Why harm reduction isn't good enough

[scrumpox]

Slowly, slowly the weight of evidence builds in the favour of vaping and e-cigarettes. It seems to me that we must place our trust in those that research and campaign on our behalf. Ignorance and preconception is the real enemy here.

One word of many written on this thread stands out for me - pollution. The perception remains prevalent that e-cigarette /vaping exhalation pollutes the air with potentially injurious substances for non-vapers.

The manner in which we, as vapers, respond to this perception is important. We could carry on regardless, puffing our "pollutant" into non-vapers faces in a militant and self-righteous stand against their ignorance. Or we could display the kind of tolerance that we would wish to receive ourselves.

It's not enough to wait for the research an education to take place around us, we all have a role to play in the process of changing the perceptions in order to break the ingrained link between vaping and burning tobacco. This takes understanding and empathy, not militancy.

Society hates pollution - be it chemical, exhaust fumes, excess noise, bad smells, you name it. I bristle at many kinds, from screaming kids in the supermarket, the loud one-sided phone conversation on the train, so am I surprised that someone objects to me blowing clouds of vapour in a pub, café or whatever? How we react those objections is going to be important.

 

[JoeSmart]

Slowly, slowly the weight of evidence builds in the favour of vaping and e-cigarettes. It seems to me that we must place our trust in those that research and campaign on our behalf. Ignorance and preconception is the real enemy here.

One word of many written on this thread stands out for me - pollution. The perception remains prevalent that e-cigarette /vaping exhalation pollutes the air with potentially injurious substances for non-vapers.

The manner in which we, as vapers, respond to this perception is important. We could carry on regardless, puffing our "pollutant" into non-vapers faces in a militant and self-righteous stand against their ignorance. Or we could display the kind of tolerance that we would wish to receive ourselves.

It's not enough to wait for the research an education to take place around us, we all have a role to play in the process of changing the perceptions in order to break the ingrained link between vaping and burning tobacco. This takes understanding and empathy, not militancy.

Society hates pollution - be it chemical, exhaust fumes, excess noise, bad smells, you name it. I bristle at many kinds, from screaming kids in the supermarket, the loud one-sided phone conversation on the train, so am I surprised that someone objects to me blowing clouds of vapour in a pub, café or whatever? How we react those objections is going to be important.

If I'm vaping in public (unless its a Vape shop or vaping coffee shop) I treat it as if I were smoking. Exhale away from others, stand in the smoking area or somewhere secluded, don't do it where I wouldn't smoke. I admit it is inconvenient but I feel that if I'm not intrusive with my vaping then others won't invade on my life choice to Vape. So far it has worked. And in fact I've had people thank me and sparked many a smokers interest whilst standing in smoking areas.