New Regulations on A New Kind of Cigarette

The Article For E-Cigarettes, the Regulatory Battle Now Begin by Sabrina Tavernise and Berry Meier published in the New York times on April 24, 2014, discusses the new F.D.A. focus on electronic cigarettes. E-cigarettes are a fast-growing industry which thus far has had little regulation.

The new F.D.A. proposed rules would allow the government more authority over e-cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco and other products. The big focus, electronic cigarettes is somewhat mysterious. Not much is understood about these electronic gadgets concerning health risks as they haven’t been around long enough.  They are proposed as a ‘healthier alternative to smoking’ because instead of actual smoke the battery at the end of the tube heats the liquid nicotine, which creates vapor that gets inhaled into the lungs. The excess cigarette vapor is emitted from the tail of the e-cigarette which helps uphold the illusion of real smoke.

While it is a step in the right direction, “the road map put off until later almost all of the trickiest issues, like whether flavors should be banned or television advertising limited.” Companies fight for the right to advertise without many restrictions and continually produce flavors used to lure children as well as adults. “The biggest issues may not be confronted for years. Companies will have two years after the new regulations go into effect to file applications to the F.D.A. for approval of their products. The regulation itself could take a year or two to go into effect, as the agency will have to sort through tens of thousands of public comments, including from industry. Then there is the chance that companies will sue, which would add even more time to the process.”

At the moment however, the biggest concern is just to put some regulation on a rapidly evolving market with no regulation at all. For the first time there will be a science-based agency watching over the function playing ‘gate keeper’. “It’s a step forward — but it’s not a giant step,” said Gary A. Giovino, a professor of health behavior at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York.

It is without a doubt a step in the right direction, however one can wonder whether the changes will come fast enough. The regulation being put into effect will take years to be put in place, years that could risk more smoking addictions in adults as well as our next generation. The regulations also won’t be addressing flavored cigarettes and other ploys to draw in a younger audience any time soon. It’s like getting a foot in the door, but the door won’t budge anymore. We’re getting closer, but not close enough yet.

Divergent *Small, but some spoilers

I recently finished Divergent, by Veronica Roth. Divergent is the story of sixteen year old Beatrice Prior, who lives in a world where everyone fits into one of the five factions. Candor, for those who believe in truth and honesty, Abnegation, for those who are selfless, Amity, for those who believe in peace and love and happiness, Erudite, for those who wish to peruse knowledge, and lastly Dauntless, for those who are reckless and brave. Beatrice, who comes from Abnegation takes the test after she’s turned sixteen that will decide what her permanent faction will be. However, the test comes back inconclusive, instead of coming back with one specific faction that she would belong to, she comes back with three. Erudite, Dauntless, and Abnegation.  Beatrice ultimately has to decide whether to pick between Abnegation, where her family and friends lie, but she does not feel she truly belongs. Or Dauntless, a faction she knows little of.

        I think the author makes Tris start out in Abnegation as a stiff because it gives her a more compassionate personality. While she does not feel she is completely selfless, Tris has many qualities that make her selfless subconsciously. For example in the simulation that determined her Divergence she throws herself in front of a viscous attack dog to protect a little girl. When her friend Al is bullied during training to become Dauntless there is a scene where he will have knives thrown at him because he continues to miss the target. Tris knows this is wrong and immediately steps in his place. Along from the fact that Roth wanted Tris to be in Abnegation so that she could have a divergent result, I think she placed her in Abnegation at the start to give her heroine a more versatile personality.

        It can also be said of Roth that she placed Tris in Dauntless to give her the brave personality trait. Through transforming herself into a Dauntless Tris learns the importance of bravery. She doesn’t realize it because it is so natural to her, but she commits acts of bravery all the time. After almost being killed during Dauntless initiation, she is scared of her attackers, but also seeks vengeance. She does not spend most of the book cowering, instead she is placed immediately in the role of the underdog as a “stiff” and therefore the least likely to be brave. She proves this wrong though in the paintball scene, where she climbs up the Ferris wheel to get a better view of the other team, placing her life in danger with each foot higher. Veronica Roth places Tris in Dauntless so that Tris can learn the importance of bravery.

        The traits that Tris inherits from being Divergent in both Dauntless and Abnegation help her to become a better heroine. Tris learns that being selfless and being brave are often intertwined. This is often true, not just in the Divergent trilogy. In many books the main characters heroism is influenced by their selflessness and their bravery often battling each other, and ultimately working together. Veronica Roth placed Tris in Abnegation and Dauntless so that Tris could learn two important traits that would help her later in the series.