Vapers Digest February 14th
Wednesday’s News at a glance:
The WHO Has Finally Lost It – Vaping voucher service launched across county – Calderdale Council considers vaping ban in taxis – There is law on snus but is there justice? – Science Lesson: Scientific Inference And Its Abuse – The Journey to Harm Reduction – Latest UK study suggests a collaboration between Vape shops and the NHS – Call For Vapers To Help Halt Vape Tax – Bernardi runs vape rings around parliament – Nicotine Science and Policy Daily Digest
The WHO Has Finally Lost It
Dick Puddlecote
It’s long been a tactic of fraudulent, debate-phobic, anti-smoking organisations to react to a threat to their propaganda by simply pointing a Neanderthal finger and grunting “ug, Big Tobacco”. It’s just far easier than defending their extremist quackery with reasoned argument, just as their stock-in-trade junk science is easier than actually doing the proper stuff.
The problem for them, though, is that methods which worked to dupe a gullible public with smoking don’t help achieve the same confidence trick for the plethora of reduced risk products increasingly coming to the market, and they are too stupid to realise that. So it puts them in a position of often being left with impotent arguments which, quite frankly, make them look extremely silly.
Vaping voucher service launched
Dan Whiteway, Basingstoke Gazette
A STOP smoking scheme piloted in Basingstoke is now being rolled out across Hampshire.
Quit4Life, Hampshire’s NHS stop smoking service, is offering innovative support to help smokers who are interested in vaping as a means to give up cigarettes, by helping them to access e-cigarettes effectively and safely.
By supporting vaping as a means to quitting tobacco, Quit4Life is offering a new voucher scheme in Hampshire, for those who choose to give up tobacco through switching to vaping.
Calderdale Council considers vaping ban
Andrew Allison, The Freedom Association
There was a time when we valued private property rights. As long as it was legal, what consenting adults did was no-one else’s business. That’s how it used to be. Now we have busybodies from Government, councils and Quangos sticking their noses in where it’s not wanted.
We know that vaping in enclosed spaces is legal. We know that e-cigarettes are not harmful to bystanders. Councils should know this, although judging by its entry in last year’s ‘Vaping Policies in UK Councils’ report, Calderdale likes to exist in blissful ignorance. It is one of those councils that sends vapers into designated smoking areas, even though it reviewed its vaping policy in September 2017 as a result of the Gove
There is law on snus but is there justice?
Harry Shapiro
So here is my half century blog post. Thanks for all the positive feedback. The cheques are in the post. Sorry I don’t do online banking.
Snus is banned across the EU, except in Sweden. Swedish Match, the leading snus manufacturer, initiated a challenge against the ban. In January 2017 the High Court in London ruled that the challenge should be heard at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. The hearing took place on 25 January 2018.
Those putting the case for snus included Gerry Stimson, Karl Lund, Lars Ramström and Martin Jarvis. The ban was defended by the UK, Norway, the European Parliament, the European Council and the European Commission.
West Australian vaper wanted! The @westaustralian newspaper is running a piece on #vaping in the Saturday and needs a vaper to tell their story. Can be anonymous if preferred. Please email me c.mendelsohn@unsw.edu.au or ring Cathy O’Leary 08 9482 3220
— Colin Mendelsohn (@ColinMendelsohn) February 14, 2018
Scientific Inference And Its Abuse
Carl V. Phillips, Daily Vaper
Vapers frequently make the observation about tobacco controllers, “How can they believe that evidence supports [something negative, like the gateway effect] when they do not believe the evidence supports [something positive, like the low risk of vaping]?” This reflects an intuitive understanding of scientific reasoning, that there is a double standard being employed. But a double standard for what? The “what” is scientific inference, and understanding more about what it means can be useful for honing that intuition.
The Journey to Harm Reduction
AVCA
“There is no one giant step that does it. It’s a lot of little steps on the journey” The transition from smoking to vaping is a journey. Some people pick up their first vape and immediately, or soon after, stop smoking completely. Many others take months, or even years, to make the transition. This is the reality of transitioning from combustible tobacco to E liquid vapourisers (ELVs) aka “vaping”. It is also why they are so effective for so many people and why dual use has been studied by such esteemed scientists as Riccardo Polosa and Konstantinos Farsolinos. Both Drs. proved that a reduction in use of combustible tobacco, concomitant with use of ELVs shows improved respiratory and cardiovascular outcomes…
Latest UK study suggests a collaboration
Between Vape shops and the NHS
Diane Caruana – Vaping Post
According to research conducted by the University of East Anglia and funded by Cancer Research UK, the NHS should consider working hand in hand with reputable vape shops in helping smokers quit.
The study which was published a few days back, points out that besides selling products, vape shops tend to offer behavioural support to smokers seeking to quit and that health professionals could benefit by understanding their role in helping smokers quit, and work hand in hand with them.
Call For Vapers To Help Halt Vape Tax
Ali Anderson, vaping.com
AN URGENT call to vapers has gone out to help stop a 60 per cent tax on vaping products.
The “crippling” added cost to both sellers and vapers proposed for Washington State is a moneymaking scheme exploiting the entire vaping community, according to CASAA (Consumer Advocates For Smoke-Free Alternatives Association), who is calling for action to stop it.
Opposers to the tax, from vapers to vape business owners, are now being urged to get in touch with local lawmakers ahead of the bill’s hearing in the capitol.
Bernardi runs vape rings
Australia
Cross bench senator Cory Bernardi has taken ‘Vape Force One’ for a lap of Parliament House in Canberra.
The senator claimed the government’s prohibition on supplying nicotine for vapour devices, or e-cigarettes, doesn’t stack up with health evidence, as he jumped into the driving seat of a van plastered with pro-vaping messages and packed with volunteers.
On this Day…2017
A look back at how things have moved on or otherwise….
Video Resource for THR Advocates
CASAA
Millions of long-term smokers have developed diseases that have caused them to die early. It is well understood that these diseases are caused almost exclusively by inhaling smoke. Vapor products, commonly referred to as electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, do not burn tobacco or any other material, and so do not produce the smoke that causes smoking related diseases.
What Is ‘The Best Nicotine Delivery Device’?
Dick Puddlecote
Now there’s a question, huh?
If you weren’t already aware, there is an event at the IEA on Wednesday 22nd February which will attempt to answer that question via the medium of an entertaining balloon debate. The evening will also feature a short presentation on ‘The Pleasure of Smoking: The Views of Confirmed Smokers’ by Dr Neil McKeganey, director of the Centre for Substance Use Research, which I wrote about over the Christmas period.
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