchased mine, has asked, "Where can I get one?" with a glow of hope on their face. The FDA ban and subsequent lawsuits by two distributors has us all in a panic.
Below are the comments I was trying to post to your blog:
Last Saturday, my husband & I saw the electric cigarette at the State Fair. It was AMAZING! Long-time smokers, having tried patches, gum and even medication - nothing worked. We bought two kits and extra cartridges for over $200. I used to smoke 1/4 - 1/2 pack a day and my husband 1+ pack a day. We have both already quit "analog" (real) cigarettes and are only using the e-cigs. I have NO desire to buy real cigarettes and am excited that this new "habit" could easily lead to my quitting any kind of inhalant altogether! Our kids are thrilled we quit smoking and our smoking friends want to get them, too! But now people want to ban them and/or treat us like smokers and make us go out and stand next to the smokers - exposing us again to second-hand smoke (or pushing us back to real cigarettes) and defeating the whole purpose of the e-cigarette!
This irrational fear of e-cigs is truly puzzling to us ex-smokers!!??
What are the REAL negatives?
1. Addictive Nicotine (a non-cancerous, naturally occurring substance) is being inhaled in a cigarette-like way by the user only
2. Ummm......can't think of anything else
Positives?
1. No second hand smoke. Only produces an odorless, fine vapor - like seeing your breath on a cold day
2. Minute traces or no carinogenic ingredients, no tar, no carbon monoxide or any of the other hundreds of additives & poisons in tobacco cigarettes. The e-liquid contains water, nicotine, flavoring & a type of glycerine (which makes the mist effect & is readily available at Walgreens in many, many personal care products) NICOTINE IS NOT A CARCINOGEN!
3. No missed work or leaving family gatherings for smoke breaks - can be used indoors without bothering anyone else
4. Simulates smoking action, so some people are able to stop using the more harmful nicotine inhaler - real cigarettes - without drastic changing of their habits. There are high, medium, low & zero nicotine liquids - which allow for gradual, pain-free weaning, if desired
5. Less expensive - more money to pay bills or save. Less illness = less medical bills & lower insurance premiums
6. Kids can't sneak cigarettes out of the pack
7. Can be used without any nicotine (can't say that about patches or gum or cigarettes!)
8. Allows smokers to continue their habit/addiction with less harmful effects (Don't judge an addiction - I know people addicted to caffine, chocolate, sugar, reality tv, the internet - but no one is suggesting banning THOSE!)
9. Less intake, because it can be set aside without expensive waste. No finishing the whole cigarette because you don't want to throw it away
10. Less garbage & smell - no butts on the street, no ashes in the car, no smelly clothes, curtains or bad breath
PERCEIVED negatives?
1. It's marketed to kids with candy flavors.
OK, this is just silly.
For one, it costs over $100 for a good starter kit & you have to be 18+ to buy.
Second, since when don't adults like cherry or chocolate or vanilla? Are fruit and candy-flavored vodkas being marketed to kids too then?? Or cherry cough drops and chocolate constipation chews?? Just because it tastes good, doesn't mean that kids are being targeted. It's just another step to getting away from real tobacco taste.
Third, even if a kid wanted to try it for some weird reason, they make ZERO NICOTINE flavors and only sell to 18+ ages. It's a huge leap to think that a kid trying a cherry flavored mist would say, "Hmmm...I should try one with nicotine. It doesn't get me high or give any kind of rush - it's just addictive. Great idea! Oh, and then I'll try stinky REAL cigarettes." Please! Isn't going to happen! If anything, it'll give them something INSTEAD of trying real cigarettes!
2. It's not proven safe.
Really?? You're REALLY going to ban something that is an "unsafe" replacement for cigarettes when cigarettes are 100 times worse? Ban the e-cig and the only alternative for most e-cigarette users is SMOKING. So, which is worse?? It's like banning low-fat ice cream, because it still contains fats, so it's still bad for you. Well - DUH. But at least it's better than full-fat ice cream!?
3. It looks too much like smoking and may encourage use.
Seriously, you would have NO interest in e-cigs unless you are a smoker trying to get that monkey off of your back. And most e-cigarette smokers use e-cigs that look very little like the real thing. They start with those "copies" and then quicky want to move away from anything that looks "real." Mine is black with a blue LED light at the tip! Again, if kids (18+) think they are cool - there are a LOT of NON-nicotine e-liquids available - nicotine & smoke free. Better that than trying tobacco cigarettes!
Imagine if someone invented an auto fuel that was 100% renewable, gave your car better performance, lengthened the life of your engine, had little or no emissions and was 50% cheaper than gas. Awesome, right? All of our problems are solved - travel, shipping, products, cost of living - all cheaper. But the government says, "Wait! We tested 3 cars (out of millions) and there may still be a little pollution in the emissions. So, we think it's bad for the environment, even though we know gasoline is much, much worse. And we're afraid that the enhanced performance is going to cause kids to drive faster and cause accidents (which they already will do anyhow), so without even doing further research, we are banning this fuel!" You would be PERPLEXED and OUTRAGED!
Well, that is how we e-cig users feel. The FDA and local governments are banning us and our salvation out of fear, ignorance and completely irrational arguments, without knowing the facts and seeing the larger picture. Or worse, for their own financial gain.
They are basically telling us that "e-cigs MAY be "unhealthy" so we are taking it away from you - go back to your cigarettes, which we at least KNOW will kill you."
How fair and reasonable is that? Please, Wisconsin, don't follow these lemmings. See reason. See the lesser of two evils that has far, far more positives than negatives. We aren't asking you to try it - we just want to have this option available to us. The only people who benefit from a ban or FDA control are the big tobacco and pharmacutical companies and the U.S. government (taxes and campaign funds.)
Please don't send us back into the cold streets, with a proven killer, for THEM.
Vapor and smoke are two very different things. One you can hide easily, while the other is impossible to cover up. If I have to sneak it, I'll sneak it. Whether it's at work or at a bar. Maybe we do need some 75mg fluid so we only have to take a couple puffs when the time comes that we will all need to sneak. Maybe fluid w/o PG or VG so there is minimal/no visual will be a good product for the near future. Save the other stuff for outdoors or at home.
They will never drive me out of the building to have a vape, as long as there are toilets and stairwells. It doesn't leave a smell, and that is the beauty of it 
