Letters to the editor for Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Reid has had more than enough time to hurt us

Sen. Harry Reid turns 75 this year and appears well past his prime and disconnected from reality. Reid promised Nevada Democrats that he would recruit “a respectable Democrat and someone people will know” to run for governor. When filings closed on March 14, no serious Democrat filed for governor or for Congress from Northern Nevada. Reid failed and the vaunted “Reid Machine” struck out.

In Washington, Reid embarrassed himself with the disclosure that he paid his granddaughter, a 23-year-old Berkeley, Calif., jewelry designer, $31,268 in campaign funds to create “holiday gifts” for his donors. Insisting he had done nothing wrong, a testy Reid quickly wrote a personal check to reimburse the campaign.

Concerning Obamacare, the gaffe-prone Reid astonishingly claimed that the website fiasco sign-up problems were the result of “people not educated on how to use the Internet”. He caused a fire storm with his baseless charge that “all” of the “horror stories” being told about Obamacare were “lies,” in spite of the fact that policy cancellations, premium increases and people unable to access long-used doctors have been well-documented across the media spectrum — from Fox News to the New York Times.

Thirty years in the Senate is enough for Reid.

Jim Hartman

Genoa

Column about e-cigarettes mangles facts about health

Cortney Bloomer’s March 26 Get Healthy article, “E-cigarettes are billed as safe but still may pose danger,” in effect urges smokers who can’t quit to continue lighting up. Bloomer states, “There isn’t enough proof that using e-cigarettes is healthier.” Oh, really? I suggest you get the facts straight!

The lung diseases, cancers, heart attack and strokes associated with smoking are caused by the tar, carbon monoxide, partially burned particles of tobacco and paper and thousands of chemicals created by the process of combustion. Not the nicotine. E-cigarettes are not burned; therefore, they do not produce smoke.

As the co-owner of an e-cigarette business, I resent the allegations that our only motive is to make money. Even though I do not smoke, I was very concerned about the effects of smoking on my son and his wife. After trying nearly every smoking cessation product and method, they finally quit thanks to switching to e-cigarettes. After conducting research for over a year, our family finally opened Nevada Vapor Supply here in Carson City to help others to a healthier way.

E-cigarettes are aimed at adult smokers, and we do not sell our products to anyone under age 18. We support Nevada Following, the lead of more than half of United States that have enacted laws prohibiting sales of vapor products to those below the legal age, and we invite you to stop by our shop and learn for yourself. For more facts and information on e-cigarettes, see the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association’s website at Casaa.org.

Dennis Lindsay

Carson City