Monday, May 11, 2009

The Tyranny of E-Cig Regulation

The nut-right jihad in Milwaukee has united behind an unlikely commercial product in its effort to beat up on the Nanny State of their manipulative imaginations and pretended nightmares. The "issue" is the proposed regulation of e-cigarettes, the prospect of which has sent the hysterical wing-nut entertainers on a campaign of typically-patronizing squawking about the supposed danger to "freedom" and "liberty" from heartless bureaucrats who would dare to try to protect the populace from an untested nico-machine. Patriots unite! You have nothing to lose but your untested addictive drug delivery system!

It says here that e-cigarettes are an electronic device that contains nicotine in a liquid that vaporizes and gets sucked into the lungs, delivering soothing heart-rate-and-blood-pressure-increasing, blood-to-heart-muscle-restricting, brain-addicting nicotine into the bloodstream. It is being sold world-wide as shit without the mess to those who are trying to kick the habit of smoking real cigarettes. Even non-smokers are potential customers -- didn’t you always wonder what the big rush was that make those stupid smokers suck those poison sticks until they were smelly, sick or dead? I’m a non-smoker with a fine appreciation for the easy release of dopamine and this might be just the short-cut to serenity I need.

The FDA has refused to approve some versions of e-cigs and other countries like Australia and Canada have either banned them or advised against them. "Nicotine is a highly addictive and toxic substance, and the inhalation of propylene glycol is a known irritant," say the grown-ups at Health Canada. "Although these electronic smoking products may be marketed as a safer alternative to conventional tobacco products and, in some cases, as an aid to quitting smoking, electronic smoking products may pose risks such as nicotine poisoning and addiction."

Such sentiments and government directives are so much namby-pamby malarkey according to the pudding-heads in Milwaukee’s well-published and broadcast lunatic fringe. The Journal Sentinel’s omnipresent wing-nut, Patrick McIlheran, complained in his permanent Sunday screed-space that the effort to ban e-cigs in Washington "dwelt" on such quaint notions as "the possibility that children could order the devices and that the e-cigs haven't been proved healthy." "Haven’t been proved healthy"? Oh, pooh – silly government, trying to protect the public health again. Didn’t that function die permanently with the Bushies, when poison industry lobbyists were drafting all the "rules"? He accuses the government of "reflexively" trying to ban things so that people can’t hurt themselves in new and creative ways. This, as his knee jerks "reflexively" into a new claim of feigned victimhood for his whiny constituency.

Even the third-string squealers are getting into the act. Wretched Madison import Vicki McKenna practically hosted an infomercial for one of the on-line purveyors of e-cigs a week or so ago; having the guy on, promoting the web site and even offering discounts. This is apparently personal for McKenna, who sounds like the kind of person who sits and spouts her opinions from the end of the bar, a drink in one hand and her cigarette – e- or otherwise – hanging from her lips, while the other patrons slowly slink away. McKenna claims she has been able to cut her rate of self-destruction through burning cancer sticks by indulging in what’s-his-name’s delicious vapor product and, damn it, she should be allowed to continue to so delude herself.

Although she loudly indulges in the dreary right-wing talking points about the "tyranny" and loss of "liberty" involved in any governmental action – predictably, McKenna spent a month or so promoting the phony Madison Tea Bag psuedo-event on her show – one of her arguments appears to be that, even though e-cigs might be unhealthy, they are not as unhealthy as real cigarettes. Wow, "not as deadly as cigarettes". There’s a low standard for you. How about a bomb "not as destructive as an atomic bomb" or a nuclear accident "not as bad as Chernobyl"?

But the specifics of the manufactured e-cigarette "debate" isn’t what the wing-nuts are after. They want another fake reason for their angry-white-male demographic to feel oppressed by the Big Brother government that only exists in their heads. In right-wing fantasy-land, "they" are coming for your guns, coming for your e-cigs, blah de blah blah. It’s a tiresome routine, but you have to forgive them. Tied to the rock of the Party of No, they sink slowly in the ocean of their own failure. Self-victimization is all they have. Poor babies.

12 comments:

DrBoyde said...

It is all about money and the taxes that the big cigarette companies make at the expense of our health. I bought my electronic cigarette and quit after 23 years, We e-cig owners have had our shipments recently confiscated by the FDA. We will see where this leads to as they are being sued by
www.be-smoke-free.com

Mike Plaisted said...

I expect more e-cig promoters to comment here, as they try to shape the debate to preserve their investments against appropriate government regulation. I would hope others are more articulate than this guy. "taxes that the big cigarette companies make"? Since when do companies "make" taxes? If true, we might have a story here.

caieva said...

Isn't the middle ground more testing?
Ciggy smoke in bars hurts workers and nonsmokers, this item only hurts (probably) the user.
Like the guy pounding shots on the next barstool - as long as he's only killing himeself, who cares?
As soon as he get in a car, whole different story.

patrick said...

Mike:

The govenrment is only interested in taxing e-cigarettes, only upset because people are avoiding paying taxes by using this product. They are worried that they will lose revenue. The path to this conclusion is easy to see, given all the hysterical arguments about smoking and secondhand smoke. If govenrment were really concerned as they claim, they would make smoking illegal. Its that simple.

Anonymous said...

The only lunatic fringe, are people like you Mikey, you will never be mainstream Mikey not ever. You are a cut and run loser of epic proportion. republicans will make huge gains as people wake up to rampant goverment taxation. Example: when a certain governor is off looking at choo choo trains as industry moves to Republican led southern states, which will cause larger deficits, causing even more voter angier. If saying NO to more taxes, makes us the party of No, so be it. Republicans the party of fiscal responsibility. 2010 will be a Republican tidal wave towards controlling everything By 2012 Congress will be dominated by Republicans and the senate will be 52-48 in Republican control. People vote with their pocketbooks and the Obomination and his ilk will be held accountable

Anonymous said...

Mike- How lucky we are to have someone like yourself looking out for what is best for us! Without people like you we likely would have perished centuries ago. However, we do not want, need, or require your wisdom in making our decisions (key word being "our"). Amazing as it might be, I could care less about what you deem acceptable behavior. I don't begin to believe that I have the right nor do I have the interest in protecting you from yourself. Why the desire to intervene in my life? I am sure a narcissist like yourself feels the need to cover us up with your brilliance and concern. However, NO THANK YOU! KEEP YOUR OPINIONS THAT PERTAIN TO OTHERS IN A NICE SAFE PLACE IN THE EVENT THAT SOME DAY SOMEBODY REALLY CARES WHAT YOU THINK! UNTIL THEN, PLEASE GO SAVE A WHALE AND LEAVE US HUMANS ALONE!

Jerbie said...

Guidance/Help-

E-Cigarettes are an alternative nicotine delivery system (although can be used w/o nicotine) to the traditional tobacco cigarette. The user determines the amount of nicotine (low, med., high, or None) by using a cartridge that is placed in the electronic cigarette. The electronic cigarette produces a water vapor that is inhaled like smoke but it does not contain the 4,000+ toxins that are in a tobacco cigarette. Further, since you use the same hand/mouth movements used when using a tobacco cigarette, it helps with the oral fixation missing when one quits smoking. The nicotine is not necessarily eliminated but it is better than ingesting all of the other chemicals and poisons contained in tobacco smoke. The electric cigarette can be used in most places that outlaw tobacco use because there is no harmful second hand smoke. It is the opinion of many that it represents the best available alternative to the use of tobacco cigarettes.

The electric cigarettes are available from a number of sources.
After trying a number of types I have found that the devices sold by http://www.smartsmokerusa.com the best of the best (Thanks to my neighbor and a Pilot for US Airways that travels to and from Europe weekly). I am sure there are others that are acceptable but I found the European Quality, Design, and reliability preferable to the others I have tried.

I have successfully eliminated my very dangerous daily consumption of tobacco cigarettes using the electric cigarette. I am hopeful that we will overcome the objections of those making money off the more expensive and questionable alternatives that currently have the blessing of the FDA (produced by Big Pharm).

I hope this helped and please do not hesitate to ask any additional questions. I will do my best to answer them as best and as honestly as I can.

Regards,

Jerbie

P.S. The quantities are limited because of demand in Europe.

Anonymous said...

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Anonymous said...

Plaisted, that was an excellent example of insipid, over-reaching knee-jerk reactionism to the best technological advancement for smokers since the invention of the Zippo. I'm an ex-smoker thanks to e-cigs, and that's by choice. You being a jackass, unfortunately, isn't.

Anonymous said...

Another ridiculous article on e-cigs, with the added bonus of some absolutely hiiiiilarious sarcasm (I thought you Yanks don't do that!?) and a narrow minded need to view everything through a left-right political prism! Plonker. Motivations, agendas and debates over freedom versus nanny State are utterly irrelevant. The condom was opposed here (Ireland) for years by the church and others because it supposedly encouraged sex, thereby increasing the risk of accidental pregnancy and disease. Eventually people came out of their caves and realized they were gonna do it anyway. Same thing with e-cigarettes (which can be used without nicotine I might add). Do the math as you say over there.

Anonymous said...

I'm a solid liberal and I'm on this bandwagon. You need to do some research re what this is all about. Not a kneejerk protest against government regulation - it's a reasoned protest against a misinformed and somewhat hysterical reaction to a product that... well, just do your own research, will you? Both sides.

Anonymous said...

Was there a point to this article? There was very little about ecigarettes mostly just the author attacking people he doesn't like.