EEK-CIGARETTES

EEK-CIGARETTES

(K, Zezima, Josh Sanburn, Liz Neporent, ABC NEWS, New York Times)

(JF Etter, Jill Stark, Amel Ahmed, Al Jazeera, Rory Morrison)

(Ruth Rodriguez, Susan Cassidy, Frazer Chronicle)

 

Well there goes the neighborhood, another potential magical solution to a huge medical problem washed down the drain of skepticism by some of our authority figures, State and Federal Government. It’s an interesting word…..skepticism, it can be spelled two different ways, skepticism, or scepticism no matter which way you spell the word, it means to doubt, of that there is no doubt!

 

Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, personal vaporizer (PV) and electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) is an electronic inhaler meant to stimulate and be a substitute for tobacco smoking. It generally utilizes a heating element that vaporizes a liquid solution. Some release nicotine, while others release a flavored vapor. They are designed to mimic traditional smoking implements, such as cigarettes or cigars, in their use and appearance.

 

I know of three or four people, who use what I always thought of as fake instruments of smoking, and they swear by them. Since I smoke cigars, maybe three or four a day, I really never gave the things a second thought, pretty much because I didn’t think that they had cigar fakers…..but they do, although I’ll never use one.

 

There hasn’t been a whole lot of either television or radio commercials about the things until lately, and their add content is pretty much innocuous until the last few seconds when they blast the essence of their message.

 

In the television spot, the cigarette looks real; the ash looks real, as does the cherry on the end, right down to the carton of cigarettes. My first reaction was that somebody was breaking the law by advertising cigarettes, and I sat bolt upright and listened.

 

The guy smoking the cigarette looks satisfied, but in short order the announcer says that the smoke is vapor, the cigarette isn’t real, and the ash and flame at the end of the cigarette are simulated…..there not real. The cigarette actually is a NJOY King, the first smokeless, nicotine –delivering, device, and according to the manufacturer “looks, feels, smokes like the real thing.”

 

To say the least I was really impressed…..at first, and then when my daughter and her friend started using them, it got me to thinking about possible side effects, and the USDA, doctors reports, the AMA…..and the list just kept going on.

 

Of course now there are calls by some groups to establish studies, and get government on board with health questions that might be necessary for any kind of approval by the fed, and also to figure out what kind of age limit might be necessary for the things. It’s funny, after man’s ingenuity, the Federal Government steps in after the fact, to law down rules and regulations for product safety.

 

HERE’S THE BIG QUESTION

Can e-cigarettes challenge big tobacco companies, some of which have been established for well over a hundred years…..and either directly, or indirectly employ thousands of employees, growers, delivery services…..and do generate billions of dollars in tax revenue every year.

 

E-cigarette was developed back in 2003 and currently account for less than 1% of the $80 billion U.S. cigarette market. Of course as the word of mouth and the developing advertisement programs will help boost sales, which have doubled every year since 2008, and are projected to reach $1 billion by year’s end.

 

There is a possibility that down the road e-cigarettes may one day overtake traditional cigarettes and it may not be decades in time, but rather as soon as 2020. And the e-cigarette will only evolve and improve as time goes forward.

 

If there comes a time when the e-cigarette cuts into share of traditional smokes, you’d better believe that the tobacco companies will fight back with every single weapon that they posses and some that haven’t be devised yet.

 

The potential for first tax revenue loss, and then a reduction of the entire established cigarette market, which would amount to billions, is real and, I’m sure, scary to some in the industry as well as some those outside it.

 

The big swing with e-cigarettes is that the company’s strategy and professional ideas are to some extent a function of the fact that Craig Weiss doesn’t smoke at all. What NJOY, Weiss’s company, claims is that they aren’t trying to create new smokers! It doesn’t market its product to under aged smokers, quite the contrary, the company says it’s going after only those established 45 million smokers who light up every day.

 

Currently more than 70% of smokers say that they want to quit, and I’ll admit it…..a few years ago I was one of those who wanted to quit. I did in fact quite back in 1997…..cold turkey…..the best move that I ever made.

 

However with these new e-cigarettes, there would seem to be a kind of quick remedy for those who want to quit…..and I’m guessing that the pain (of quitting) would be nominal. Do I think that there should be governmental involvement with the process…..absolutely.

 

So to answer the Big Question, yes, in the long term, e-cigarettes will hurt the American tobacco industry; however there will also be a market for cancer-sticks. Their use, addiction, and health causing issues will be felt long after e-cigarettes of claimed their place in American society.

 

THINGS PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT E-CIGARETTES

E-cigarettes are battery operated nicotine inhalers that consist of a rechargeable lithium battery, a cartridge called a cartomizer and a LED, (light-emitting diode) that lights up at the end when you puff on the e-cigarette to simulate the burn (cherry) of a tobacco cigarette.

 

The costs of a starter kid usually costs between $30 and $100, and the estimated cost of replacement cartridges is about $600. Smoking a pack of cigarettes a day (real ones) costs around a $1000, two packs $2000 and so on. It’s rather easy to see why e-cigarettes would be a bit more advantageous just by the (wallet savings.)

 

The Food and Drug Administration WILL become involved with the e-cigarette question and debate in the direct future, a federal court case decision back in 2011 gave the agency that right. So taxation, regulations and all the rest that comes with governmental agencies involvement will undoubtedly overtake the new industry in very short order.

 

The health risks of e-cigarettes is still being developed, there of course was no initial studies available, inventers, designers and developers don’t do blind taste tests, they invent, design, develop…..it’s their job. They then attempt to sell, sell, sell, so that they can secure funds for their next invention project.

 

The question of whether e-cigarettes help smokers kick the tobacco habit is, as well, sketchy, my daughter so far swears by the product. She’s  been using the thing for a little over a month…..so time will tell, she doesn’t drink so that’s a point in her favor…..you know how touch it can be for smokers who are drinkers favor lighting up, it’s kind of like a Mutt and Jeff thing.

 

Whether the e-cigarette is little more than a gimmick, an instrument that replaces that cancer stick, or man’s yearning to suckle at his mother’s breast…..only time will tell. Also there is concern that young people, teenagers, and even pre-teens just might be able to get their hands on e-cigarette paraphernalia and become addicted to nicotine.

 

I guess I’d have to say that the jury is still out on exactly what properties the process of e-cigarettes, tobacco, and the will-being of man holds for the future with regards to the question of the issue…..TO E-CIGAREET, OR STAY A WEED-BUTT, as with many other issues, the choice is yours.

 

HAVE A NICE DAY!