All right, time for a post that part rant, part information. Don't you just love those? Today's topic will be electronic cigarettes, also known as nicotine vaporizers. Even if you don't vape or smoke, I suggest paying attention to what I'll be talking about here - secondhand smoke smells awful to you too!


As many of you know, over the last couple of months, I put down tobacco and started using an e-cig. Over the last five years or so, they've been growing quite a bit in popularity. This means that tobacco sales are down, vaping-related sales are up, and less people are smoking standard cigarettes. Just as no good deed can go unpunished and everything in this country has to have the government stick their ass into it for redundancy to "protect" the people, e-cigs have made it to the FDA's radar.


After a court case to try to classify e-cigs as "medical smoking cessation devices" and have them regulated as such, the pro-e-cig side compromised at having them classified as tobacco products. This means that they now fall under the jurisdiction of the FDA, which will treat them as tobacco. Soon, the FDA will be putting out its proposal for the regulations.


Myself and many others are worried that these regulations will essentially fall victim to the whims of Big Tobacco. It's not exactly a secret on just how corrupt our government and its agencies are, especially when it comes to multi-billion dollar industries like tobacco and oil. If Big Tobacco gets its way, these FDA regulations will be so strenuous and complex that it will essentially limit production of e-cig devices and e-liqiud to the companies that are already supplying tobacco cigarettes. This means they will get a stranglehold on the entirety of the market, and we will be at their mercy. This means that they'll be able to treat e-liquid the same way they did tobacco, adding many adulterants to raise addiction and further damage the consumer's health.


It has been proven time and again that the current formula for e-liquids has no health detriments. That's right, it is not bad for you. Not even the nicotine. In fact, there are several studies happening right now that are looking at nicotine as a pharmaceutical grade drug that will assist in treating many health issues. The other current ingredients are already FDA approved for human consumption. So why do we need further FDA regulation on this? Because Big Tobacco wants to strangle literally hundreds of small businesses out of the market and keep us handing our cash to them, by any means necessary.


What does all this mean to you non-smokers, you may ask? I'll tell you. Do you enjoy the smell of cigarettes? The majority of the non-smokers I've met do not. In fact, it gives many of them health issues - allergies, breathing troubles, light-headedness, nausia, and so forth. As far as I've been able to tell, if your only issue with cigarette smoke is that you don't like the smell, you're lucky! If these FDA regulations get pushed through in Big Tobacco's favor, it could very easily grind the entire e-cig market to a halt. This means current vapers may have no choice but to go back to tobacco cigarettes, and that current smokers won't even have the option to switch to vaping. Do you want your friends and family to smell like Marlboro Red cigarettes or Jolly Rancher candies? Do you want to be inconvenienced by your friends' constant smoke breaks, or would you rather hang out with them while they're puffing on what might as well be an air freshener? I, for one, after having regained my proper sense of smell, know which option I prefer.


So, when is all this happening? In the next few weeks, the FDA will be putting out its proposal for review and approval. At that point, we, the public, may have as little as 60 days to provide commentary for analysis and consideration. Please, please, please, please, PLEASE get involved and be aware of this. I can't remember the last time I was this passionate about something, and for the sake of getting at least some small measure of justice and fairness in our society, please get involved in this with me.


If you'd like more information on vaping, citations for my claims here, or anything else, please contact me. I'm more than happy to link you to articles, studies, trusted vendors, or just to chat.