Electric car or Edsel of the smoking world?

Andy Nulman posts about the NJOY electronic cigarette, which he wonders about. Are they The Electric Car of The Smoking World, he asks?

Hate to disagree with a man who gave me a copy of his great book AND a pair of VERY nice Parasuco jeans, but I dunno. I think they're more like the Edsel.

These gizmos deliver nicotine in a cigarette or cigar-shaped package that is battery-operated. I'm not sure how many people are making or selling these, but it appears there are a number of them.

There's even an Electronic Cigarette Association, which is pitching itself much more as a way to get away from tobacco, and has Canadian anti-tobacco activist David Sweanor associated with it. Sweanor talks at some length about the products and the controversy surrounding them in this interview.

According to the NJOY product web site:

NJOY e-cigarettes are a revolutionary new smoking alternative that looks, feels and tastes like a cigarette or cigar, and gives smokers all the pleasure and satisfaction of traditional smoking without all the health, social and economic problems.

I'm not sure I'd agree with this. Obviously, nicotine COULD pose health problems. It is an alkaloid. But as Paracelsus (I think) said. "the dose makes the poison."

The Boston Herald ran an op-ed piece suggesting that the tobacco industry is working hard to stop the e-cigs from being sold.

So will this work? Is it the Prius? Or an Edsel? I have to say that I think it's the latter. I've NEVER smoked. Not even a puff. Of anything. But I will acknowledge that smoking can make people look really cool. And that's why a lot of young people take it up. Think of Bogey:













Or Angelina, before she became an earth mother:

















Or Marlene Dietrich:















I HATE cigarettes. But I gotta admit that is cool. I mean, look at Bette Davis and Paul Henreid:



Cool.

But when I see video of these e-cigs and cigars:



Dorky.

If I were so inclined, I'd rather smoke the real carcinogenic things than look like some sort of eccentric dipwad. No offense, e-cig users. But that's how I feel.

Ciao,
Bob.