ddavelarsen

This is nice to read... Dr who investigates -- and disses -- the FDA "study." And then follows up with some test facts. Nice! Hope this hasn't already been posted. If it has, my apology.

Comparison of Carcinogen Levels Shows that Electronic Cigarettes are Much Safer Than Conventional Ones

I started vaping on Jan 15, 2010 and have only had a handful of analogs since. I didn't get in to e-cigs to quit more just to replace analogs. As I'm coming up on two months and I thought I would post what my experiences have been so far. I'm not including the CleanSmoke in this list as it sucks and doesn't count.

My first (real) device was a 402 (the auto). I loved it and still use it with the original atties. I did purchase a 401 bat (manual) and also an auto pass through. All work pretty good. I like the auto for a bit more of the hands free thing when sitting at the computer. I also like that pass through for this. The 40x series doesn't give the same amount of vapor as a 510 but its not bad and really good for more stealth vaping. While I don't use it every day it stays in my rotation for when out and about because of the PCC.

I also picked up a couple of 510's with PCC's. The box is all metal and has sharper edges then the 40x PCC. I think it will wear through a shirt pocket a bit faster but is a must for on the go. I love the vapor the 510 gives and is really nice for in my office during the day. It does give a bit more flavor then the 40x and more vapor. I would suggest the 510 as a starter to everyone.

I also have a 601 (manual as I think 602 is auto). Not impressed with this one at all. It is the same ring size as the 510 but just doesn't cut it for me. Its a lot harder to draw on and I just can't seem to get it to produce much vapor. I don't use this one at all.

My latest one to arrive is the DSE-601 (e-pipe). This thing gives awesome amounts of vapor. Only problem is there is no flavor. Everything tastes pretty much the same. I've only had it now for a few days but it rocks as a in the car device. The first charge on the battery lasted for 6 hours as well as the cart. The carts are huge and hold about 3-5ml of liquid. Two problems with the carts so far are it can flood a bit easier then smaller ones. The plus is that the atty is so big it doesn't take long to clear it out. The second that the liquid can take a while to wick down to the bottom from the top. I put a straw (Q-tip tube that is) that is half the length of the cart pushed right to the bottom to help wick it down a bit faster.

I'm just waiting for my last two devices to show up now. Ones a Silver Bullet and the other is a VP2. Can't wait for them.

Hope this helps some of the new people. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. I'm not an expert but I know what I like.

Urban Nightmare - Living the Dream

Thanks for the input folks, you were a great help. And I promise this is the last time I'll put this out here! In the end I had to make a separate version that would render well in Open Office, so I'm going to put both versions here; one that's "prettyfied" for Excel and one that works in Open Office but doesn't have any gradients. That just did not work out well at all.
JuiceCalculator8bExcel.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator8b-OOo.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator8bExcel.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator8b-OOo.xls.zip

Hardwired, while you're waiting for the new juice, you could go to the pharmacy, or a place that sells baking supplies like a wally-mart, and try to find some VG to add on your own. Look for stuff that says usg 99% glycerin. (Grab an eyedropper if the bottle doesn't have a drip cap!) Obviously, mixing equal parts with your 24mg juice will give you 12mg strength. You'll lose some flavor, but you'll have something to vape and you can see if the headaches go away. Good luck and welcome to Vapor Talk!

Well when you use them you don't need a cart. You use them in place of a cart. One model works with 901s and 510s. The other model works with pen styles(801s). They have an o-ring on them so they don't get loose like carts do and the o-ring keeps juice from leaking from where the T-tip connects to the atomizer. When you put them on they snap in place because of the o-ring. They don't have a juice chamber like carts do or filling for the juice. They are used just for direct dripping. The hole on the mouth piece goes straight to the atomizer bridge, so it is kind of like a metal straw. You drip in the mouth piece and since there is no cart you get a more direct hit. The width of the hole is the perfect size for the juice to drip directly onto the atomizer bridge, so there is no more looking into the atomizer and aiming for the bridge while direct dripping. The down side to the hole being the perfect size to hit the atomizer bridge is the juice can kinda settle in the hole. After you drip three drops if you look into the hole you can see the juice "floating" there. This is solved by doing a very little and short blow into the hole. If you blow too hard your atomizer will leak. If you forget to blow you will get juiced but you don't get juiced with these as much as you do with carts. It may sound like since it is just a metal straw to the atomizer that the juice would leak out the mouth piece when not in use. This is not so. I have never had juice leak out of the hole. The only way it could leak is if it is upside down for a while. It solves the problem of melting carts and since it is metal it absorbs some of the heat. It absorbing some of the heat it a good thing. It give this nice warm feeling to your lips. The part that you put against your lips is rounded, so you don't feel sharp edges like you do with round carts but instead it feels like you are kissing tiny lips. I only own the brass ones right now. They make every e-cig I own look better. They make my eGo look like a bottle of champagne. B.E.A.utiful! They don't keep that golden shine for long. They start getting that dirty dark look of pennies but still look nicer than carts. The stainless steel ones might not have that problem. I hope this helps.

Anyway, how they help with dripping and driving is there is no more removing and putting on your cart to drip. It makes the process faster and easier. I pull up to a light, put my e-cig between my legs, drip three drops, do a little short blow, and then vape. These things are so awesome that any direct dripper that doesn't have one must enjoy doing things the hard way and be a masochist. Here is the review that sold me: T-Tip brass mouthpieces

Schizo, that has to be one of the best explanations ever. You're my hero for today brother.

I haven't much to add to what Brian and Chris said, except there really is a fairly steep learning curve. And it's very personal. If you find yourself looking for the occasional yucky, as Uma so succinctly put it D:, just do that. Some people want you to avoid analogs at any cost but for me at least, vaping is much more pleasant if I just leave it being pleasant. The couple times I've tried a yucky after I quit, I was quickly reminded how much more satisfying overall vaping is compared to smoking. Smoking really tastes like ... ash. Try to just relax, appreciate what's good about vaping, experiment. Different liquids is a good idea, and finding that one device that trips all your esthetic triggers is another good one. I like 5V personally but sometimes 3.7 is more relaxing. In any event, don't think you "have" to do anything in particular, even vape vs smoke. It's your choice. Vaping is not smoking. The more you vape in a confident and relaxed manner, the more you'll come to like it and find it satisfying. Anymore, I can't imagine my life without it. Have fun and vape on!

Welcome to Vapor Talk Ethan! You found a great place. We love answering questions around here.

I would definately disuade you from purchasing a blu. These units have a very hit-or-miss reputation - mostly miss. You will find that most experienced vapers will recommend a Joye 510 kit for your first experience. It's a quality device with a solid reputation. You'll get consistent results with plenty of battery life as you describe that. You can find these in the Suppliers section on Vapor Talk.

The cartomizers (the 'filter' unit that includes both atomizer and cartridge) like those used in the blu are okay, and for many they are desireable due to the reduced maintenance vs separate attys and carts. But with this convenience you sacrifice a Lot of affordability. You will find that refiling carts, or better, direct dripping onto the atty, is far more economical and provides a more consistent vaping experience.

Take a look at the video section in the forum. You'll find many product reviews and helpful instruction for newbies. Others will come along shortly to give you more and better advice than mine, so keep reading. The folks here all want to help you succeed in your new, healthy life. Good luck and have fun!

Welcome to Vapor Talk Ethan! You found a great place. We love answering questions around here.

I would definately disuade you from purchasing a blu. These units have a very hit-or-miss reputation - mostly miss. You will find that most experienced vapers will recommend a Joye 510 kit for your first experience. It's a quality device with a solid reputation. You'll get consistent results with plenty of battery life as you describe that. You can find these in the Suppliers section on Vapor Talk.

The cartomizers (the 'filter' unit that includes both atomizer and cartridge) like those used in the blu are okay, and for many they are desireable due to the reduced maintenance vs separate attys and carts. But with this convenience you sacrifice a Lot of affordability. You will find that refiling carts, or better, direct dripping onto the atty, is far more economical and provides a more consistent vaping experience.

Take a look at the video section in the forum. You'll find many product reviews and helpful instruction for newbies. Others will come along shortly to give you more and better advice than mine, so keep reading. The folks here all want to help you succeed in your new, healthy life. Good luck and have fun!

This guy rocks! And the comments prove, once again, that we are a very vocal and perhaps influential group. Keep up the good work, folks! Here's the link

Welcome vBear! It looks like gdub and jeff took care a lot of your questions. I just wanted to say almost all of us started out just like you, so no we have nothing to sell you. But we do enjoy helping others have a healthier life. For me i went from a pack a day to 1 cig the day i got my first kit to 0 the next day. YES IT WORKS! After about a week i got some really good advice that really opened my eyes and i will pass this along to you jedi! I look at vaping as a reward as opposed to smoking a analog. and after about 2 weeks it really set in. I never really feel like i quit smoking just traded brands for a better tasting more healthy brand! Also the hardest thing for me to over come about the cravings for a analog was i never had anything to compare it to. So as you know your body will tell you when u want a cig because that is all it has known, so now when i get that feeling i know it isn't a cig it wants its a vape! But its still that same craving for nicotine. i just have never had another option for anything else until now. I don't know if that makes sense but its kinda hard to explain.

I know if you are truly ready to give up analogs you will be able to with this. One thing i had in my mind is i knew this wasn't going to be smoking so i didn't care about looks and feel, it was easier to get my head around making a switch. If you can go with that mind set i think you will be better off with having a battery mod that will last you all day.

Either way BEST OF LUCK! we are here for you anytime you need it!
ROOR

Yes it is a handfull because it is a 4 x AA box. It is, however, much more comfortable to use than the flashlight mod. As for making my own atty, it is still in the works. My brother and I are experimenting with different gage nichrome wire. There are alot of variables. We can make a 3.7v that vapes like a 5v or a 9v that vapes like a 3.7. Of course alot of carefull planning and testing need to be done. Now I Know why the Mazerati is taking so long, lol. I'm still using 510 attys; I have had 7 attys from the bigining and 6 still work fine, including the 2 slb attys. The one that died is because I drilled 2 more holes in it thinking I would get better air flow. It worked for a while before it died. Of course after that I had to disect it. I have been using all 6 attys for 2 1/2 months and really abusing them with high voltage. I am very surprised how tough they are. I'm gonna put my attention back to the juice. I've got some creations "brewing". I'm really happy about my mods and I'll share technical info about it soon. I just want everyone to realize that rapid discharge can result in an explosion and want to make sure what I have is safe. And when I come up with a super-juice I'll let you in on that too. Happy Vaping!

Well, I discovered a bug in this this morning but I think it will work for most applications. Clearly though, there's still some development in order. <shrug> So it goes.

This is a zip file of a spreadsheet, so just uncompress it after download and open in Open Office or excel. Green numbers are inputs; output is in drops and milliliters. Naturally I welcome suggestions for improvement, both function and esthetics. Let me know what you think, okay? Thanks!
JuiceCalculator5.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator5.xls.zip

Thanks for the input folks, you were a great help. And I promise this is the last time I'll put this out here! In the end I had to make a separate version that would render well in Open Office, so I'm going to put both versions here; one that's "prettyfied" for Excel and one that works in Open Office but doesn't have any gradients. That just did not work out well at all.
JuiceCalculator8bExcel.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator8b-OOo.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator8bExcel.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator8b-OOo.xls.zip

I don't think a lot of us realize just how much work Chris puts into this forum.
This is just a short message of thanks and praise to him for all he does to keep this site alive.

I've been having a little trouble getting an order lately and went to Chris to see if he could help me out.
With in mins. he was back to me with the help I needed and also offered to resend my order if I didn't get it soon.
A lot of places would have just passed it off as "oh well" it's out of our hands, take it up with the USPS.
I've seen on many occasions where he has gone out of his way to get answers or help to members and keep things running smoothly on here.
I think we sometimes take it for granted that the forum will keep going when in actuality it takes a lot of time and work from Chris to make it all happen.
We don't pay a dime to be here,(unless you buy from the store) and we are always welcome.
So I'm not trying to blow smoke or kiss any a**, just thought I'd offer my words of gratitude to Chris and the admin group for letting me be able to enjoy all this site has to offer.

So maybe the next time you see him on here you might want to say thanks also.


Thanks Chris

Thanks Snubber! I greatly appreciate the kind words

My brother (gnerd) and I both added comments to the article. Mike's was:

"This study was designed to achieve the specific result the FDA dictated, whether they funded it or not (and I'd bet money they did). Note they used liquid with the lowest possible concentration of nicotine available. As a pack-a-day smoker of full flavor cigarettes, I knew 16mg would be a total waste of time. I started with 32mg. It didn't cut it. I moved to 48mg - nicotine nirvana! Let this guy do a study with useful nicotine concentrations and see how it goes. But the fact is, the FDA doesn't want a safe smoking alternative available for a couple of reasons. 1) They're partially funded by big tobacco and big pharma and 2) They need victims of tobacco-caused cancer to continue beating the anti-addiction drum. The FDA isn't about health, it's about a zealous agenda; an agenda that denies the human nature of addiction. There are multiple studies of nicotine vaporizers that show positive results. Have you ever seen one reported on CNN? Of course not. Can you say, "Government sock puppet?""

Way to go Bro!

I wrote:

"This article is a complete load of hooey! Paul Courson is not a reporter – he’s merely a gossip spewing whatever someone told him. An actual reporter would have checked his facts. For example, the FDA’s power grab was slapped down in Federal court; they are prevented from trying to stop imports of e-cigs. That’s just the most obvious untruth in this screed. The “study” was anything but. A scientific study would have said “Brand X electronic cigarette” yielded “N” blood level nicotine. We all know that the devices sold in malls and storefronts are worthless. Yet this article presented those as e-cigs generally. More of Courson’s failure to investigate. 16mg per ml is a very low concentration of nicotine; this study did not even apply a standard nic level to determine whether it worked. If Courson had done any investigation whatever he would have questioned this “study.” But he didn’t. What a fool. Or should I say, “Tool”? If Courson or cnn had any courage they would provide an email address to contact the “reporter,” like actual investigative news outlets do. I would be happy to help Courson do his research before again spouting a bunch of idiocy to a generally undiscriminating readership. I welcome him to follow up with the email address in my login. What this really is, is Big Pharma and Big Tobacco pushing more of their propaganda against the first truly working cigarette alternative to come along in history. The "Establishment" is scared, and well they might be. If our govt truly cared about its constituents, they'd be promoting e-cigs day and night. Instead, too much Big Money stands to have its failed products go unused. I, like virtually everyone else who has posted here, have had sufficient help from my e-cig to quit smoking. This writer is an idiot and the “study” was a sham. CNN is in the middle of that, not wanting to anger their Big Money advertisers whose products will either kill you or give you nothing for your money."

The UK government has a petition system by which their citizens can make their voices heard, but this does not leave the rest of us completely out of this battle.

PLEASE GO TO THIS LINK and take a few minutes to give your opinion. This is a public consultation on the topic, and no where, at least that I can find, does it say anything about having to be a citizen of the UK. You'll be able to clink on a link to a PDF that contains the proposal, or click on "Response form for MLX 364" to enter your name, email, address, and write (or paste) your opinion. There's just a couple of other boxes to click, and that's that. PLEASE Everybody take the time to do this. Every piece of legislation like this that gets passed in any country will be cited by the FDA as some sort of global precedent.

As an example, here's my message, please feel free to use any or all of it if you just don't have time to write your own. I do encourage everyone to tell their own story, politely, and succinctly.




To whom it may concern,

I am writing as a member of the growing global community of people who use electronic cigarettes. I began using a personal vaporizer on 27 November, 2009 and stopped using tobacco cigarettes four days later. I had smoked at least a pack of cigarettes a day for the previous 18 years. I had quit smoking numerous times by using nicotine gum and lozenges, but had always gone back to tobacco cigarettes. I began using electronic cigarettes, hoping to find a safer, more economical way to use nicotine, without constantly sucking in the terrible tar, chemicals and carcinogens found in tobacco smoke.

I must say that I was amazed by the electronic cigarette. After just a few days, I stopped using tobacco completely. My breathing got deeper, as my “smokers cough” went away. I have no urge to smoke tobacco, at all. My concern is over possible legislation, banning or severely regulating the liquid that electronic cigarette users vaporize in their devices. I know that, in my situation, a ban such as this would send me back into the world of tobacco use. I always enjoyed smoking, and now enjoy “vaping.” I consider it a much safer alternative. My nicotine addiction is not going away, and I don’t want it to. I understand the health risks associated with nicotine, and I am not so foolish as to think that there is absolutely no harm or risk involved with vaporizing a flavored, nicotine liquid, and sucking it into my lungs. I do believe the dangers involved in e-cig use are infinitesimal compared to the use of tobacco cigarettes.

I would just like to state my personal opinion, that any body, enacting legislation that would completely ban the liquid used in electronic cigarettes, knowing full well that tobacco cigarettes are legal to purchase virtually everywhere on the planet, is doing more to endanger the health of the general populace, than protect it.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my opinion.

John Richards

Well, I discovered a bug in this this morning but I think it will work for most applications. Clearly though, there's still some development in order. <shrug> So it goes.

This is a zip file of a spreadsheet, so just uncompress it after download and open in Open Office or excel. Green numbers are inputs; output is in drops and milliliters. Naturally I welcome suggestions for improvement, both function and esthetics. Let me know what you think, okay? Thanks!
JuiceCalculator5.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator5.xls.zip

Well, I discovered a bug in this this morning but I think it will work for most applications. Clearly though, there's still some development in order. <shrug> So it goes.

This is a zip file of a spreadsheet, so just uncompress it after download and open in Open Office or excel. Green numbers are inputs; output is in drops and milliliters. Naturally I welcome suggestions for improvement, both function and esthetics. Let me know what you think, okay? Thanks!
JuiceCalculator5.xls.zip
JuiceCalculator5.xls.zip

I think the one major rule is do whatever works. Goal is to get to no analogues but even one less is good. Now having said that, I think some might argue holding on to the old queues might make it more difficult to quit the old habits (smoking) but it sounds like you were struggling a little anyway. Keep on keeping on!!!

My wife just refers to all vaping items as "that stuff." I asked her to watch out all the little travel bottles of juice I've left laying all over the place, and she told me she always just puts the cap on and sticks them back in the refrigerator! Thinking of gatorade of course. She's a little slow to catch on that vaping is meaningful.

As to naming your PT... Maybe you should start a poll and let us vote on it! FTJoe already summarized all the suggestions. I kinda like "Firefly" myself - totally fitting and one of my favorite short-lived TV series of all time, too!

Amen to that, brother. People around me start getting edgy if I haven't had my full quota for the most recent 15 minutes...

As to whether there is such a thing as a 'vaping addiction' - I'd have to say, "Sure!" We have this wonderfully complex neurological system - the best in the world - that gives us all kinds of side effects. Spirituality, memory, all kinds of stuff. Addiction and mind-bending are right up there in the list. I believe they must all be of some survival benefit or we wouldn't be so successful as a species. People can become addicted to all kinds of things; daydreaming, reading, sex, drugs, whatever. These behaviors are not necessarily destructive; it's the obsession around them that becomes a problem. Physical addiction is an added component. When physically addicted to anything, our minds come to believe that substance is required, like food. When we're feeling a craving for our favorite substance, our mind reacts as if we're starving; and think what starving people will do to each other when they're hungry. This is how addiction can be so destructive.

As mentioned, nicotine addiction is probably one of the hardest to break; harder even than heroin or crack, despite that the withdrawal symptoms are not as severe. I'm not knowledgeable enough to know why that is, but I can say from personal experience it's much easier to break about any addiction than nicotine. Smoking is not simply a nicotine addiction, as we have often said. There are ritual aspects, other physiological issues like the throat hit, the who oral gratification thing. There's a lot more to it than just nicotine, which is why I think so many people can go hours without vaping when they couldn't go more than a few minutes without smoking.

I'm not that way; I'm a nicotine fiend. Patches and gum didn't work for me for at least two reasons; insufficient nicotine and the loss of the throat hit/lung effect. One quit smoking trial I thought I'd substitute a secondary product to get the throat hit part satisfied, and used patches and gum for the nicotine. That lasted one really loooong day before I gave that up as a bad idea...

Vaping is a wonder. I'm not completely comfortable with vaping only, even yet. I'm a serious addict; a dedicated addict. But vaping has done more than any other course to help me stop smoking. Believe me, I've tried everything I could think of including double helpings of intercourse and hot/cold showers to quit smoking. To no avail. Yet here I am with all these non-smoking days under my belt!

I'm still addicted though; addicted to vaping. For me it's the nicotine and the throat hit. For others it might be something else; just being cool, maybe. If you took my PV away I'd freak out on somebody. Well, no; before I got really off my rocker I'd just go buy a carton of Pall Mall and resign myself to an ugly death. But I do believe one can be addicted to vaping. We're capable, lucky us, of becoming addicted to about anything we find pleasant. It's just our lovely nature.

Just my .02. Great thread. Thanks everyone, this is exactly what I find so valuable about Vapor Talk. You all rock.

Hello FTJoe,
I have come to respect your opinion over the past few months, Joe, and I have read many of your posts. I was very leary of saying that the e-cig was harmless too. I wrote of few posts about nicotine back in early November and was very concerned about the nicotine content in PVs. I quit analogs at the end of October, and when I did I visited my doctor. We even did chest x-rays and blood tests, along with a complete physical to establish a base-line. This time next year we will be taking more x-rays to see how I'm progressing. I have high blood pressure and take medication for it every day, so I also am concerned about my heart. Let me try to explain my position and answer your question.

I've scoured the internet for studies done on the effects of nicotine. Most all of them (as you mentioned) are in connection with tobacco products.
But I have seen some studies done by makers of NRTs. These products, which contain nicotine, are sold over the counter and are deemed safe by the FDA. It is these same companies that report that nicotine, by it self, is virtually harmless. Thats why I use that word (virtually).

So what does virtually mean? Well, your right, nicotine is a stimulant, and can do all the things that you said it can do. But so does caffeine. The effects of the nicotine patch, or gum, or spray, even at it's highest strength levels are not something that normal people should worry too much about. But when you combine nicotine with the other 400 chemicals found in tobacco, you run the serious risk of a heart attack, stroke, and cancer. 90% of all cancers are linked to tobacco.

Dr. David Baron of the UCLA Medical Center has been interviewed in the past and addresses these issues much better than I can. Here's the link: Dr. Baron

Dr. Baron mentions that an overdose of nicotine could possibly cause symptoms like the ones you mention in your reply. So lets look at what it takes to OD on nicotine......

First off, it needs to be understood that the half-life of nicotine is extremely short, 40 minutes. What that means is that in under 2 hours, all nicotine in your system is gone! If you were blood tested for nicotine 80-120 minutes after ingesting nicotine, the test would be negative. An overdose of nicotine ranges from 60-80mg, depending on the individual. The average e-liquid contains about 24-36mg/ml. So if you were to drink 2-4mls of e-liquid straight, you would feel like you just did a serious line of cocaine. You would in effect be OVERDOSING on nicotine, and like cocaine or other stimulants, would be in serious risk of hurting yourself very badly. Oh, and the average analog smoke delivers about 1-2mg of nicotine per cigarette. It can therefore be concluded that overdosing on cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, is very hard to do....

So my point is this. I personally feel that the e-cigarette is possibly one of the GREATEST health-related products to be invented in the past 10 years. 400,000 people die from tobacco every year, and there are about 50 million tobacco users in the US alone. Imagine what this product can do to save the lives of countless people around the world. Other NRTs, with a success rate of 5%, don't hold a candle to the success rate of the e-cig. I guess your right that the e-cig was invented in China, but here's how I look at that. The guy that invented this thing was driven by the fact that his father was diagnosed with cancer and wouldn't give up the smokes even after being encouraged to do so. He made this thing with the idea in mind that it might save his Pop. It just so happens that he is Chinese. Chinese companies don't have the legislative restrictions that we have over here, which is too bad. We have the FDA, , which tries to protect us from harm, China doesn't. But it's not the bong that hurts you, bud. It's what you put in the bong. And most of the liquid this forum promotes is made in the USA. I don't know, but I think suppliers like VT have gone to great lengths to help protect it's customers from harm.

VT store's disclaimer is spot on. Chris includes the Surgeon's Generals warning, the fact that nicotine should not be used by pregnant and nursing mothers, that liquid should be kept away from children and pets. These are all important things to consider. Child-proof containers are great! But I would just hate myself if someone who is trying to quit analogs was scared off by the idea that the e-cig was harmful enough that they shouldn't try it. I hope you understand my position, Joe.

I think this all boils down to the individual. Some people are able to quit without too much trouble, but I would venture to say that those people are not the majority. Most people who smoke do so because nicotine is addictive, yes. I think that people also keep doing it because they quite simply ENJOY it, and why shouldn't they enjoy it? Isn't that an effect the nicotine gives. I mean there has to be a reason it is so darn good feeling, right? Either way, ultimately it does boil down to a personal choice, but every individual is different in what they perceive themselves capable of. Maybe anybody is CAPABLE of quitting, but take it from someone who has quit and started back again more times than can even be counted. I always went back, because I LIKED it and it was a stress reliever for me. I could have stayed off them, but I went back because I missed the feeling of relaxation I got. At the end of the day there is nothing better than just being able to relax with cigarette (for a smoker). So that is why e-cigs have been so great so far. The benefits for someone who is a lifetime smoker seem to outweigh the drawbacks several fold. The way I see it, life is full of choices most of which are going to harm you in one way or another and in different degrees no matter what you choose. Maybe the trick is choosing the less harmful things. I'm not sure which habits out there could be considered completely safe. Smokers have been damned if they do and damned if the don't if you consider past alternatives. Then someone invents e-cigs and everything changes. Personally, I'm a happy little guinea pig so let the testing begin.