Government shocks electronic cigarette users!

The U.S. Department of Transportation wants to ban electronic cigarettes - those little fake cigarettes that help some people avoid real cigarettes - from airplane flights.

You might have seen these around - a cigarette that never burns out as it emits a little vapor of different flavors and nicotine concentrations, depending on your tastes, preferences and desperation.

"Airline passengers have rights, and this new rule would enhance passenger comfort and reduce any confusion surrounding the use of electronic cigarettes in flight," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Wednesday.

The DOT is painting the new policy as a clarification of existing federal regulations that ban smoking on airlines. Said the department in its announcement:

"Electronic cigarettes cause potential concern because there is a lack of scientific data and knowledge of the ingredients in electronic cigarettes.
"The Department views its current regulatory ban on smoking of tobacco products to be sufficiently broad to include the use of electronic cigarettes.

"The Department is taking this action to eliminate any confusion over whether the Department's ban includes electronic cigarettes.

"The proposal would apply to all scheduled flights of U.S. and foreign carriers involving transportation to and from the U.S."

From the website of American for Nonsmokers' Rights, we learn this progression of events:

1973 The Civil Aeronautics Board first required separate smoking and non-smoking sections on commercial airline flights.

1982 Muse Air launches operations as a smoke-free airline.

1988 U.S. governnment requires domestic flights of less than two hours to be smoke-free; California bans smoking on intrastate flights.

1990 All U.S. flights of six hours or less (that pretty much covers them all) go smoke-free, per federal law.

1995 Delta Air Lines goes smoke-free on all flights.

1997 American Airlines, Trans World Airlines and United Airlines go smoke-free on all flights.

2000 Federal law bans smoking on all flights to and from the United States.