Supply-Side Smokers

The Wall Street Journal ^ | 7/31/02

[Max McGarrity]

don't think I could handle the "home-rolled", though I applaud the concept!)!!

By all means, check out ALL the online sites, including the overseas ones, but you might want to rethink the MYO (as opposed to the old RYO) possibility--we all know what will happen when the pols find out just how much they're losing to the web vendors.

Americans--particularly American smokers--are an enterprising bunch. When it became obvious that the tobacco industry was under the gun, a few people quietly went about developing alternative sources and products in anticipation of a major market change.

Three elements make MYO (Make Your Own) a whole new ballgame. The machines (thanks, SheLion, for the visual), the tubes, and the tobacco. This isn't the old cowboy with a small rectangle of paper and a pouch of tobaccy...tapping just the right amount into the paper, deftly rolling it up and licking the edge.

The machines inject loose tobacco into the tube by means of a metal "spoon." It does take a little practice to get the right amount of tobacco, and a little trial and error to get the right type, but it's well worth it. The new tabletop machines make a very satisfactory cigarette. Few people would ever be able to tell the difference.

Premade tubes that are simply a cigarette without tobacco now exist in many styles and types--from king size cork-top filter to white tops to filterless, light and regular.

The secret, imo, is in the tobacco, but here, too, the entrepreneurs have stepped up to the plate. I wouldn't buy one of the "store-bought" tobaccos unless I knew it wasn't packaged by one of the tobacco companies, but there are plenty of others entering the market.

You can get every blend of tobacco imaginable. Flavored or no additives, mild or strong, menthol or not, long shag or short cut--some companies even offer samplers, with small packages of several different blends so you can find one that works for you.

Bottom line is keep your options open whenever possible, and keep your hard earned money out of the hands of the corrupt anti-smoker industry at all costs.