More Media Nonsense on Passive Vaping
When it comes to the media and vaping they really can’t handle a run of good news can they?
After more than a few ‘responsible’ stories around the benefits of vaping over smoking – our old ‘friend’ the Daily Fail was at it again this time pretty much stirring up a pub fight over passive vaping.
More on that and the excellent response from the Freedom Association later – but first that story lumping vaping in with ‘anti-social’ behaviour on London Midland Trains.
Do checkout the video of the train guard ‘cautioning’ a passenger for putting his feet on a seat – it’s cringe-worthy.
But call me an old cynic this ‘enforcement’ stinks of not only big brother – but also money.
I mean why else would the spokesman on this topic be described as the head of revenue protection and security?
Revenue?
I could go on about the cost of a train ticket but I wont…like they need revenue from fining all those anti-social customers!
He said:
The railway bylaws have always existed but for many years they have fallen out of focus by most train companies. There is a strong link between low levels of antisocial behavior and ticket less travel. Our passengers have the right to travel and feel safe with us. By enforcing the railway bylaws we can stop problems before they escalate into something worse.
Yeah folks who vape are just the type to travel without a ticket to ride – anti-social and criminal!
Sorry I’m getting ‘snippy’ again – but for goodness sake…and breathe Neil lol…
OK the last time I used a train was to go to the recent Expo – I stood cramped in the doorway each of the outward and return journeys along with young families and on one occasion a man with a huge mountain bike.
Whilst waiting for the train I was stood at the very end of the platform with no one around and completely in the open air – was I ‘allowed’ to vape – even though there’s nothing in the law that says I can’t?
Nope.
Was I in the mood to challenge this apparent ruling?
Normally I’m quite feisty about that kind of thing but there was a couple of armed police patrolling the station and I just didn’t fancy arguing with the wrong end of a Heckler and Koch.
I also object to including vaping in the same sentence as anti-social behaviour – which according to the train companies includes people ‘putting their feet on seats’ – from my experience even having a seat is a luxury let alone a spare one to put your feet up!
Southern Railways announced back in July 2015 they too were banning e-cigs on their 2,500 trains and 156 stations.
There’s No Law that Can Ban Vaping
They are also kind enough to note they can’t enforce the law as it isn’t actually illegal to vape anywhere but suggest they will ask passengers vaping to ‘please stop’.
A spokesman said:
The ban will not enforceable by law. Anyone who is seen using one of these devices by Southern and Gatwick Express staff after July 26 will be politely asked to stop.
We believe that there will be an element of peer-policing too, just like when passengers see feet on seats – we’re sure that some will intervene and point out that it’s not pleasant for others.
‘Peer Policing’ – ummm sounds very Orwellian to me and I’m pretty sure it could lead to some right royal rumbles in certain carriages!
Look the average e-cig user isn’t a cloud chaser and has the good sense and grace to vape discretely so as to cause a minimum of fuss on things like trains – planes and automobiles.
They certainly don’t need some stroppy pompous passenger ‘peer policing’ him or her so creating a possible ‘incident’ – or am I wide off the mark here?
OK how about Scots Rail who whilst recognizing the vape ban can’t be enforced by law say they are more than happy to involve British Transport Police!
‘You’re nicked mate’
‘What for’
‘Refusing to stop vaping when asked nicely’
File that under ‘s**t’ you couldn’t make up.
Surely instead of bothering themselves with such frivolous of things the rail companies should invest their time and energies getting the trains running on time and making sure passengers have seats – and not just to put their feet on.
I Predict a Pub Fight
Those of us in the vaping media [ooo get me lol ] seem to spend an absolute age fire fighting fake vaping news and science stories.
What I mean by that is we are faced with a constant barrage of spurious stories telling the world how dangerous or how bad vaping is and we have to find the facts to disprove the latest piece of ‘rubbish’.
Most of the time we can pour enough cold water or hard facts – on the stories to dampen them down.
However, they’re like those niggling underground fires that smoulder away and before you know it become smoking urban myths just waiting for a spark to set them ablaze again.
And more than all of those fake news stories put together the subject of passive vaping is the one that can and does appear all too often.
The Daily Mail [or Daily Fail as some of us call that rag] has been at it again and this time almost acting like that bloke in the pub shouting ‘hit him Dave’ from the safety of his seat.
Imagine the scene – you’re enjoying a quiet pint and having a discreet puff on your e-cig – in a pub I use the Innokin Pebble and Nautilus 2 which is hardly a cloud chasing set-up.
Suddenly an enraged customer gets in your face and lists the things you and you e-fag are doing to the rest of the drinkers.
According to the Daily Fail and quoting ‘researchers’ from Berkeley University in California this includes the risk of inhaling:
- Cancer causing formaldehyde
- Acrolein – a toxin that irritates the eyes
- Leukaemia
- Brain cancer
- Anaemia
- Toxic benzene which can shrink womens ovaries
And you wonder why I’m suggesting some pub customers and train passengers might get a little hot under the collar!
Now whilst none of those are laughing matters to suggest that so called passive vaping is going to cause any of them is bordering on ridiculous – downright dangerous and irresponsible journalism.
Click Bait!
Let’s take a look at the quite excellent response from Andrew Allison MCIJ Head of Campaigns at the Freedom Association and the letter he sent to the Mail:
It seems bizarre that your science correspondent would put such great store on a study from Berkeley University which is known for producing partial and policy-led research in the past in order to attract clickbait headlines which bear no relation to the truth.
The methodology that produced your headline was another perfect example.
It was designed using modelling rather than scientific measurements, which were not taken by the authors. If the modelling was realistic it would at least be worth noting, but instead extreme emissions data was used coupled with assumptions that have only been measured in tobacco smoke, not vapour. The study was fatally flawed as it seems to deliberately misunderstand how e-cigarettes work and how vapers use them.
Superb.
Couldn’t have put it better myself.
Although maybe I have covered this issue in the piece Passive Vaping Study Back Fires.
You see researchers tried to cover up the results of a ‘clean air’ study they did recently.
And it was only after the results were leaked to pro vaping Professor – Dr. Michael Siegel – that we found the truth.
In a nutshell the team of researchers from the California Department of Public Health visited a number of vape shops to test the air quality.
They chose shops filled with vapers and with little or no ventilation – the results are astounding – they found NOTHING detrimental to health in the air – nada – zilch.
Here are the findings or should I say lack of findings:
- Nicotine: Not detected
- Glycidol: Not detected
- Formaldehyde: 7.2 ppb
- Diacetyl: Not detected using standard method
- 2,3-Pentanedione: Not detected using standard method
- Acetyl butyryl: Not detected using standard method
- Acetoin: Not detected using standard method
- Acetone: Not detected
- Ethyl benzene: Not detected
- m,p-Xylene: Not detected
- o-Xylene: Not detected
- Toluene: Not detected
- Acetaldehyde: Not detected
- Acetonitrile: Not detected
- alpha-pinene: Not detected
- Benzene: Not detected
- Chloroform: Not detected
- d-Limonene: Not detected
- Methylene chloride: Not detected
- Methyl methacrylate: Not detected
- n-Hexane: Not detected
- Styrene: Not detected
Officials from the Californian Dept of Public Health using state of the art equipment in real world, not laboratory conditions, found nothing sinister in a bunch of foggy vape shops – FACT – but you won’t see those results anywhere in the mainstream – wonder why!
However, the results found in laboratory conditions using ‘modelling methods’ and not real people in real situations and in real life – are what we’re supposed to accept as scientific fact?
Don’t make me laugh. Check out the truth about passive vaping here.
Lies About Passive Vaping Not a Laughing Matter
But it really isn’t funny – not funny at all.
As more and more smokers try hard to quit smoking via 95% safer e-cigarettes the last thing they need is fake news – scare stories and folks in their local pub using such drivel to spark a confrontation.
You don’t need to be a genius to see the trouble vaping can cause in pubs when fueled with drink people can get argumentative.
It only takes one ill-informed bloke having a bad night to spark a row with a vaper before all hell breaks loose – then imagine the headlines!
Of the three pubs I regularly use one has already added a vaping ban – despite me being allowed to puff on my low key MTL device for the past 3 years!
The reason the new landlady gave was – ‘because of the new décor’ – lol.
[she incidentally smokes like a trooper and tuts if she’s ‘having a fag’ when a customer wants serving]
Look I admit some vapers don’t do themselves – or the rest of us – any favours.
The pub I use the most [lovely ale in there] let’s me vape – but whilst I’m reviewing a cloud chucker and fancy a blast – I step outside simple as that.
It’s called common sense – courtesy – however I have been told by other publicans the reason for the ban in their pubs is due to ‘blokes looking like steam engines’.
I’m back to my education vs legislation mantra again.
If you’re a young vaper or know a young vaper then for goodness sake chuck clouds by all means and of course in public – but do it with a bit of sense because we vapers have enough battles to fight as the excellent Andrew Allison points out:
UK public health groups have been concerned at a dangerous shift in attitudes to vaping due to unclear and inaccurate information on e-cigarettes.
The poorly executed and arguably nefarious Berkeley study – the results of which go against everything said by the most prestigious public health organisations in this country – can only have negative effects on public health and we would urge you to look closer at the motives of those who wish to create confusion and misinformation in this way in the future before publishing.
Wise words indeed…
– Vape On!
Footnote: No sooner had I finished this article I popped over to Twitter to see that rail fares in the UK are set for the biggest rise in 5 years…I guess they might be spending it on more anti vape police and no vaping signs…who knows…
And just in the current results of a survey in the Metro no less [the free newspaper on buses and trains] showing passengers don’t have a problem with vaping on trains…
Pity we didn’t live in a democracy 😉
