I don't do diaries. but I decided to bite the bullet because this concerns me.
On the same day Bush suggested "easing" EPA standards in order to build more refineries, I came across this
article in the SF Chronicle, so here goes.
The Department of Defense wants to keep even more secrets. No big surprise there. What is disturbing is what they want to keep secret and how they are going about it. The Pentagon is asking for an exemption from the FOI for any information pertaining to U.S. weapons programs. There are several questionable aspects to this request.
Tucked away in the department's $439.1 billion spending request pending before the House Armed Services Committee is a provision that would exempt all information relating to such U.S. weapons programs or threats that could cause mass casualties from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.
More below..
OK, I guess I can understand why we don't want the "evil ones" to get the most sensitive information. What I don't understand is exempting
all information on U.S. WMDs or threats.
It seems there maybe a small problem with this shotgun approach...
But open government advocates say the fine print of the Pentagon's definition of weapons of mass destruction is so broad that it could jeopardize the flow of information to state and local governments in the event of an attack as well as conceal safety records at laboratories and plants around the country.
What kind of domestic weapons are we talking about here?
In its request, the Pentagon describes these weapons as "any weapon or device that is intended, or has the capability, to cause death or serious bodily injury to a significant number of people through the release, dissemination, or impact" of chemicals, organisms or radiation.
So, we are not allowed any information about domestic weapons that could kill or injure a large number of people using chemicals, organisms, or radiation? WTF?
My favorite part of the of the proposal?
According to Rick Blum, coordinator of the Sunshine in Government Initiative, a coalition of media groups promoting accessible government,
The exemption would keep the public in the dark about potential health threats, such as toxic chemicals processed in local communities and plans to protect the public in case of an attack, ...It would also exempt from disclosure information held by private companies.
The Defense Department could restrict the release of unclassified information about real estate, environmental and health assessments. And reports describing weaknesses at security plants could also be made secret.
How creative to bury this in a spending request!
Don't let the workers or neighbors know the manufacturing plant has any safety or security problems. Don't let them know what is really going on in their own back yards
As I read this, the Pentagon wants to protect and shield the big defense contractors from any kind of accountability for either blowing people up, poisoning them with chemicals or some strange pathogen, or accidentally exposing them to doses of radiation. God forbid, any local authorities should have information in case something goes terribly wrong. I can hear Rumsfeld now, "Stuff happens."
The only positive news is that Rep. Waxman is aware of this proposal, but all too often he is a lone voice in the wilderness.