Another Benefit of Capitalism

[vox]

WASHINGTON - More than half of all Americans breathe polluted air that can damage their health because the government doesn't fully enforce clean air laws, the American Lung Association said on Wednesday.

Standards are in place to cut back pollution, but since they are not being enforced, nearly 400 counties in the United States have smog levels above the legal limits, the group said.

"It is clearly time to get serious about enforcing all of the provisions of the Clean Air Act so that we place Americans' health above business and political interests," said John Kirkwood, president and chief executive officer of the American Lung Association.

Kirkwood said industry was fighting to roll back important provisions of the Clean Air Act, and ozone standards set in 1997 are still not being enforced.

Full Article (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0502-05.htm)

Perhaps the US tourism industry could work with that. "Amber waves of grain and NEW CHUNKY-STYLE AIR!!!"

vox

[honest intellectual]

Who needs air when you have profit?

[Kez]

honest intelect,
what you said was just sweet

[honest intellectual]

Yeah, people will be quoting that in 100 years time

[bleed3r]

The sad thing is they probably will if amerikkka is still around..

[I Will Deny You]

Quote: from vox on 2:25 pm on May 2, 2002
Perhaps the US tourism industry could work with that. "Amber waves of grain and NEW CHUNKY-STYLE AIR!!!"
With all the shit in the air in America, it's quite a surprise that it hasn't been carbonated yet. Perhaps Coca-Cola could get some subsidies from the government to give us all "sugar air", thus eliminating the need for soda.

[vox]

Well hey, at least the water is clean, right? Umm, right?

Don't Dump Waste in Our Waters

Contributed by Clean Water Network

The Bush administration is very close to finalizing a change to Clean Water Act rules that would modify the Army Corps of Engineers' definition of ''fill'' material and allow industries to dump waste materials into our nation's waters, destroying many streams, rivers, lakes, and wetlands.

The rule change is motivated by the Bush administration's desire to promote mountaintop removal coal mining, where coal companies blow the tops off of mountains to reach seams of coal, then dump millions of tons of waste into nearby streams, burying them and killing all the animals and plants that live there. The new regulation would also allow hardrock mining operations and other industries to bury waters with their wastes.

In October 1999 a federal court found that this practice violated the Clean Water Act and the stream protection provisions of the federal surface mining law. Now, the Army Corps of Engineers and US EPA are trying to change the rules in order to legalize this waste dumping.

Two years ago, the Corps' and EPA made a similar proposal, but after receiving over 17,000 public comments protesting against allowing waste dumps in our waters, the Clinton administration dropped the proposal to change the Clean Water Act rule. Now, the Bush administration is planning to make this change in the rule without even giving the public any notice that this policy is back under consideration. By doing this, the Bush administration is ignoring the purpose of the Clean Water Act -- to protect the integrity of our nation's waters -- and ignoring the thousands of citizens that have already spoken out against this proposal.

Call To Action (http://www.workingforchange.com/activism/action.cfm?itemid=13227&afccode=MRM001)

vox

[Anarcho]

After driving through northern Idaho and seeing the results of strip mining and sectional deforestation, I can only hope that the public once again stymies the efforts to promote blasting for coal mining.

And, for the record, the air in the US is surpringly clean, compared to many EU cities and Mexico.

It could still use some work, of course, but it's better than it has been in the past.

[guerrillaradio]

Quote: from I Will Deny You on 3:02 am on May 3, 2002
Perhaps Coca-Cola could get some subsidies from the government to give us all "sugar air", thus eliminating the need for soda.


Please, don't tempt fate!!! Air's just about the only free commodity we have left...

[vox]

Well, they did it:

WASHINGTON - May 3 - The Bush administration today finalized changes to Clean Water Act regulations that would for the first time in 25 years allow the US Army Corps of Engineers to permit waste to fill and destroy the nation's waters. In an attempt to appease the coal mining industry and in a rush to avoid additional Congressional and public scrutiny, EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman signed the rule change.
"It says something when an administration takes an action like this late on a Friday -- that they hope no one sees it," said Joan Mulhern, senior legislative counsel for Earthjustice. "This is a 'Friday Night Massacre' for our nation's waters and it's the biggest threat to our nation's waters in decades, perhaps since the Clean Water Act passed 30 years ago. Allowing masses of industrial wastes to be dumped in streams, lakes, rivers, and wetlands is contrary to the very purpose of the Clean Water Act and represents a major weakening of current clean water law."

EPA's press release states this will "enhance environmental protections" for waters. "Nothing could be further from the truth," said Mulhern. "Anyone who has ever seen what happens when a stream is buried under 900 feet of mining rubble would not conclude that this is a good thing for water quality. More than 1000 miles of streams already have been destroyed in Appalachia by the coal companies that have been flouting the Clean Water Act for years while the EPA and the Corps looked the other way."

Source (http://www.commondreams.org/news2002/0503-13.htm)

How much clearer can it get, folks? How much clearer can the lines be?

Those of you who live in the USA, please contact your Representatives and Senators about this travesty. There was bipartisan opposition to this rule change in the House. Tell you friends about it. Tell everyone about it.

Exposing such things is the only way we have to fight them. We know that putting profits before people is wrong. Let's make sure our congresspeople know that we're watching what the government is doing.

vox

[BOZG]

Air's just about the only free commodity we have left...

With the way we continue to pollute our environment, that won't last long.

[sypher]

Please, don't tempt fate!!! Air's just about the only free commodity we have left...
[/quote]

yea, but when that isn't free some people will still think that capitalism is the best...that is sad

[Hattori Hanzo]

oh yes, in this country capitalism is always the best.
Ah, America, home of those who are as willing to critisize everyone else's problems as they are to hide thier own.

[Punx for Peace]

Hang on! Maybe the problem here is that we are NOT paying for air pollution. That is, the capitalist economy can pump this crap into the air during the process of profit making, while we suffer the costs of their externalities!

We're trying to get our spineless leaders to accept a carbon credit trading system. Once we get that, it would not be impossible to add air to the equation.

It's always the bottom line that counts in a capitalist economy. If capitalists had to PAY for their degradation of our environment, you can bet your bottom dollar they'd think twice about their profits.

And, the sooner the better...

[nz revolution]

punx for peace, after reading many of your posts it seems you are well learned in economics.

A way of combating air pollution is to tax it, Im sure in New Zealand we have a system like that, well at least thats what our economics teacher told us.

Under capitalism though its a load of shit, because, we end up footing the bill, through an increase in prices.

THE PEOPLE CAN NEVER WIN IN CAPITALISM

peace comrades

[Jaha]

hey, everybody, think about the cappie pigs. if you were a fat load of shit sitting on millions of dollars and your heart was bound to fail within a year, would you give a shit about the environment? probably not.

lets just say the heart didnt fail. you could probably afford to buy clean air from some medical company.

capitalism is so full of love and appreciation....

...lol