That's really one of the examples from the article he linked to. So what it amounts to is that I shouldn't try e-cigarettes because they're like ice cream. Another example ie video games. So, I shouldn't try cigarettes because they're like video games. Really? That's the reason? That's the argument? Or: I shouldn't try cigarettes because they're like chocolate chip cookies.

He argued that nicotine is harmful but was honest enough to admit that the evidence is mixed - from which I gather that the claim is not all that strong.

Whoa, let's be careful here. It's very important to not mix arguments about nicotine's safety with arguments about smoking or cigarettes' safety.

I agree that nicotine looks fairly safe & quite beneficial; but while I toy with some of the pro-smoking studies, they are nowhere near enough to convince me that smoking is safe given all the contrary studies.

Caffeine, puppies, chocolate - these are not 'gateway drugs' to cannabis, prostitution, or crack cocaine. But if relatively safe & harmless nicotine use (such as patches or e-cigarettes) is a gateway to the unsafe & harmful smoking, then that's an argument worth taking seriously.