As if my last report that pesticides are reducing average penis sizes was not alarming enough, we now receive further confirmation that the Bush Adminsitration and the chemical industry are engaging in an improper campaign to exert pressure on EPA scientists and government officials to cover-up the damage pesticides are doing to the growing nervous systems of fetuses, infants, and children. Raw Story reports that
EPA scientists say agency is 'besieged' by pesticide interests, and provides a link to an extraordinary press release by a coalition of EPA scientists, union workers, and public interest groups.
Environmental Protection Agency scientists complained that "Our colleagues in the pesticide program feel besieged by political pressure exerted by agency officials perceived to be too closely aligned with the pesticide industry and former EPA officials now representing the pesticide and agricultural community," wrote the scientists.
Photo credit: attytood.com
Public Scientists Are Morally and Professionally Compromised By the Bush Administration
The scientists accuse the EPA of putting the "concerns of agriculture and the pesticide industry" before the agency's "responsibility to protect the health of our Nation's citizens."
Of all the moral outrages and lapses of the Bush Administration this has to be among the most corrupt and criminal. I am unable to hold back tears of compassion and shame that we should have descended to such a low moral level that we should callously doom these poor unborn children to lives of misery, pain, and nervous system damage by allowing corrupt chemical industry lobbyists and Bush Administration minions to suppress science on behalf half of short term industry profits!
"We are concerned that the agency has lost sight of its regulatory responsibilities in trying to reach consensus with those that it regulates," the letter continues.
The letter, signed by nine presidents of three EPA unions, was obtained and released by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), a group formed to protect whistleblowers and "dedicated to upholding environmental laws and values." (PDF link of letter)
"Our top public scientists are morally and professionally compromised by the Bush administration partnership with the chemical industry," stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch in a press release. "The fact that this letter had to be sent at all is an utter disgrace but, even more disgraceful, is the likelihood that this warning will be disregarded by an agency that is supposed to be protecting public health and the environment."
One of the aspects of the disgrace of the government's failure to properly handle the New Orleans Katrina hurricane disaster were the reports that the incompetence we saw in FEMA was just the tip of the iceberg of the Bush Administration's intentional disemboweling our government agencies designed to the protect the public.
I don't have the references at my finger tips but distinctly remember writers warning that similar dismantling of previously expert capability was occurring at the EPA, SEC, and countless other professional groups by GOP minions who fundamentally dislike the notion of government.
Now we see more evidence of the tragic price and less visible damage to our common public good we have incurred.
Excerpts from PEER's Press Release
In an unprecedented action, representatives for thousands of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency scientists are publicly objecting to imminent agency approval for a score of powerful, controversial pesticides, according to a letter released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The scientists cite "compelling evidence" which EPA leadership is choosing to ignore that these "pesticides damage the developing nervous systems of fetuses, infants and children."
On August 3, 2006, EPA faces a deadline for issuing final tolerance approval for 20 organophosphate and carbamate pesticides. In a letter dated May 24, 2006, leaders of three unions (American Federation of Government Employees, National Treasury Employees Union and Engineers and Scientists of California) representing 9,000 scientists, risk managers and other specialists asked EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson to either adopt maximum exposure protections for these agents or take them off the market.
Organophosphates, derived from World War II-era nerve agents, are banned in England, Sweden and Denmark. In the 1990's the National Academies of Science criticized EPA's regulation of these pesticides. The Clinton administration began moves to ban the agents but the Bush administration changed course. In the past few months, the Bush administration approach has been faulted by both EPA's own Scientific Advisory Panel and its Office of Inspector General.
In their letter, the EPA scientists charge that agency "risk assessments cannot state with confidence the degree to which any exposure of a fetus, infant or child to a pesticide will or will not adversely affect their neurological development."
Full press release at this link.
Conclusion
Have we no shame whatsoever? We've already spent the afternoon listening to reports of American troops in Iraq shooting a pregnant woman for bypassing a checkpoint and the massacre at Haditha. Noone even want to discuss Noam Chompsky's accusations of war crimes in Chapter Two of his new book reviewed by Hounddog last month, in the destruction of Falluja where doctors and nurses where bound and restrained by American troops to prevent them from treating civilians in direct violation of Geneva Conventions.
But I hope this issue is going to, finally, cut through partisan lines. Even Republican love their own children and must be able to rouse some indignation about this latest Bush outrage. This should put an end to those tacit collaborators and enablers that do not want to discuss impeachment for fear of offending right wing voters.
This incredible ongoing criminal outrage and disgrace to humanity must stop. Do other American not realize what the world now thinks of us? Do we not realize that when they watch Star Wars they think of Americans as the "Storm Troopers" of evil not the good forces of the rebel alliance?
What will it take to wake up mothers and fathers to the hideous and unacceptable behavior that is permanently damaging not only the nervous systems of unborn children but potentially even introducing permanent irreversible mutations into our gene pool by unprecedented chemical assault on our biosphere?
If we found even the slightest evidence that Muslims were even thinking about introducing even a microfraction of 1% of the chemical carcinogens introduced to our American and world environment that the chemical companies expels daily without compunction Pat Robertson and the GOP would be demanding the suspension of every remaining shred of civil liberty's we have left.
Wake up America. We are being duped and poisoned by treacherous and evil merchants of death. And I'm sick and tired of it. It's time to draw the line in the sand and protect the lives of our children and future generations.