e-cig news update 1-30-12 – Puns intended

Monday, January 30th, 2012 at 7:58 am

It’s Monday, so that must mean it’s time for a recap of all the e-cigarette news that happened over the weekend. The CBC thinks they have some news about e-cigarettes that will shock you. Augusta decides to walk down the path of enlightenment. We also have a pair of news stories, one good and slightly flawed, the other not so great and downright lazy. Vape ‘em if you got ‘em, but read the e-cigarette news roundup while you do!

Shocking Story

You’ll get a charge out of this gem from the CBC in Canada. Ok, enough with the puns already. The broadcaster ran a story about e-cigarette chargers being a fire hazard according to a fire inspector in New Brunswick.

CE mark commonly found on e-cigarettes (certified for European sale)

Jake LeBlanc, New Brunswick’s chief electrical inspector, says the voltage listed is a huge problem.

“It says 220 volts, which these are made to go in your wall which are 120, so right away that this would be a tip off that there was something wrong,” he told CBC News.

This is a bit of a non-story. I’m sure we’ve all seen less than high quality products come from overseas factories. The only issue I have is the story sort of alludes that this is common in every e-cigarette. That’s simply not the case. Most decent e-cigarettes will have some sort of safety certification at least when it comes to the electrical portion.

Positive but Flawed

Online news site Mesquite Local News posted a generally positive piece about e-cigarettes. The story did a good job of presenting the information supporting e-cigarettes, and was generally skeptical of those who wish the devices banned. There were however quite a few inaccuracies, especially when presenting the against e-cigarette side.

Almost there...

But support for the faux-cigarettes hardly is unanimous. And there’s an increasing effort to ban them altogether.

The content of the exhaled vapors is a major concern.

Diethylene glycol and tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) are the problem.

DEG comes from that horrid FDA study which they found a tiny amount in one cartridge, clearly not a normal ingredient. There you go, in case you were wondering, I don’t just call out the negative stories for inaccuracies. It’s not so I can claim to be unbiased in my news commentaries like certain large media corporations. I just think it’s important to have correct information so that actual logical decisions about the device have a chance.

Augusta Comes to its Senses

Perhaps you remember a while back when I reported Augusta was eyeing a smoking ban that included (with opposition) e-cigarettes? According to a story on WRDW, that ban is pushing forward. However, according to the most recent draft of the ordinance, e-cigarettes are not only removed, but explicitly exempted from the ban!

e-cigarette news e-cigarettes removed from draft image

Red ink never looked so good!

While it looks like the city will be much less friendly to smokers, it looks like they don’t want to kill them after all. Good job to Augusta for coming to your senses!
Via CASAA members Facebook Group

TV Station Phones it in

News Channel 10 in Amarillo TX ran what in my opinion seems to be an incredibly lazy news story about e-cigarettes. The short piece interviewed someone from the local university’s healthcare department. There didn’t seem to be a lot of effort put into actually checking the different angles. They didn’t even hunt down some random consumer for this one.

Is THIS the best e-cigarette? I didn't want to be bothered to find a relavant image.

“The reason they are said to be better than regular cigarettes is because regular cigarettes contain thousands of harmful carcinogens which cause cancer,” he said.

Electronic cigarettes still contain nicotine, but lack the cancerous chemicals.

The device isn’t cheap either and will set you back $70-$100.

Not to mention, you eventually have to purchase refill cartridges.

“Your ultimate goal is to quit smoking,” he said.

In addition to this part where it seems like you’re being told about how to live your life, they tossed in a bit of the FDA rhetoric so popular in these stories. Even in the e-cigarette news stories that are mostly negative, they usually put some sort of effort into it.

Fox News Highlights Utah Vapers

The Utah Vapers Association, that is. In a very brief piece, Fox 13 gave a little bit of air time to the Utah Vapers Association. This piece was a followup to the debate surrounding Utah’s attempts at a public vaping ban that I covered earlier.

The same image I used last time

The Utah Vapors Association says e-cigarettes don’t have any of the harmful effects caused by second-hand smoke produced by regular cigarettes, but House Bill 245 would place them in the same category as cigarettes.

“The vapor that comes from an electronic cigarette is just that; it’s water vapor. It’s no different from vapor that comes from a humidifier in a department store on display,” said Aaron Frazier with the Utah Vapors Association.

That was about the whole of the piece. The rest was basically pointing out that the prohibitionists want the devices included because the FDA, that’s why!

Vaping = House

Across the pond in the UK, the Sunday Mail ran a story on what one woman did with the money she saved switching to e-cigarettes. Specifically, she bought a house. Talk about an extreme use of savings. By giving up cigarettes, the woman was able to save about 400 GBP ($628) per month.

Can't shove a house in there

‘I’d dreamed of owning my own place but never thought I would have the means,’ says Julie, who has a grown-up daughter. ‘But after giving up smoking I had so much more disposable income. Getting the mortgage was much easier than I thought and my monthly repayments are now £350 – less than I spent on cigarettes.’

That’s probably a fairly extreme example of what one can do with the savings from switching to vaping full time. Personally, I end up using the savings to buy even more e-cigarette gear to add to my mod collection. What do YOU do with the savings?
Disclosure: the original story features ECigarette Direct, an advertiser on this site

Deal of the Moment

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Be a news spotter! Run across an article you think I should be mentioning here? Let me know! Just Tweet @SteveVape with the hashtag #ecignews or post it up on my Facebook page. I’ll be sure to give you a shout out in the news update if you’re the first one to spot it

Image: ningmilo / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Filed under: news roundup