There should be minimal regulation, primarily aimed at discouraging use by children and setting normal FDA type purity/safety standards for the e-liquids and CPSC standards for vaping devices. The standards should grandfather in what's already there at the time of enactment with the proviso that any existing products that are shown to be problematical can be pulled.
There is *NO* reason for any regulation beyond that. Even the "children" restriction could be argued since it is likely that nicotine in vaped form is neither more harmful nor more addicting than caffeine in beverages commonly marketed to or shared with children, particularly older children. Whatever small number of "children" (I'm using quotes due to the questionable nature of the word when discussing 16 to 21 year olds) might take up vaping who would not have taken up smoking would almost certainly be FAR overshadowed by the numbers who take up vaping INSTEAD of taking up smoking.
Any rational policy not based upon antismoking fanaticism and a greed for tobacco tax dollars would recognize this.
Michael J. McFadden
Author of "TobakkoNacht -- The Antismoking Endgame"
There should be minimal regulation, primarily aimed at discouraging use by children and setting normal FDA type purity/safety standards for the e-liquids and CPSC standards for vaping devices. The standards should grandfather in what's already there at the time of enactment with the proviso that any existing products that are shown to be problematical can be pulled.
There is *NO* reason for any regulation beyond that. Even the "children" restriction could be argued since it is likely that nicotine in vaped form is neither more harmful nor more addicting than caffeine in beverages commonly marketed to or shared with children, particularly older children. Whatever small number of "children" (I'm using quotes due to the questionable nature of the word when discussing 16 to 21 year olds) might take up vaping who would not have taken up smoking would almost certainly be FAR overshadowed by the numbers who take up vaping INSTEAD of taking up smoking.
Any rational policy not based upon antismoking fanaticism and a greed for tobacco tax dollars would recognize this.
Michael J. McFadden
Author of "TobakkoNacht -- The Antismoking Endgame"