Tobacco.org

An end run on smoking ban  

“I don’t think he had a clue what it was,” the 21-year-old said. “But he was not cool with it.”

The white, cylindrical device looks like a real one, but it runs on a lithium battery and produces a steam-like mist that looks like real smoke. The e-cigarette uses no tobacco; rather, it atomizes liquid nicotine, producing a vapor that is drawn into the lungs.

Because the product’s manufacturers — including the brand Ruyan, sold at the Coralville Tobacco Outlet — claim the e-cigarettes have none of the harmful chemicals found in the smoke of other tobacco products, Iowans can use the device in areas deemed “smoke-free” by the Iowa Smokefree Air Act.

And that’s why Fischels splurged on one, at a cost of $60 online. With his new instrument, he can get his nicotine fix legally in places where smoking is prohibited, including his workplace, the movie theater, and his apartment. . . .

But Tim Hopper, a bartender and manager at DC’s, 124 S. Dubuque St., said he would be more wary if he saw someone exhaling a smoke-like haze.

“I don’t think we would allow it,” he said, pointing out that if patrons saw someone smoking an e-cigarette, they might be prompted to spark up real ones. “It’d put out the wrong idea.”

Jump to full article »