E-cigarettes discourage young people taking up smoking

The study said that there was nothing to suggest in the research that youngsters see vaping as a 

stepping stone to smoking. 

E-cigarettesll are playing a key role in reducing the likelihood of young people 

smoking, in many cases acting as a 'roadblock' to combustible tobacco, a new study has 

claimed. 

In detailed qualitative interviews with young people aged 16 to 25 in the majority of 

participants viewed e-cigarettes as having reduced - not increased - the possibility of both 

themselves and other people smoking. 

"There was very little indication amongst the young people interviewed that e-cigarettes were 

resulting in an increased likelihood of young people smoking," said Neil McKeganey from 

Centre for Substance Use Research16 in Scotland, who led the research. 

"In fact the majority we interviewed, including those who were vaping, perceived smoking in 

very negative terms and saw vaping as being entirely different to smoking,- McKeganey said. 

Impoftantly, the overwhelming majority of participants - who collectively represented current 

and former smokers, non-smokers, and e-cigarette users - viewed tobacco as 'extremely 

harmful' and believed e-cigarettes offered smokers an alternative. 

Despite the acute awareness of the harms of tobacco however, it was evident that some young 

people remain confused about e-cigarettes and whether or not they are similarly harmful. 

Some mentioned they had seen media coverage reporting that e-cigarettes "are just as bad" as 

smoking and, as a result, they were uncertain and reluctant about using the devices. 

"It's more concerning, particularly for the young people who currently smoke, that inaccurate 

perceptions of e-cigarettes could result in the persistent use of combustible tobacco irrespective 

of the fact that Public Health England has concluded vaping is 95 per cent less harmful than 

conventional cigarettes," said McKeganey. 

"What was apparent is that this persistent view, expressed by some young people, that vaping 

was just as harmful as smoking, was resulting in some young people continuing to smoke when 

they might otherwise have quit," he said. 

There was nothing to suggest in the research that youngsters see vaping as a stepping stone to 

smoking - quite the opposite, he added. 




Response: This
article talks about a recent study on the effectiveness of e-smoking on
prevention of young people who would otherwise smoke. The study showed that
young people who use e-cigarettes are more opposed to regular smoking and think
that it is harmful. If this study is correct, it could be really helpful in
preventing smoking throughout the world. This may seem like a current issue
that isnt necessarily as big as many others but so many people are affected by
smoking and the harmful diseases it causes so it would be a great development
if e-cigarettes could be an alternative to that. This article is pretty biased
against smoking and towards the British health system but the idea seems
interesting. I do think that this is an issue that may be able to be fixed for
the most part with this new study and development.
citation: "E-cigarettes Discourage Young People Taking up Smoking - The Economic Times." The Economic Times. The Economic Times, 20 June 2016. Web. 20 June 2016. <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/e-cigarettes-discourage-young-people-taking-up-smoking/articleshow/52827073.cms>.

The tragic but brutal truth, they are not real refugees

The enormous one-way flow of migrants to the West is changing Europe irretrievably and forever.

Twelve thousand migrants have been rescued from people-smugglers’ boats off the coast of Libya and heading for Italy in the past two weeks alone. And more – maybe a million more – who come from the Middle East, Africa and South Asia will soon be on their way there, too.

For more than 15 years now, I have reported on the steady flow of migrants heading for Europe. In countries across the continent, I have spoken to those who have travelled thousands of miles, and never ceased to be amazed by their resilience and determination to find a better life.

I have witnessed fatal tragedies as migrants make their way across perilous seas, despair and disappointment as their hopes turn to ashes, and resentment and anger from Europeans who feel their own countries and cultures are threatened by this relentless tide of incomers.

But two weeks ago, on the quayside of pretty Porto Empedocle in Sicily, I came across a scene that convinced me more than ever that the explosion in migration is completely out of control.

I watched as 540 Syrians, Libyans and Moroccans came ashore from the Italian naval ship that had plucked them from the sea after the boat taking them to a new life across the Mediterranean capsised.

Coming down the gangplank, they waved at the waiting crowd of TV crews, international charity workers, UN officials, police and Red Cross doctors, as if they were celebrities on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival. The crowds cheered back, shouting ‘bon giorno’ (good morning) and clapping as the arrivals set foot on dry land. Such was the surreal carnival atmosphere that it was almost impossible to comprehend that hours earlier these smiling migrants had been involved in a life-or-death struggle. Or that they were in Italy only because they had paid smugglers, now growing rich in chaotic Libya, for a place on a flimsy wooden boat to illegally enter Europe where they were now being accepted with open arms.

Crammed to the hilt, their boat sank after 240 of its passengers had already been taken off and ferried to safety on the Italian navy ship.

The remaining 300 passengers had then panicked and rushed to one side of the vessel, tipping it over. Only the best efforts of the navy, who threw scores of red lifebelts and rafts into the water, saved all but a handful of them.

The ship’s captain, Francesco Lavezzo, took his turn in front of the cameras in Porto Empedocle. He said an uplifting memory for him was when a rescued migrant girl smiled with excitement as she was given a white teddy bear by his crew on board the ship.

It was a tear-jerking story – and one that sugars and distorts the tragic but ugly truth about this sorry episode.

For whether we like it or not, large numbers of those coming ashore in Sicily were not refugees fleeing persecution or war. Many were economic migrants, who may have come from countries run by despots, or live on less in a year than most in the West get paid in a week – but who have now slipped into Europe illegally with few questions asked.

The port-side party atmosphere also seemed offensively incongruous. For next to the noisy quayside welcoming party stood a line of hearses waiting to take five bodies to a Sicilian morgue. They were the migrants who had drowned after the boat upturned – the ones who had not been so lucky. The hearses would be in use again shortly afterwards. A second boat full of migrants capsised the following day and up to 30 were feared drowned as another 88 were hoisted to safety.

But it’s not just Sicily. Across the water on Italy’s mainland, the southern port of Salerno yesterday received more than 1,000 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa who had been recovered by a Norwegian ship.

As soon the Siem Pilot docked, those most unwell were taken on stretchers to makeshift medical tents set up on the quay. Among them, 173 were found to have scabies. The arrivals, including tens of pregnant women and at least 107 children, many clutching teddy bears, then lined up to fill in registration forms and have their photographs taken by immigration officers. Officials said they came from 20 countries, mostly Sub-Saharan, including Nigeria, Mali, Cameroon, Somalia, Gambia, and Senegal. They had departed from the Libyan city of Sabratha in dinghies.

What seems certain about the biggest migration crisis in Europe since the Second World War, is the extraordinary number of people who are prepared to risk their own lives, and even their children’s, to reach the West.

Yes, the risks are huge, but they understand that the odds of survival are stacked in their favour, and greedy people-traffickers in Libya encourage them by telling them so. And there is also an official safety net: under EU rules, member countries have a duty to send their navy to rescue anyone in peril on a vessel in their own territorial waters. These rescue vessels simply act as a magnet for more migrants to try the crossing. They know that if they reach Italian waters, they will most likely survive and be taken to their destination even if the smugglers’ craft in which they are sailing does not make it.

What is certain is that some of those brought to safety in Porto Empedocle this week will have vanished from Italy within weeks. They will simply walk out of the migrant hostels after taking a hot meal and a shower.

Last year, a staggering 47 per cent of the 153,000 migrants who arrived in the country did not even attempt to claim asylum. Many ran away, travelling to northern Europe to try their luck at getting into prosperous Britain, Germany or Sweden. Of course, some do stay in Italy. In the midst of economic woes, the country has been forced rapidly to extend its hospitality.

What a can of worms Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel opened when she invited in all Syrian refugees fleeing civil war and the horrors of the Islamic State. For countless numbers of those who took up her offer were not refugees from beleaguered Syria at all. Thousands upon thousands chanced their luck by pretending to be Syrians, while in fact they fact hailed from the Balkans, from Albania, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Morocco, Egypt, Iran, Iraq or from Africa. Today, safely in Germany, many don’t even bother to lie about their background and no sanctions are imposed on them for their deception.

Last year I did actually meet Syrian in Calais, a well-dressed man who had booked in to my hotel there. The 32-year-old was a civil servant who had reached Europe by sailing from Turkey to mainland Greece on a traffickers’ boat. ‘I am going to Britain. I am not going to wait with these other migrants in the mud of the camps. They are not Syrians. They are from Africa and Afghanistan where there is no big war like ours.’

Indeed, Syria accounted for only 2,500 of the total 34,687 UK applications. Last month, Frontex, the EU Border Force, warned that terrorists are infiltrating Europe by pretending to be refugees. It pointed out that two of the bombers in last November’s Paris attacks arrived on a smuggler’s boat from Turkey.

At the G7, Cameron said the migrant challenge would take time to solve. With more boats packed with eager passengers setting sail from Libya for Italy each day, time is what we have not got.

Response: This article depicts a different side of the Syrian Refugee Crisis that I had not heard about yet. It talks about how really very few of the people coming into Europe on smuggler's boats are actually refugees who are fleeing from war and violence. This is a sad fact that people would take advantage of something that is really meant to help those who need it. The author seems to have bias against those who are coming from countries other than Syria. This article even mentioned that two of the bombers from the Paris attacks came into Europe on a smuggler's boat. It is hard to know what to do in this situation because you don't want to stop helping people and it is incredibly hard to filter out who is actually in need. Overall, this article really opened my eyes to a new issue with the Syrian Refugee Crisis and the help that is being provided.

Citation: Reid, Sue. "The Tragic but Brutal Truth, They Are Not Real Refugees." The Star. The Star, 13 June 2016. Web. 13 June 2016. <http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2016/06/13/the-tragic-but-brutal-truth-they-are-not-real-refugees_c1366591?page=0%2C2>.

Kenya's tourist amvals increase by 14 per cent

Visitors into Kenya increased by 14 per cent in the first four months of the year, signaling recovery 

of tourism industry which has faced a four-year slump over insecurity. 

Total international arrivals between January and April were 263,284 compared to 231 ,038 in the 

same period in 2015. 

Tourism Cabinet secretary Najib Balala yesterday attributed the growth to aggressive marketing, 

which has helped restore confidence among key international markets. 

"The government has invested heavily in security. Since the Garissa attack on April 2 last year, no 

other incident has happened. We are optimistic 2016 will be a good year," Balala said. 

During the period under review, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport recorded 13.6 per cent more 

visitors totaling 229,594, compared to 202,071 in 2015. Mombasa's Moi International Airport had 

31 ,810 visitors from 28,967, a 9.8 per cent growth. Arrival by sea (cruise ship) were 1,880. 

Balala, however, warned that the ongoing anti-IEBC protests are threatening the sector's recovery, 

which could rebound fully by 2018 in a peaceful environment. 

"The last two weeks we have sent shivers to the markets. All the efforts I have done to reassure 

people that Kenya is safe are going to waste. Political instability and lack of understanding is going 

to kill our industry," Balala said. 

"If we continue with images of lyres burning, people getting shot, it is not going to be good for our 

economy. We can decide and behave well or misbehave in the name of democracy and lose," he 

added. 

The government has been on a charm offensive to win back international markets which dropped 

as a result of insecurity, mainly caused by al Shabaab terror group. Balala said the ministry will 

invest heavily in traditional markets among them the UK, the US and India to grow numbers. The 

ministry has been allocated Sh4 billion in the 2016-17 budget. "This year we have the best 

budget," The CS said. 

KTB acting CEO Jacinta Nzioka sard the marketing body is working with tour operators and 

airlines to market the country. 

International arrivals dropped last year to 1.18 million from 1.35 million in 2014, a 12.6 per cent 

contraction. Tourism earnings decreased to Sh84.6 million last year from Sh87.l billion in 2014, 

the Economic Survey 2016 shows. The number of visitors to Kenya was 1.5 million in 2013, 1.7 

million in 2012, and 1.8 million in 2011. 




Response: Thisarticle talks about the rise in tourism in Kenya. 

This is something that is super beneficial for Kenya and even other areas of the world because of the
many nationalities that visit Kenya. Tourism is the main source of income and
support for Kenya. The reason that this growth of tourism is even being
discussed is that there was a major decrease in tourism after the Westgate mall
attack. This article does seem to have a bias towards Najib Balala, the tourism
cabinet secretary, as they cited his comments multiple times. Overall, this
article, and the statistics used in it, are hopeful for Kenya and many other
countries too.
Citation:Mwita, Martin. "Kenya’s Tourist Arrivals Increase by 14 per Cent." The Star Kenya. The Star, 7 

June 2016. Web. 8 June 2016. 

<http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2016/06/07/kenyas-tourist-arrivals-increase-by-14-per-cent_c1364470>.