Shawn Hoefer's blog
Common sense not so common?
By now, if you're in any way shape or form plugged in to the vape-o-sphere, you have heard about the potentially devastating laws about to be put into action in California. If not, if this is the first you're hearing about it, you need to take a look around... this is big...
Bearly holding on to sanity?
Without falling down the legalese rabbit hole, the gist of the legislation in question is this:
Unless you're in the military and have a military ID to prove it, you cannot smoke OR VAPE until you are 21, and ALL VAPE EQUIPMENT AND E-LIQUID is now considered tobacco.
I titled this post "Common sense ain't so common" because this baffles me to no end. Let's break it down, shall we?
1. Unless you're 21 or in the military with a valid ID you cannot smoke or vape...
To start with, this is likely to be a bugger to enforce. When I was growing up, I started smoking before I was 18 by pilfering cigarettes out of my mom and dad's packs. I was a big kid, reaching 6'3" by 14 and so I often purchased cigarettes anyways. Of course, they didn't ID as much then as they do now.It's not as easy to pilfer a mod, atty, and a bottle of e-liquid, so a return to smoking is the likely outcome for those that WILL experiment regardless of the laws in place. The amount of time and money, then, that will be spent on ensuring that no one under 21 is smoking is ridiculous! Imagine a police office having to ask the ID of every person they come across with a bit of vapor coming from their mouths or noses.
Of course, the age is 18 if you are in the military and have a valid ID. I mean, if you're old enough to die for your country, you should be old enough to develop a lifelong, potentially deadly addiction to smoking. Smoking - not vaping - because cigarettes are everywhere and readily available and vaping gear is not. Furthermore, the number of locations that vaping gear was available -staggeringly small compared to the availability of cigarettes - is about to be cut to nothing due to this proposed law.
2. Everything is about the become a tobacco product
But that's not even the stupid part. Those bits actually, almost make sense... The stupid part is that they're claiming that everything related to vaping is a tobacco product. That's right... LorAnn flavorings, available at grocery and hobby stores, are about to be considered tobacco products. Batteries, available everywhere and used in everything, are about to be considered tobacco products. Propylene Glycol, used in asthma inhalers and hospital air purification systems, is about to be considered a tobacco product. Vegetable Glycerin, used in soaps and lotions and foods, is about to be considered a tobacco product.
Perhaps you think I am overstating things. Perhaps I am. After all, no one could be that stupid. Could they?
Could they?
This also means that, like cigarettes, vape products can not be advertised. No more Facebook fan pages or groups for California based businesses. No more Google Plus communitiesfor California based businesses. No more vape magazines if they are published in California.
Tobacco products cannot be mailed, so no online shopping, either.
Sampling in vape shops - those that decide to attempt to stay in business - might be shut down, although some communities allow for waivers. But those very vape shops that attempt to stay in business would be forced to end the employment of any person under the age of 21.
Increased unemployment. Decreased revenue. An increase in the number of smokers and smoking related illnesses. Vaping superstores opening up at the state line (don't believe me? Visit the state line of any state that prohibits the sale of fireworks). Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria! No, wait, wait, that's Ghostbusters...
More annoying than the content of the proposed legislation is the way in which it got to this point. This is very similar to the legislation that was killed in committee late in 2015. Similar legislation, as I recall, was killed again in one special, open session. It finally passed in a special closed session. Closed session. No opposing views allowed. No democratic process. A complete perversion of the very system of government that these elected officials are supposed to be integral to and to uphold!
A further slap in the face to any adult with taste buds is the ongoing excuse-that-will-not-die that the reasoning behind these pieces of legislation is to protect the children. That the vaping community is marketing to the children. Because adults with taste buds like tasty things instead of char and ash and sulfur.
It's not too late. You can still contact your California senator and ask them to shoot it down. Find and contact your senator here. I encourage every vaper - regardless of whether they live in California or not - to contact the governor and ask for a veto. You can still fight for your right to vape and live a smoke-free existence.
Originally posted on Controlled Coil
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