Keep On Crying

So today, the FDA has released another one of its infamous press releases where Scott Gottlieb basically gets on his high horse and exclaims how an industry isn’t doing enough to protect its consumers, all while taking backdoor donations from other industries who actively work against consumers in every way. One of the most hypocritical men in politics today, and my disdain for him grows more and more as the days pass. Anyways, what was in this press release you ask? Well let’s break down some of the key points in his mini-tirade.

We’re committed to announcing a new action plan by mid-November that will set forth a series of new, forceful steps to firmly confront and reverse the youth addiction trends that are at epidemic levels.

So, if you don’t know, e-liquid ingredients listings are due November 8th. This means, any e-liquid that has been created BEFORE August 8th, 2017, must have its ingredients broken down, and then sent to the FDA. The FDA will catalog each and everyone one of these products, I’m assuming for further testing to either approve or disapprove, depending on its contents. But that statement above also seems to hint at even more of tighter regulatory steps that should really choke out a lot of the smaller developers in this industry.

For the e-cigarette industry, my message was simple: Step up.

This is where I will agree with Gottlieb, and not necessarily in the same way he’s asking. I too, want the ecig industry to step up. But I want the industry to step up its efforts in fighting. STILL, to this day, there is very, very little science regarding the inhalation of concentrated aromas and their compounds, VG, PG, and base nicotine. Not too mention, state advocacy groups left and right aren’t getting the funding they need to do what they need. This industry will have a true awakening once they realize the FDA and Big Tobacco are no one to fuck with.

I asked five manufacturers whose products, collectively, represent more than 97 percent of the current market for closed-system e-cigarettes to meet with me personally to discuss this vital public health challenge, as well as to submit written plans outlining the steps they intend to take to confront the rising trends in youth use. 

So it seems his previous statements of “Stepping Up” are more pointed towards these five manufacturers. He wants them to prove to the FDA, Big Pharma, and the American People, the industry is doing what it can to mitigate youth use. He’s not telling them to fix the issue, but to show him they are at least working towards that. In terms of the small 3% market, which is our market, the open system market, I’m still not quite sure where Gottlieb stands.

Following that call to action, I have met in the past several weeks with the leadership of five companies – Altria Group Inc., JUUL Labs Inc., Reynolds American Inc., Fontem Ventures, and Japan Tobacco International USA Inc. 

This is the most worrying of all. Those are ALL big tobacco companies, with JUUL being the ONLY exception. So you can get, Big Tobacco is doing what they can to push any and all competition out of the market, in order for them to sweep up profits. By using the FDA, a government controlled regulatory board, they will do as they please. This is good ol’ pure corruption at its finest. And this is the type of crony capitalism that has come of this shitty administration. This industry will be completely dissolved in the next 3 years, mark my words.

we will continue to seek public input from a diverse set of stakeholders, including public health advocates and the manufacturers and retailers affected by these policies.

Nothing but political theatre meaning  “we are legally obliged to hear what you have to say, but I have donors who need more money, so my mind is already pretty much set.” What a fucking joke.

We still believe that non-combustible forms of nicotine delivery may be less harmful alternatives for currently addicted adult smokers who still seek nicotine, without the risks associated with combustible cigarettes. And we want to keep this option for adults open.

This is the only positive thing that has come from this release. He understands there’s a lot of money in this industry and that taxes can really help out states who are underfunded. It has nothing to do with health, keep dreaming. What this means is there will be vapor products available to consumers. The issue is, the vapor products will not be the ones we want. They will be flavorless, generic, under powered, pieces of shit, that will cost companies millions to produce thanks to regulations, so will probably come out of China with bad ingredients.

So to close this, I just want to stress to you, as I have been for the last 4 years now, LEARN TO MIX. Stock up on mods, RDA’s, tanks, coils,  or learn to mod. They can never take away your agency, and they have no jurisdiction over your home. Learn the trade, it’s quite easy, and hey, I have an entire website dedicated to creating excellent e-liquid recipes if you need a hand. And lastly, stay informed. You don’t want this to sneak up on you.