Good one. As you say, "...well-funded, widely-disseminated, professionally-crafted bullshit!."
After touring the construction of a 400 acre solar farm (which included innovative irrigation to grow grass for sheep), I found myself chatting with a MAHA type at a bash in a groovy little Colorado town. OMG, what about the lead in the panels, what about the EMFs? (If all the solder in every panel were dissolved in acid and spread on the site, that lead would be about equal to average soil lead. EMFs... what can one say, it's an electric generator, there will be some.) Wind turbines, they know an expansive litany of woes. Battery fires and toxics, oh boy! Look at these side effects; the cure is worse than the disease. Sound familiar?
Gosh, extracting and burning FFs has "side effects," too. YUGE, even. RFK poisoned himself with mercury from fish, which got a lot of their mercury from coal smoke deposition. Instead focus folks on vanishingly small risks from lead or fluorides in most drinking water, from the guv'mint, or radon, from the ground.
I do think we need to celebrate a bit more the huge declines in use, emissions and exposures to lead, mercury, cadmium, PM, CO, HCs and VOCs, raw sewage, DDT, etc. which are the result of 50 years of, eek, regulations, eek. There are EJ communities where some of these are still too high, but in most of those the exposures are greatly reduced from 40 years ago. Kinda like with vaccines that have rendered nasty diseases very rare, folks forget how these regs have improved what was very bad air and water in many many more places than today.
It sure is hard to get traction for addressing emerging problems like PFAS, microplastics, etc., when we gotta re-fight old battles, while some natural allies are on the other side or on the fence. I suppose the bullshit is "professionally-crafted" to do just that.
Thank you, Emily for this excellent analysis. Please submit it to media outlets where it can have as wide an audience as possible. The attack of Trump's EPA on public health is appalling and unprecedented. You make the case for this in a way that could make people think, if they could only read your arguments. I hope to see your article in the New York Times, WSJ, Washington Post, etc. Thank you for writing it and for all the work you do.
Thanks for continuing to provide impeccably well sourced and researched information, Emily. It amazes me that greed and power-lust are so ingrained in these people that they don’t gaf about their own kids’ future (or current!) health. Also, the level of ignorance of basic laws of physics is truly staggering. When the air, land and water suffer, we suffer. You can’t breathe money. You can’t eat or drink money. Part of me thinks maybe the “EPA” is misnamed. Given humanity’s pathological narcissism, maybe they’d be more inclined to keep these laws on the books if it was called the “People Protection Agency.” As it is now, all we’ve got is the “Industrial Polluters and Shareholders Protection Agency.” (IPASPA?) Greedy Asshole Shareholders Protection (GASP) seems more fitting.
Thank you for the clear listing of actions taken by Trump with the EPA. So many things are happening it is has been a challenge trying to keep track myself.
Always enjoy hearing you on radio interviews or other news programs. And despite the response in the comments, I'm sure it did reach others.
I'm totally ignorant of the wellness community, so hopefully they will read this and understand the clear danger of what is happening instead of focusing on seed oils or whatever.
Thank you for going into the lion's den to advocate for public health via the environment. I think it's important to try to break through to as many people as possible. I read the youtube comments shitting on you after you referenced them so at least you can take comfort in those people being dysfunctional idiots incapable of logical reasoning based on their comments
To be the head of the EPA, shouldn't you at least have to *pretend* like you're trying to protect the environment? It's unnerving just how nakedly destructive their policies are.
I really appreciate what you're doing here, calling out the public health spiral the administration is worsening by intensifying the climate crisis! But...I don't think we should legitimize removing fluoride from water or banning seed oils as related to health. They are not. Those are based on the same kind of pseudoscientific misinformation that also powers fossil fuel companies.
The end of everything is on the horizon now. Even if the government swings the other way in two years, the damage will be done and it will take years to recover, if we even can. We are so screwed, environmentally speaking. A lot of people are going to die. Especially in the poorest of the red states and counties with all of the polluting industries. Maybe that will wake some of them up. But, with voter suppression coming on in a mass attack with the SAVE act, it won't matter anyway. These poor republicans won't be able to vote in the next election anyway.
The comments in that YouTube interview are sadly, so reflective of the problem. I've always thought climate education is a prerequisite for making sustainable change. I really appreciate anyone that is trying to educate society, particularly those as well researched as you Emily. Great job as always. PS-That male interviewer reminds me of Needlemeyer on Animal House. The poor guy probably doesn't deserve that, but he looked rather bothered to be there. :)
I couldn't see that guy at all during my remote interview so I had no idea he was reacting in any way — if I had seen him I probably would have said something
WRT your interview on The Hill TV -- I'm really happy that you had the courage to get in front of an obviously unfriendly audience. Next time I would encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity to tell people who probably don't agree with you on most climate-change related topics what you would ask/tell this administration to do differently. The listeners/viewers will probably still fry you but perhaps it will generate some discussion about a step you would advocate, even if that step isn't a game changer. For example - asking the administration to stop the censorship of climate change information on federal websites and simply accept that climate change is real and is largely a result of human actions (as proven by innumerable studies). The administration won't do it, of course, but at least the viewers would have to defend that position instead of simply tearing down your bona fides by claiming you can't come up with anything to even say to this administration.
Absolutely, if I could go back I would do that. I couldn't see the guy who asked me the question so I wasn't entirely aware the question was from an antagonistic POV
Also, I should note, I didn't know he was even going to be there until the interview began. Marianne asked me on and I assumed it would just be a conversation between the two of us
I'd like to share my Substack article, in which I describe how I believe Trump's desire to roll back U.S. environmental laws results in abandonment by American allies and even his supporters.
Thank you for this honest reporting. As an environmentalist I'm with you 100%. I also want to offer to do a guest post on Heated. My last post about state climate superfund laws is an uplifting counterpoint to what's going on at the EPA. It would be a great fit for Heated. Check it out at susanbinches.substack.com : "Good News: States Are Challenging Big Oil. " Let me know what you think. In solidarity, Sue Inches
Almost made me physically sick reading this. Apparently that's just the beginning. So much for all the false equivalence bullshit from people who couldn't drag themselves to the polls during the election cycle because "Kamala is evil too." It's good to vote AGAINST something if that something is everything we are seeing now..
Good one. As you say, "...well-funded, widely-disseminated, professionally-crafted bullshit!."
After touring the construction of a 400 acre solar farm (which included innovative irrigation to grow grass for sheep), I found myself chatting with a MAHA type at a bash in a groovy little Colorado town. OMG, what about the lead in the panels, what about the EMFs? (If all the solder in every panel were dissolved in acid and spread on the site, that lead would be about equal to average soil lead. EMFs... what can one say, it's an electric generator, there will be some.) Wind turbines, they know an expansive litany of woes. Battery fires and toxics, oh boy! Look at these side effects; the cure is worse than the disease. Sound familiar?
Gosh, extracting and burning FFs has "side effects," too. YUGE, even. RFK poisoned himself with mercury from fish, which got a lot of their mercury from coal smoke deposition. Instead focus folks on vanishingly small risks from lead or fluorides in most drinking water, from the guv'mint, or radon, from the ground.
I do think we need to celebrate a bit more the huge declines in use, emissions and exposures to lead, mercury, cadmium, PM, CO, HCs and VOCs, raw sewage, DDT, etc. which are the result of 50 years of, eek, regulations, eek. There are EJ communities where some of these are still too high, but in most of those the exposures are greatly reduced from 40 years ago. Kinda like with vaccines that have rendered nasty diseases very rare, folks forget how these regs have improved what was very bad air and water in many many more places than today.
It sure is hard to get traction for addressing emerging problems like PFAS, microplastics, etc., when we gotta re-fight old battles, while some natural allies are on the other side or on the fence. I suppose the bullshit is "professionally-crafted" to do just that.
I love how Emily uses links and references to corroborate her text. For me, when writers share known references, their credibility dramatically improves. Here is the link to my recent Substack article: "Environmental Deregulation and its Impacts" https://open.substack.com/pub/larryryan/p/environmental-deregulation-and-its?r=o7zo5&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
Thank you for recognizing that!
Genocide ecocide fascism are the 3 evils.
Regime change here and in Israel is necessary now.
Refuse Fascism
Oppose Oppression
People
Planet
Peace
dear comrades
Thank you, Emily for this excellent analysis. Please submit it to media outlets where it can have as wide an audience as possible. The attack of Trump's EPA on public health is appalling and unprecedented. You make the case for this in a way that could make people think, if they could only read your arguments. I hope to see your article in the New York Times, WSJ, Washington Post, etc. Thank you for writing it and for all the work you do.
Thanks for continuing to provide impeccably well sourced and researched information, Emily. It amazes me that greed and power-lust are so ingrained in these people that they don’t gaf about their own kids’ future (or current!) health. Also, the level of ignorance of basic laws of physics is truly staggering. When the air, land and water suffer, we suffer. You can’t breathe money. You can’t eat or drink money. Part of me thinks maybe the “EPA” is misnamed. Given humanity’s pathological narcissism, maybe they’d be more inclined to keep these laws on the books if it was called the “People Protection Agency.” As it is now, all we’ve got is the “Industrial Polluters and Shareholders Protection Agency.” (IPASPA?) Greedy Asshole Shareholders Protection (GASP) seems more fitting.
Thank you for the clear listing of actions taken by Trump with the EPA. So many things are happening it is has been a challenge trying to keep track myself.
Always enjoy hearing you on radio interviews or other news programs. And despite the response in the comments, I'm sure it did reach others.
I'm totally ignorant of the wellness community, so hopefully they will read this and understand the clear danger of what is happening instead of focusing on seed oils or whatever.
Thank you for going into the lion's den to advocate for public health via the environment. I think it's important to try to break through to as many people as possible. I read the youtube comments shitting on you after you referenced them so at least you can take comfort in those people being dysfunctional idiots incapable of logical reasoning based on their comments
After so many years of doing this I am genuinely unbothered by the negative comments anymore — but I do appreciate the nice ones! So thank you!
To be the head of the EPA, shouldn't you at least have to *pretend* like you're trying to protect the environment? It's unnerving just how nakedly destructive their policies are.
I really appreciate what you're doing here, calling out the public health spiral the administration is worsening by intensifying the climate crisis! But...I don't think we should legitimize removing fluoride from water or banning seed oils as related to health. They are not. Those are based on the same kind of pseudoscientific misinformation that also powers fossil fuel companies.
The end of everything is on the horizon now. Even if the government swings the other way in two years, the damage will be done and it will take years to recover, if we even can. We are so screwed, environmentally speaking. A lot of people are going to die. Especially in the poorest of the red states and counties with all of the polluting industries. Maybe that will wake some of them up. But, with voter suppression coming on in a mass attack with the SAVE act, it won't matter anyway. These poor republicans won't be able to vote in the next election anyway.
The comments in that YouTube interview are sadly, so reflective of the problem. I've always thought climate education is a prerequisite for making sustainable change. I really appreciate anyone that is trying to educate society, particularly those as well researched as you Emily. Great job as always. PS-That male interviewer reminds me of Needlemeyer on Animal House. The poor guy probably doesn't deserve that, but he looked rather bothered to be there. :)
I couldn't see that guy at all during my remote interview so I had no idea he was reacting in any way — if I had seen him I probably would have said something
Thanks very much for your summary of the environmental horror that is heading our way. The MAGA logo should be "Make America Sick Again!"
Another great post. Thanks for sharing.
WRT your interview on The Hill TV -- I'm really happy that you had the courage to get in front of an obviously unfriendly audience. Next time I would encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity to tell people who probably don't agree with you on most climate-change related topics what you would ask/tell this administration to do differently. The listeners/viewers will probably still fry you but perhaps it will generate some discussion about a step you would advocate, even if that step isn't a game changer. For example - asking the administration to stop the censorship of climate change information on federal websites and simply accept that climate change is real and is largely a result of human actions (as proven by innumerable studies). The administration won't do it, of course, but at least the viewers would have to defend that position instead of simply tearing down your bona fides by claiming you can't come up with anything to even say to this administration.
Absolutely, if I could go back I would do that. I couldn't see the guy who asked me the question so I wasn't entirely aware the question was from an antagonistic POV
Also, I should note, I didn't know he was even going to be there until the interview began. Marianne asked me on and I assumed it would just be a conversation between the two of us
I'd like to share my Substack article, in which I describe how I believe Trump's desire to roll back U.S. environmental laws results in abandonment by American allies and even his supporters.
https://open.substack.com/pub/larryryan/p/as-america-abandons-its-values-our?r=o7zo5&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
Thank you for this honest reporting. As an environmentalist I'm with you 100%. I also want to offer to do a guest post on Heated. My last post about state climate superfund laws is an uplifting counterpoint to what's going on at the EPA. It would be a great fit for Heated. Check it out at susanbinches.substack.com : "Good News: States Are Challenging Big Oil. " Let me know what you think. In solidarity, Sue Inches
Almost made me physically sick reading this. Apparently that's just the beginning. So much for all the false equivalence bullshit from people who couldn't drag themselves to the polls during the election cycle because "Kamala is evil too." It's good to vote AGAINST something if that something is everything we are seeing now..