Thoughts on Tobacco
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Kevin Godbee - Jul 22, 2014
- 6 min read
Fred Brown
As I reflect upon our current condition, meaning the fraternity of pipe tobacco smokers, I am concerned that we are running out of sanctuaries, and that we are in some sort of middle earth of dragons and awful flying things. I fear that we will be overcome.
Recently (July 13, 2014), I watched CNN’s re-run of its news feature by Dr. Sanjay Gupta on Weed. I missed the first episode and decided to tune-in to this re-run.
Now, I did not just ride in on the turnip truck, but I was stunned to learn from the piece that the federal government owns a patent on marijuana. Did you know that? Why didn’t you tell me?
That would be the very same weed the government says is not medicinal and is dangerously addictive.
So with one hand, the feds are hedging their bets on marijuana, preventing serious research into the plant that can help extremely afflicted children and adults. On the other hand, they will arrest you for having the same drug in your possession in some states.
What is going on here?
I see this as a perfect tobacco vortex. I know, tobacco has nothing in common with marijuana or vortexes, but from my perspective, it really does. Both plants are under the thumb of the Food and Drug Administration, as well as other federal agencies.
Why would the feds have not one patent, as Gupta says, but four (see Dr. William Courtney’s "Cannabis International") on marijuana, a plant that is not only addictive but can get you arrested?
Mayhaps it has something to do with money?
Oh, how naive of me! Surely, I jest. Money? Nah.
Nay, nay, pipe smokers. The bottom line here is the bottom line.
The FDA is an enormous bureaucracy that can either speed something through the molasses-like process or drag its feet like a herd of elephants.
Now medical marijuana is gaining support across the nation, while at the same time, stronger and stronger pot plants are being sold. We know, according to the science, that strong pot is addictive and not good for the lungs or brains. See innumerable photos of "your brains on pot."
So, good pot, we need; bad pot, we don’t need. Simple, right?
Not so fast.
This is where I strike off on my own for a bit. One of the overriding thoughts throughout Gupta’s piece was that in many cases, pot was "relaxing." Many of the patients he interviewed said the high-octane pot zipped them up and out and relaxed them from their pain, tremors, jerks, thoughts, etc.
My pipe has a similar effect on me, only I, uh, don’t have to inhale to get that sort of response.
The FDA now is bringing the sledgehammer down on tobacco products. See Pipes and Cigars excellent work on what the FDA hopes to pull off soon. Then, sign the petition in an effort to convey more sanity to the issue.
I also encourage you to support your local tobacconists, the B&Ms as we often refer to them. Without the B&Ms and the online outlets, our days of wine and tobacco will be over.
And if you think these venues will be around forever, you are not familiar enough with how the FDA works. First falls the hammer, then the wrecking cranes to demolish such structures.
My thinking is that the B&Ms are our first line of defense. If the FDA can severely limit products in the B&Ms, it will be much easier to be heavy-handed with online retailers. Another of Congress’s laws signed by a president can get that job done.
Okay, so it might not be as easy as it sounds to ram something through Congress. I am not an optimist on this subject, however. I come from the media side of this thing and see life not through rosy lenses, but from a very dark pair of sunglasses.
Recall Pipe Pundit Mantra No. 1—Remember the golden rule: He who has the gold, writes the rule.
If the FDA can dismantle the B&Ms, or so cripple them with regulations and paperwork, then our lives will be much more difficult when it comes to purchasing pipe tobacco: a limit on production and ever-increasing taxes come to mind first. Again, please see Pipes and Cigars web site for the complete lowdown.
Anything produced or created before 2007 will be grandfathered in, so the FDA says. Anything after 2007 will have to be rigorously tested and verified. This will cost tens-of-thousands and put hundreds out of work.
And, I don’t trust the FDA to keep its word. See PP Mantra No. 1.
I have already written about the worries of two tobacco shop owners who fear more federal regulations will walk deeper into their business operation and wreck what’s left of their shops.
I hope to add some online retailers to this conversation soon.
But until then, I’d like to leave you with some Pipe Pundit personal thoughts On Tobacco:
There is something historically wrong when a government ceases to be of the people, by the people and for the people.
I have given much thought to smoking. I try not to get too far into the subject before I light my pipe.
I am not an optimist. Neither am I a pessimist. I am a pipe smoker, which puts me somewhere in between these two conditions.
The problem with tobacco today is that there is not enough tobacco and too much government.
You know that something really bad has happened in America when it is all right to smoke rocket-fuel marijuana, which has been classified a hallucinogen, and not okay to smoke tobacco.
When I light up my pipe, I feel connected to the ages.
Have you ever seen anyone intoxicated on tobacco? Or arrested for driving under the influence of tobacco?
Is there a difference between pot and tobacco? Yes, despite the fact that both are plants, tobacco helps you to recite poetry and marijuana makes you believe you are poetry.
Say, did you see on the news the other night that a CDC lab lost control of some old smallpox vials, plus other very bad killer bugs? Would that be something if one of the world’s worst viruses got loose and . . . Wait, that was under the protection of a controlled federal lab, right!
If I choose (optimal phrasing here) to smoke a pipe and you do not, does that make me a lesser person? Would you confront Einstein on his choice of smoking a pipe? Would you ask Edwin Hubble why he preferred pipe tobacco on black, starry nights? Would you query C.S. Lewis or J.R.R. Tolkien just why they enjoyed each other’s company and pipes, while writing some of the greatest literature the world has ever known?
I assume these very brainy types had heard of the evils of smoking in their lifetimes!
And now I will leave you with my personal hero, Sir Winston Churchill. He was a journalist before he was a soldier/statesman. Here are some of his words:
A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject.
If newspapers write that we need to give up smoking, I’d rather give up reading.
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Written by Kevin Godbee
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When I first started with the pipe as a quirky and precocious teen, the only tutelage I had at my disposal were scenes from old movies in which a well dressed chap would stick his pipe into a pouch, scoop tobacco into the bowl and press it down unceremoniously with his thumb. Then, with great flourish, he’d strike a match and light the thing with all manner of cinematic excess, puffing up vast clouds of smoke falling just short of completely obscuring his visage. While it may look good on film, it’s a terrible approach to actually enjoying the thing. Somehow, though, this “technique” seems to have survived in the contemporary vernacular, at least to some extent, even with bit-loads of information handily at our fingertips that should dissuade us from the practice. But, at the time, this misguided approach was all I had; it’s no wonder my early days of puffing were fraught with difficult lighting, harsh, bitter smokes and tongue bite, all culminating in a fireproof mass of ye old soggy dottle in the bottom of the bowl. Ultimately, the resulting frustration made me give up the pipe, at least for a while. While the idea of it was still very appealing, the practice of it was not. It wasn’t until a few years later when, still full of curiosity and romantic notions of pipe smoking, I wandered into a real tobacconist’s shop, and learned my “method” was a long way from the techniques that would bring me to any sort of pipe smoking bliss. So, after my poor start, and under the guidance of someone who actually seemed to know how to do it right, I was given the opportunity to approach the process anew, this time with much greater success. It was only because I was both perseverent, and fortunate to have a local shop staffed with knowledgeable people, that I’ve been able to enjoy the experience ever since. At least mostly… How many fledgeling pipe smokers have simply given up on an enjoyable pastime because of similar early mis-starts? Fortunately, today, it’s not hard to find helpful guidance at the press of a key or ten. 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Before we begin, I should tell you: this tobacco review is being written by an A.I. Not the fancy new GPTs or their ilk; no, this is last century’s meat-and-bone, all-organic model. To be fair, a large part of what we call knowledge is merely the accumulated perceptions and impressions gathered from a life wandered through, synthesized into a spongy mass of what-it-is-that-we-think-that-we-know. The algorithm for this prompt is simple enough: pump thousands of bowls of smoldering plant matter into a gaping maw, cross-reference the chemical sensations with all other matter previously ingested or inhaled, sieve it all through the diffuse and fractal twin lens of memory and emotion, and churn out a panoply of adjectives that attempts to convey the sensations to someone who hasn’t experienced it yet. Odds are that a diligently trained monkey could succeed half the time; if this reviewer nears fifty-one percent then that would qualify as an unrivaled success. There must have been some similar musings perambulating through the mind of Per Jensen when he began his mad scientist routine at Sutliff with the Pipe Force project, which brings us to the current mixture under the microscope—Sutliff’s Pipe Force: Episode I. Here again are the unusual ingredients that engendered the series, with the stoved Rustica being the defining voice in this composition. From the tin: The Latakia-forward English mixture offers plenty of smoky flavor from the fire-cured leaf, which is artfully harmonized with floral, earthy Stoved Rustica. A mixture of high-grade Virginias imparts a natural sweetness. Katerini, the sole Oriental component, offers herb and spice notes bringing complexity and nuance to the flavor profile. It’s certainly Latakia-forward, with the stoved Rustica doubling up on the rhythm section like a second bassist. A first whiff from the tin releases the aromas of shoe leather and hide glue in a base of clay soil with a campfire wafted over it like last night’s beach party. Once it’s been accustomed to oxygen again, subtle hints of sweetness poke through from the Virginias: lemon rind, light milk chocolate, the dregs of a peaty Scotch, and muddled cherry. Old regulars like fresh-sawn oak and tilled earth are there, of course, with distinct notes of truffle, creosote, damp peat, and pine bark mulch. As an aside, I’ve been re-potting my camellias and the similarity of aroma to the ericaceous soil mix is notable; the Katerini really brings the unique depth of its vegetal complexion when supported by the Rustica and afforded more voice in the mix. The smoky Cyprian Latakia, in turn, is backed by equal earthiness from the Rustica, which overall exhibits a profile similar to dark-fired Kentucky; it leans more toward the woody and vegetal end of that spectrum, echoing and amplifying those traits of the other constituents. The tobacco is presented pressed and cut into a couple of thick, hearty flakes in the tin, lightly moist and easily crumbled to prepare—I prefer mine with a bit of drying time. The out-of-this-world tin art for this episode in the series is Major O’Meara smoking a cavalier. In the absence of confirmation, I’m going to hazard a guess he’s of the Ithklur species. The first taste from the light is sweet, with hints of that milk chocolate dancing around the edges. The Virginia leads the smoke through the top of the bowl, and orchestrates it well. Thoroughly smoky with lemony, grassy highlights from the Virginia spectrum, it soon segues into the mid-bowl profile: heartier, smokier, with the flavor leaning to the mildly acrid and tangy tinge that is the campfire-esque signature of English blends. Caution advised, it can turn overly bitter if pushed—this is where one’s sipping technique is required to maintain the fullness of flavor through to the heel. I did tend toward a lot of relights, though it may have as much to do with technique as with the blend. Pacing is also important as the nicotine starts to manifest; though the Rustica’s contribution has been tempered well by the stoving, it can certainly upend an empty stomach. At the end of every bowl, the mouthfeel somehow gets better. The balance of sugars in the tobaccos would seem to be spot-on in this regard. I started out my tasting in cobs, then cut short an unpleasant bowl in a meer, and finally landed on my best instrument with the lovely Dunhill 4427 pictured, a quaint group 4 shell briar with a gentle curve and Cumberland stem supporting a perfectly executed acorn bowl. It surprised me here, as I’ve learned through the years that I generally have the best experience with English blends in large, wide bowls. With this blend it seems that to get the best out of the Katerini’s somewhat diaphanous influence the smaller bowl fared much better. Room note is very English, so the company you keep will either love it or hate it, and it doesn’t linger too much. I find it paired best with a strong coffee; Sumatran beans complement the flavors well, as do Ethiopian if a lighter brew is preferred. Overall impressions of the blend are that it’s a curiously interesting take on the English genre, almost a reductive reconstruction of the theme using the unique components. This blend, if nothing else, expanded my vocabulary of sense perceptions with the uniquely treated leaf. While the average human can distinguish approximately one trillion (1,000,000,000,000!) different aromas, multiplied by seven basic tastes, and wholly dependent on variables from body chemistry to atmospheric conditions, our overworked and underpaid simian brains can’t effectively catalog them all. Our pet adding machines are exceedingly good at this, however, and someday soon they’ll be the ultimate and unequivocal authority on what something tastes, smells, looks, or even feels like. Until that time, friends, revel in the moments that can be stolen to savor over a bowl of Pipe Force: Episode I.
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Great essay. I’ve often wondered myself when a pot dealer will suffer from a $23 billion dollar judgement…….what????? They’re not a big deep pocket enterprise??? Never mind.
The government wants to tax tobacco and pot as cash cows but doesn’t want you using………right?!
As with so many issues, the lost art is in striking a balance. Laying siege to tobacco
companies with cigarette sales as a pure nicotine delivery system infused into the
culture via vast hand-outs of cigarettes during WWII, free samples on campus, and
mainly redesign of the product — seems an understandable push-back to what was
pure greed. Banishing pipe smoking from the cultural scene seems a wrong-headed
overreaching. Balance, balance, balance. People don’t like it; they want yes-no,
good-bad, right-wrong answers, and that is not the way the world, the human mind,
or the universe works. Balance is almost everything.
Great column. Unfortunately this wheel was set in motion in early Western philosophy (I cannot for the life of me remember which old guy it was) when it was said that the taxation of vices were a good thing to do (ok, was it Plato … damnit) because it would allow, yet discourage those that choose it.
I get that, but there has to be a balance struck. Which won’t happen because, well, not enough people care if smokers, drinkers, gamblers, etc. are taxed for THEIR activities. Who cares? Same goes for the ever enlarging penalties, fines and sentences for people who commit crimes. It is becoming disproportionate because there aren’t enough voices that care to say “These people are doing more now than what is just. “Fine the hell out of them!” People love to demonize others they do not know. Read any comment board just about anywhere for proof.
As a PM member who also happens to live in Colorado, I have no beef with tobacco (obviously) or marijuana. I must also state that I am a firm believer in personal choice and individual freedom, that is what our country was founded on. Not group freedom, but individual freedom (see the right to peaceably assemble, an action that requires individuals to first come together).
I have a libertarian streak in me because I just don’t understand why people can’t let others do what they want as long as they aren’t hurting/abusing anyone. You want to smoke a cigarette/pipe/cigar? Knock yourself out. You want to get drunk/high? Go for it. You want to marry another guy/girl? Have at it. Gamble away your paycheck? Sure. Get a hooker? Be careful, bud.
… so long as people take responsibility for their actions, and understand the consequences of such. Smoking isn’t good for your health in any form. Understood. Getting drunk or high could result in some issues, better check your behavior or face the consequences. Gay people get divorced all the same as heterosexuals and just because two dudes kissing may be gross, that’s their love, let it go. If you gamble away your money, tough shit.
There are too many safety nets to catch people who screw up, and their are too many safety nets erected to prevent people from choosing for themselves or punishing you harshly for it.
Great article! That is why I don’t trust the govern and churches, they are all liars. By the way, remember that Hitler and Napoleon hated tobacco and we all know whats happened!
Good column.
I smoke my wherever and whenever I want but I’m also conscious of others. I’ve gotten very few if any complaints. Most have been compliments with the exception of one that I recall. And this one was ridiculous and comical as it was an outdoor garden shop and my pipe wasn’t even burning! This wimpy guy acted like an idiot by waving his handkerchief and covering his nose.
I have a home office and smoking room that I use as my wife is a non-smoker who is gracious enough to allow my love of pipes and tobaccos in the home with some restrictions.
I’m a conservative and never watch the Main Stream Media and that includes CNN.
Realize that living in a democracy means consenting to a tyranny of the majority. If vegans held a majority position, none of us would be eating meat. It may astonish some to realize just how fragile our freedoms are. Of course, we have abandoned the old notion of freedom under government in exchange for a government of rights and entitlements; and the folks who assert the right to not smell tobacco smoke have won the day.
Yikes, what a rambling and disjointed piece this was. Being a columnist on the site (and a journalist to boot) I expected more than “Hey, dogs have legs, and so do caterpillars, so they’re the same”-type of logic. I’m not even sure what the argument is. Don’t charge me more for tobacco? Space nazis are landing to steal our pipes? Disappointing.