I prime with alcohol. Don't use kerosene for priming, it creates nasty ill-smelling smoke and lots of soot, which will cause your stove to need more maintenance (cleaning) than otherwise.
Kerosene (a.k.a. paraffin) burns nice and clean when burned in a stove designed for it and well maintained. I've never had issues with sooth on pots or bad smell.
What he said.
Kero is actually one of the best fuels for stoves
provided that you get good quality fuel (K-1 in the US and I think Canada), prime the stove well
with alcohol, and keep a pricker handy.
Kero is much safer than white gasoline (much higher flash point, not prone to flash fires) and is available worldwide (whereas white gasoline is not).
On the other hand, if kero leaks in your pack, it'll leave a stain and a smell where as white gasoline will often dry up without a trace.
It takes a little bit of practice to get the hang of kero, but anyone used to using white gasoline shouldn't have any trouble.
HJ