I wrote about Nova Scotia’s latest draconian new vaping laws this week and now a pioneering vape advocate refused oxygen because he vapes is facing a slow lingering painful death.
Just let that sink in for a moment.
And not only that, he’s been refused to even be considered a new sheltered home for him and his common-law-wife – who suffers from dementia – because the local law bans smokers or vapers from being given them.
As it stands right now, Ray Yeates is forced to live in a tiny hotel room whilst his desperately sick wife is living in a care home,and could soon have his life-saving oxygen supply taken away for no other reason than he is a vaper.
Yes really…and if this shit is allowed to go on – it could happen to you wherever you are in the world.
Canada is supposedly held up as a shining example of inclusion and openness – unless of course you’re a vaper and then you are literally living under a death sentence.
It sounds like something out of a dystopian novel – but it’s happening right now and it’s not only shocking – but abhorrent.
Ray is 70-years-old and founded the Tobacco Harm Reduction Association of Canada [THRA] back in 2014 after taking up vaping.
He was suffering from severe emphysema/pneumonia at the time and has survived lung cancer!
After realizing e-cigarettes were life savers for smokers, he founded the organization with the mission statement:
Our mission is to promote the availability of effective, affordable and reduced harm alternatives to smoking by increasing public awareness and education, to encourage the testing and development of products to achieve acceptable safety standards and reasonable regulation; and to promote the benefits of reduced harm alternatives.
Our goal is to educate the public, including stake holders (politicians, journalists, editors, other associations), and address concerns regarding personal vaporizers (electronic cigarettes) and their safety, to dispel misconceptions and misinformation regarding these products
Ray and his desperately sick wife had been living happily in a trailer until his wife’s condition deteriorated and it was only then he asked the Nova Scotia government for assistance.
As you can see his plea for help has been refused and now the health authorities are planning to take away the life giving oxygen he needs to stay alive.
Vape Advocate Refused Oxygen – Help Save the Life Of Ray Yeates
Now advocacy group the International Network of Nicotine Consumer Organisations [INNCO] has stepped in and is urging the vape community, from individuals to advocacy groups, to get involved and put pressure on the Nova Scotia government to save Ray’s life.
INNCO only heard of the situation overnight and are now mobilizing support via social media and say:
The local health authorities have now informed him his OXYGEN TANK FACILITY WILL SOON BE FORCIBLY REMOVED as rules dictate oxygen cannot be provided to vapers.
Ray doesn’t vape whilst using his oxygen mask.
His intelligence & the laws of physics, rather negate that option.
However, removing his access to oxygen places him in grave mortal danger.
This is a threat to commit state sponsored murder, no more and no less.
Outrageous doesn’t come close.
It is, without doubt, a despicable abrogation of human rights and must be rescinded immediately.
INNCO and his close colleagues are working upon a legal intervention, however time is not on our side.
We urge all our Members and followers to forward, retweet and publicise Ray’s predicament far and wide.
If he requires a private provider we will form a GoFundMe to assist.
This is a developing story and I will of course keep you all informed.
All we can do for now is to retweet the INNCO thread highlighting this terrible situation and also use the hashtag #SaveRayYeates.
I’ve written many shocking stories over the decades, but this one really has astonished me.
As INNCO say, this is a human rights issue and if left unchallenged is the kind that could spread globally.
Ray Has Saved Lives Now Help Save His
This quote from Ray back in 2014 shows what a passionate vape advocate the man is:
I agree that harm reduction is in need of more data, but for now the research is what brought me beyond the time I was given to live.
Giving up and giving in was not part of my moral beliefs and never will be.
In a moral sense I believe denying other smokers of the possible harm reduction of these devices is nothing short of neglect.
Powerful stuff…
Without doubt Ray has saved the lives of hundreds of thousands of smokers now enjoying a healthier life.
A vape advocate refused oxygen because he or she vapes is definitely the worst case of anti-vape law I’ve ever seen and you – a member of your family or friend that smokes OR vapes could be next if they’re allowed to get away with this.
It’s time to pay back all of Ray’s tireless hard work, passion and courage with something as simple as a re-tweet OR by spreading this article and Ray’s plight far and wide.
Let’s hope we can shame those faceless disgusting Nova Scotia politicians into doing the right thing NOW – because a man’s life depends on it.
c’est inhumain, y a t il une ou des pétitions à signer ?
Je n’ai pas vu la pétition yete – quand je le ferai, je le ferai savoir à eveyrone
Thanks. I just started a gofundme for @RayYeates. It’s pinned on my tweeter @castello ed west on facebook. Please help me share it.
This is abhorrent and a direct result of the outrageous lies & junk science perpetrated by antivapers like WHO, Surgeon General, CDC, Campaign For Tobacco Free Kids, Truth Initiative, Parents vs. Vape (PAVE), Stanton Glantz and others, with their fabricated teen vaping ‘epidemic’, all funded by a mix of tobacco, Pharma, Bloomberg, banks & private foundations’ money. They use social engineering on peers and the public to turn them against vaping and give misinformed and corrupt politicians justification to enact bans. They even lied to Trump’s face, but he didn’t fall for it. The money from smoking is astronomical and must be protected.
Nobody ever asks for robust scientific evidence of their wild claims and it’s important we highlight this more and demand it every time they post about vaping on Twitter + including our own studies more often when we post claims. They can’t run from the science forever!
In the UK, this treatment of Ray and his wife would be medical negligence, malpractice & against human rights. I’m confident we’ve got Ray’s back, but we must force the health authority to back down, otherwise the same will happen to other vapers.
Couldn’t have put it better myself thanks for the comment 🙂
Well said.
This is a disgrace. Canada’s health board should be ashamed. It’s nothing short of murder.
We need a go fund me now it seems. Thanks for the great article and keep up the good fight!
The people over at INNCO have mentioned that’s the plan if they can’t get the local government to change its mind – if that happens I’ll make sure everyone knows – cheers and thanks 🙂
Thanks. no email notification?
Not quite sure what you mean 🙂 If you;re on Twitter follow @INNCOorg for the very latest 🙂
I honestly worry for this world, this is so messed up that I almost want to believe its made up, when are people going to remove the rose tinted glasses and see what is actually going on and not be influenced by the wrong things. With everything that’s going on right now you’d think some common sense would prevail, but it may be wishing for too much nowadays
I totally agree – if things aren’t messed up enough already something like this comes along and shocks even a hard skinned old bloke like me…