Author: pbusardo

Dimi & Phil Live! Special Guest – Mike Vapes

What’s this show all about? Dimitris and I will be talking about numerous topics both in vape and out. We’re going to bring in guests for interviews and chats. We’re going to interact with you in multi-platform chats and also take your calls. We’re going to give stuff away. We’re going to have some fun.

We think it’s important in these challenging times to have a little fun and escape the news for a while. Hopefully this new show will give you the opportunity to do just that.

The show will be broadcast across multiple platforms including Facebook, YouTube, Periscope, and for the podcast version… Spreaker, iTunes, SoundCloud and Google Podcasts!

I’ll be publishing the YouTube video and the Spreaker podcast here in the replay posts.

THE VIDEO:

THE PODCAST:
Listen to “LIVE with Phil & Dimi Guest: Mike Vapes” on Spreaker.

A PBusardo Video – The Stocking/UVA Raffle – Final Push!

A stand-alone video to talk about how the stocking contents are being used for the UVA Rally Raffle.

RAFFLE LINK

THE VIDEO:

THE INFO:

I said I was going to do something special with the stocking contest contents if the winner did not claim the prize.  Well, the winner did not claim the prize, so I’m going to do something special with the stocking contest contents!  😊

I’m doing an online raffle to benefit the UVA “Save The Vape” rally coming up in Washington DC.

For obvious reasons, the rally is being postponed to a later date which will be announced soon. The raffle, however is still on and will benefit the UVA for a future rally.

I’m running this exactly how Dimitris ran his waffle and I appreciate him helping me out with this one.

To enter the raffle, Paypal $5 for every entry to pbusardo@tasteyourjuice.com or you can also click HERE.
You can enter as many times as you like.  Every $5 entry gives you a chance to win all the stocking contents.
100% of all entries collected will go to the UVA.

I will pay shipping.  Raffle is open worldwide.

All entries will be uploaded HERE for you to see.

All entries must be received by Monday March 30^th @ 11:59PM EST.
Winner will be announced live on Facebook on Tuesday March 31^st.   Time to be announced.

Thank you to all supplying companies, manufacturers, and vendors!
I estimate the value of the contents to be around $1500!!

Complete list of stocking contents:

• The Innokin Proton Mini Kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin GoMax Tube courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Z-BiiP kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Zlide tank courtesy of Innokin!
•  The Innokin/Platform Adept/Zlide kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin full size Proton courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin MVP5/Ajax kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Zlide Tube courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin limited edition holiday Zlide Tube courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin T18II courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Coolfire Mini/Zenith Kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin iSubB tank courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Zenith tank courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin DV kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin i.O courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin Go Max tank (x2) courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin EQs kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Ares I kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Zenith Pro tank courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin Jem Pen courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin Podin courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin Gala courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin/Platform Kroma/Zenith kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Joyetech eGo AIO Eco courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Joyetech eGo AIO courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Joyetech Exceed courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Joyetech Exceed NC courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Joyetech Espion courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Wismec Reuleaux Tinker courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Five Pawns T-Shirt + the complete Five Pawns e-liquid line in a nic strength of your choice courtesy of Five Pawns!  (restrictions may apply)
• The Lunar Rover T-Shirt + the complete Lunar Rover e-liquid line in a nic strength of your choice courtesy of Lunar Rover! (restrictions may apply)
• The complete Unsalted e-liquid line in a nic strength of your choice courtesy of Dash Vapes! (restrictions may apply)
• The UD multi-tool courtesy of UD!
• The Enovap courtesy of Enovap!
• The iPV V3 Mini courtesy of Pioneer4U!
• The Dovpo Rogue 100 limited edition with TasteYourJuice logo courtesy of Dovpo!
• The Voopoo original Drag courtesy of VooPoo!
• The Usonicig Zip courtesy of Usonisig!
• The Teslacigs Nano 120W Steampunk courtesy of Teslacigs!
• The Vapefly Galaxies MTL RTA courtesy of MyVPro!
• The Hohm Slice Limited Edition courtesy of Hohmtech!
• The Asmodus Pyke courtesy of Asmodus!
• The Asmodus Anani RTA/MTL courtesy of Asmodus!
• The HCigar VT250 courtesy of HCigar!
• The Wismec Sinuous Solo courtesy of Joyetech!
• The Vapefly BSKR V1.5 Mini MTL/RTA courtesy of MyVPro!
• The Hell’s Gate Touch 200W courtesy of YepEcig!
• The VGod Pro 200 Kit courtesy of VGod!
• The Smok Treebox courtesy of Smok!
• The Innokin Kroma R (replaceable 18650)/Zlide Kit courtesy of Innokin!
• The Innokin GOs tube courtesy of Innokin!

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Here’s the latest from Brent Stafford at Regulator Watch:

NOTE – Although this is from Canada’s perspective, the same could easily be said about the United States.

DR. JOHN OYSTON MB, FRCA
Anesthesiologist, Assistant Professor, University of Toronto

Length: 2:15
Released: March 23, 2020
Produced by: Brent Stafford

Come hang with us and get your mind off things for a while as we try to help with COVID boredom.

There will be no link as we do with the Smoker’s Show, so please visit one of the following at 9PM EST:

YouTube.com/pbusardo
Facebook.com/VapinGreek
Periscope Twitter.com/VapinGreek

I’ll also share Dimitri’s Facebook feed on my Facebook, but you will not be able to interact with chat there.

To see the complete email including graphics and formatting, please sign up for the VTA newsletter at the bottom of THIS page.

FROM THE TRENCHES
March 22, 2020
This week has been another busy week for VTA. As our federal and state governments respond aggressively to the COVID-19 pandemic, VTA remains fully engaged in supporting and advocating for the rights of our community. We ask that you do your part to ensure that we slow the further spread of the virus. We are all in this together.

PLEASE EXERCISE ALL COVID-19 PRECAUTIONS
As our federal and state governments are responding aggressively to the COVID-19 pandemic, every one of us must ACT NOW to exercise all precautions to ensure that we slow the further spread of the virus. Please encourage everyone you know – old and young – to ACT NOW by heeding the recommendations of our federal and state leaders. We are in a critical period where the actions of everyone can and will have an impact on the spread of the virus. The only question is whether our actions will mitigate or accelerate the spread of the virus. Do your part! Additional details on how to protect yourself and your families, and what to do if you are sick, can be found on the CDC’s coronavirus page.

CORONAVIRUS AID, RELIEF & ECONOMIC SECURITY ACT
Senators continued work Saturday and Sunday to finalize a bipartisan agreement Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (“CARES” Act) and they are very close to a final agreement. As the talks finished up last night, there seemed to be a growing consensus on the small business section, health care section, direct to consumer assistance and the distressed industry section. Issues still remained on additional unemployment insurance and the tax section. This morning (Sunday) there will be a meeting in Leader McConnell’s office of the Big 4 leaders (Majority Leader McConnell, Minority Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader McCarthy) with Secretary Steve Mnuchin. The Senate will go into session at 2:00 pm on Sunday and at 3:00 pm will have a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to the bill. After that, Leader McConnell is planning/pushing for the Senate to vote on the 3.0 relief package on Monday. When the text of the bill becomes available, our team will provide specific insights into what it means for you and your business.

STATE OF THE STATES
This week has been another busy week for VTA and its member associations in
statehouses. As state governments respond aggressively to the COVID-19 pandemic, most legislatures have cancelled or gone into recess, the few still in session are operating in a limited capacity. We have shifted a majority of our face-to-face interactions with legislators to virtual interactions and ask that you do the same.

FLORIDA FIGHTS FOR FLAVOR BAN VETO
Last week the Florida legislature passed SB 810, legislation that bans the sale of flavored vaping products other than tobacco and menthol. The bill is on its way to the governor’s desk for him to either sign it into law or veto it.

VTA, the Florida Smoke Free Association and our team in Tallahassee are working to convince Governor DeSantis to VETO this harmful legislation. To help make our case to the Governor, we released an economic impact report on a Florida Flavor Ban, According to the report from John Dunham & Associates, the flavor ban in SB 810 would blow a $605.6 million hole in the Sunshine State’s economy at just the worst time. What else is at stake for Floridians?

– 4,500 jobs – GONE
– $186.6 million in wages lost
– $48.4 million in state tax revenue lost

If signed into law, the proposed ban would decimate the small businesses that provide vapor products to adults desperately trying to quit smoking. Read the full Dunham & Associates report here.

Americans for Tax Reform submitted a letter to the Governor’s office urging him to veto SB 810. The letter from Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform, laid out the many reasons why this legislation is harmful and not the right policy for Florida.

We are continuing our efforts to reach the Governor and advocate on behalf of our members who would be severely impacted by this legislation, but we NEED YOU and your customers to ask Governor DeSantis NOW to VETO Senate Bill 810.

Please Contact Governor DeSantis at (850) 717-9337 or via Twitter @GovRonDeSantis and have your family, friends, and customers in Florida do the same.
MARYLAND DEFEATS FLAVOR BAN BUT TAX BILL PASSES
In Maryland, the HB 3 Flavor Ban came up again this week in Committee. However, after some discussion, it did not advance. VTA and Maryland Vapor Alliance were able to successfully stop this bill from advancing to the House floor! This is another big development in a state that initiated numerous anti-vaping bills this session.

We also fought against a host of tax proposals during the legislative session and the main bill, HB 732. With less than three hours to go during the Maryland General Assembly, the House concurred with the Senate amendments to HB 732 and then voted in favor of the bill by a vote of 88-47. Only 85 votes are needed to sustain a veto. As a result, with a few administrative actions remaining, this bill will go to the Governor’s desk. HB 732 does the following:

– Raises the current sales and use tax on “electronic smoking devices,”
which includes “vaping liquids,” from 6% to 12% at the final point of sale; and
– Raises the current sales and use tax on “vaping liquids” that are sold in
containers of 5 ML or less from 6% to 60% at the final point of sale.

It appears that the taxes will commence on July 1, 2020, but there is some ambiguity which we are attempting to sort out. Importantly, HB 732 includes preemption barring any new local taxes, except those in effect as of January 1, 2020. Though very unusual for Maryland, there is discussion of a Special Session possibly in May and the session is now in recess due to the coronavirus. We are actively engaged and will continue to push for meaningful legislation.

KENTUCKY BATTLE OVER TAXES CONTINUES

Of all states, Kentucky has posed serious problems regarding taxes this session. We are aggressively fighting excessive tax legislation in HB 32. The legislation would impose a floor tax rate of 25% on vapor products which, we know, will cause small businesses to close. Our team has been in negotiations with key senators regarding the likely unforeseen impact of such a tax. The legislation is currently pending in the Kentucky Senate Appropriations & Revenue Committee and we are working to generate support for an alternative approach.

IN THE NEWS
THE CDC’S SHIFT FROM VAPING TO COVID-19 HIGHLIGHTS THE CRUCIAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN REAL AND METAPHORICAL EPIDEMICS
By conflating illnesses related to the use of black market THC products with vaping, the CDC impeded the harm-reducing shift from conventional cigarettes to nicotine delivery systems that are far less dangerous. Reason covered the confusion this created and the damage it had on the CDC’s credibility on the eve of the COVID-19 crisis. Click here to read the full piece.

During this time of uncertainty, we ask that you be safe, be smart and stick with us. As we have always said, we are all in this together. Connect with us and thank you for all you do to protect vapor!

To see the complete email including graphics and formatting, please sign up for the VTA newsletter at the bottom of THIS page.

March 19, 2020
ACT NOW! This is often a rallying cry for members in our industry and the larger vaper community to act to defend vaping in the statehouses or in the nation’s capital. As our federal and state governments are responding aggressively to the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone of us must ACT NOW to exercise all precautions to ensure that we slow the further spread of the virus. Please encourage everyone you know – old and young – to ACT NOW by heeding the recommendations of our federal and state leaders. We are in a critical period where the actions of everyone can and will have an impact on the spread of the virus. The only question is whether our actions will mitigate or accelerate the spread of the virus. Do your part! Additional details on how to protect yourself and your families, and what to do if you are sick, can be found on the CDC’s coronavirus page.

VTA personnel are working remotely. As state legislatures are shutting down and moving to “must pass” only bills, we anticipate the need for travel to be mitigated substantially if not completely. To that end, we are remaining fully engaged and are offering to meet with public officials via our video conferencing platform or teleconferencing. While there are a number of free video conferencing platforms, we want you to remain engaged and connected, so if any of our member groups need to use our video webinar capabilities to stay connected with your membership, please send your request to info@vaportechnology.org.

H.R. 6201 – the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. Yesterday, the Senate passed (90-8-2) and President Trump signed H.R. 6201 – the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, a supplemental appropriations package first passed by the House (360-4-1-27), in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The bill provides paid sick leave and free coronavirus testing, expands food assistance and unemployment benefits, and requires employers to provide additional protections for health care workers. The bill also provides FY2020 supplemental appropriations for critical food assistance programs and nutrition programs. Read more details on the new law here.

Economic Relief Package. Yesterday, the Trump Administration also proposed another plan, billed at about $1 trillion, to further stem the tide of an economic downtown. The Treasury Department put out this summary of the Administration’s “Stage 3 Proposal” that would provide direct payments to individuals ($500 billion), loans to small businesses to avoid mass layoffs ($300 billion), and assistance to large businesses such as airlines ($50 billion) and other severely distressed sectors ($150 billion). The Administration and Congress are already negotiating on the contours of this relief package.

Working with our team in D.C. we will keep you apprised of developments on this package. Also, if and when it is passed, we will provide you information on how small businesses can avail themselves of the relief provided.

Be safe. Be smart. As we have always said, we are all in this together.

Tony Abboud
Executive Director

The Smoker’s Show S02E13 – Coronavirus & Vaping

On tonight’s show we discuss the coronavirus and how it’s affecting vaping.
We dispel some myths, discuss keeping your equipment clean, and the importance of backups.
We also try to have some fun along the way, which is really important right now.

As always we take your calls and answer your questions.

The Smoker’s Show is a vape show not for vapers, but for smokers.

A show to get information about vaping, to debunk vaping myths, to discuss vaping terminology & technology, and to look, review, & provide starter kits for the transitioning smoker.

We urge all vapers to invite those they know who still smoke to watch the show!

#SMOKERSWANTED
#VAPINGSAVESLIVES
#WEVAPEWEVOTE

Thank you all for your support and let’s convert more smokers together!

THANK YOU TO AND PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!!

COUPON CODES FOR YOU…

• For 15% off your Lunar Rover order use coupon code: SMOKERSHOW
• For 15% off your Five Pawns order use coupon code: SMOKEFREE15

THE VIDEO:

*NOTE: Any use of these videos in part or in their entirety without Phil Busardo’s and Dimitris Agrafiotis’s expressed written consent is strictly prohibited.

See everything Smoker’s Show Related HERE!

UnSalted E-Liquid was specifically designed for Pod Based Systems and Mouth To Lung (MTL) Vaping as an alternative to high nic salt liquids.

Watermelon Peach – A perfectly balanced blend of fresh watermelon with airy peach highlights.
Cool Citrus – Refreshingly bold citrus notes balanced with the perfect amount of menthol.
Blueberry Morning – Creamy, delicious blueberry with a hint of pastry

You can now get Unsalted for your shop or for online retail from Medusa Distribution!

#Make12mgGreatAgain
#SmokersWanted

Click either banner below for ordering information.

Thank you to Medusa and for your support!

Click the banner below to be taken directly to the show at 9PM EST.

Remember, we run the show live on Facebook and YouTube.  The YouTube stream chat and the call-in line is how you can interact with us.

See you tonight!

Create your own sign and photograph yourself with it.

Send your photo to: wevapewevote2020@gmail.com

Also…