I've read through the "write your congressmen" stuff, and that's great, but we are a small minority trying to go against the herd, so I suggest the following:
Contact your local media - TV, Radio, Newspaper, even bloggers - and pitch them the story. Chances are, the only info they are getting is the press release stuff that comes over the wire, which means the FDA generated noise.
Politicians care about public opinion much more than a few votes, and journalists want a juicy story, so how about including something like this:
_________________________________________________________
I and several thousand others have stopped smoking cigarettes by using electronic personal vaporizer commonly called an e-cig. Despite the fact that hundreds of medical professionals and anti-smoking organizations have come out in support of these devices, several legislators have moved to ban their sale and use nationally, and at the state and local levels.
Since I and so many others have found that e-cigs are by far the most effective stop-smoking devices available, we have begun to research the reasons behind the proposed bans, and in each case it points to a matter of revenue and not public health. As these devices are not taxed, the potential losses in cigarette tax revenues represent billions of dollars per year, per state.
I urge you to use your journalistic skills and resources to investigate this matter further. I'm sure you will agree that your [readers/listeners/viewers] would be interested to learn that the government makes far more from each pack of cigarettes than does "Big tobacco," and that the threat to this tax base posed by e-cigs is causing certain officials to falsely claim that they represent a risk to public health, despite all evidence to the contrary.
____________________________________
You know, just an idea...
Contact your local media - TV, Radio, Newspaper, even bloggers - and pitch them the story. Chances are, the only info they are getting is the press release stuff that comes over the wire, which means the FDA generated noise.
Politicians care about public opinion much more than a few votes, and journalists want a juicy story, so how about including something like this:
_________________________________________________________
I and several thousand others have stopped smoking cigarettes by using electronic personal vaporizer commonly called an e-cig. Despite the fact that hundreds of medical professionals and anti-smoking organizations have come out in support of these devices, several legislators have moved to ban their sale and use nationally, and at the state and local levels.
Since I and so many others have found that e-cigs are by far the most effective stop-smoking devices available, we have begun to research the reasons behind the proposed bans, and in each case it points to a matter of revenue and not public health. As these devices are not taxed, the potential losses in cigarette tax revenues represent billions of dollars per year, per state.
I urge you to use your journalistic skills and resources to investigate this matter further. I'm sure you will agree that your [readers/listeners/viewers] would be interested to learn that the government makes far more from each pack of cigarettes than does "Big tobacco," and that the threat to this tax base posed by e-cigs is causing certain officials to falsely claim that they represent a risk to public health, despite all evidence to the contrary.
____________________________________
You know, just an idea...
