Today the Bush administration added lies about air pollution and its impact on health to its list of deceptions.
It is now officially telling the public that polluted air known to be unhealthful is actually safe to breathe.
The issue involves fine particle pollution -- invisible emissions that come from coal burning, diesel engines and other smokestack industries.
This pollution has been linked to heart attacks, strokes, lung cancer and numerous other health problems.
This pollution is so deadly that many scientists have called on the EPA to set tougher standards. Among those calling for tougher standards were EPA's own science advisors.
The standards themselves amount to an official government declaration of how much pollution in the air is safe to breathe. Tougher standards would require more cleanup by industry.
But the electric power lobby -- led by Tom Kuhn, former college chum of the President and more recently a big fundraiser for him -- objected to standards that would require his coal-burning companies to clean up more.
And so today EPA sided with the power industry -- and against its own science advisors. It issued proposed weak new standards that would require little if any cleanup by Tom Kuhn's companies.
More on this is available at
http://www.blogforcleanair.blogspot.com/