Lurking on the horizon is a techno-monster that, if unleashed as planned, will be far beyond anyone’s ability to mediate, control, or perhaps even survive: 5-G. This innocuous, tech-sounding name, pivot point for a T-Mobile-Sprint merger, is being touted with promises of job creation, lightning fast internet speeds and even ways to cure cancer.
For openers, the FCC has decreed that no one is allowed to oppose 5G on health grounds. . . which should instantly set off alarms.(See Don’t Open That Door.)
5G involves sending information by using the 24-gigahertz frequency band. Electromagnetic signals at this frequency can’t travel very far -- so a 5-G system requires lots of antennas sending and receiving signals. To be effective, 5-G networks require a fine mesh network of constant radio signals, with antennas every few feet sending and receiving signals.
Driverless cars, for instance, would require constantly updated information in every dimension, essentially swimming in a sea of radio signals to operate safely. Which means that every living thing would also be enveloped in the sea of signals. We already know bees and birds are especially affected. Children, too.
Consider:
9 June 2012:
The Board of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine approved the following statement on Wi-Fi in schools.
Adverse health effects, such as learning disabilities, altered immune responses, headaches, etc. from wireless radio frequency fields do exist and are well documented in the scientific literature. Safer technology, such as using hard-wiring, must be seriously considered in schools for the safety of those susceptible individuals who may be affected by this phenomenon.
January 2012:
The Board of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine opposes the installation of wireless “smart meters” in homes and schools based on a scientific assessment of the current medical literature (references available on request). Chronic exposure to wireless radio frequency radiation is a preventable environmental hazard that is sufficiently well documented to warrant immediate preventative public health action.
Meanwhile, outspoken critic Dr. Martin Paul, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Sciences at Washington State University, citing numerous documented risks to human health, calls the 5G rollout “the stupidest idea in the history of the world.”
Up, Up and Away
Just last week, Amazon filed an application with the American authorities to launch a constellation of 3,200 satellites to “beam high-speed broadband to areas deprived of good internet services.” Elon Musk’s SpaceX plans to launch 12,000 broadband satellites for Starlink, its project to provide web access around the globe. He launched the first 60 satellites in May.
Another problem: These satellites transmit in frequencies that muddy how weather satellites report information about moisture -- key to every aspect of weather forecasting. In March, when the FCC began auctioning off its 24-gigahertz frequency band to wireless carriers, scientists at NOAA, NASA, and the American Meteorological Society objected. So did Senators Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) and Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), who wrote to FCC chair Ajit Pai requesting that the commission stop companies from using the 24-GHz band until a solution is found and to delay more auctions, according to Wired.
The gazillionaires, including the Koch brothers, are pushing hard for 5G, with what seems to be the full support of the FCC. It’s unclear which other groups or agencies may also oversee satellite launches.
So what can we ordinary citizens do to protect ourselves and our communities in this wild west, winner-take-all mess? We can ask our local officials to say no to installing these antennas in our neighborhoods. We can contact our representatives in congress. We can learn as much as possible, share what we learn with others -- then hope and pray that sanity will prevail.
