Even in July 2008, when the extreme negative effects of global warming are well established and accepted as scientific fact, Cheney and the Bush Administration are trying to downplay the environmental report indicating such -- even going so far as to physically alter scientific documents and government agency findings before they are released.
Unfortunately, these actions are nothing new. As early as 2002, there were documented instances in which White House officials altered a government climate research draft, and in the following document, Phillip Cooney, then the White House chief of staff of the Council on Environmental Quality (formerly a lobbyist for the American Petroleum Institute), severely edited findings warning of extreme consequences to finally be no more than suggestions of possibilities.
View the drafts appearing in Sierra Magazine here.
View the drafts uncovered by the New York Times here.
After his editing became highly publicized, Cooney resigned and joined ExxonMobil.
One of the individuals at the center of outing Cooney's actions and brining the Bush Administration's desires to alter and restrict scientific findings on global warming was Rick Piltz -- a former senior associate on the U.S. Climate Change Science Program who resigned in 2005 in protest to interference in the program's reports.
The news blitz sparked by his resignation and by his congressional testimony on the matter has created much headway in exposing the scientific fraud being commited by the Executive Branch of the American government.
Read Piltz's memo describing his reasons for resignation here.
Read Piltz's testimony before the U.S. Congressional hearing here.
However, despite the continuing legal battles and negative publicity, it is surprising that the Bush Administration continues to try and alter public scientific documents on climate change. Even more surprising is that their actions are really not widely reported and realized. Unfortunately, probably due in part to the lack of general knowledge of the administration's action, it is entirely plausible that the White House's fraudulent activities aren't relegated to just climate change documents.
According to the deposition of Jason K. Burnett, a senior advisor on climate change at the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), Vice President Dick Cheney and "the Council on Environmental Quality were seeking deletions to the CDC testimony (concerning)... any discussions of the human health consequences of climate change." According to CNN, Cheney's office pushed for major deletions out of fear that the information, if released, would make it harder to avoid regulating greenhouse gasses."
Why the same legal ramifications are not in place for Cheney and his office as they are for Cooney, one can only guess.
What's more frustrating is that, even when faced with unalterable and undeniable evidence, the White House refused to act on the effects of global warming.
In a recent Supreme Court decision (ironically staffed by conservative judges, a couple of whom were themselves appointed by President Bush), the Court ruled 5-4 that if the EPA were to find evidence that global warming did indeed pose a threat to the public health and future of humans as whole, that the EPA under the White House must act to enforce restrictions on the harm.
(The Supreme Court, as the Judicial branch of United States Government, tells the President's Office, known as the executive branch, what laws to enforce and how. The White House is obligated to follow the Court's directions.)
In a surprise twist, the White House refused to act on the EPA's warnings -- by NOT OPENING THE EMAIL sent by the EPA. They simply refused to read it because if they did, they would be legally obligated to act.
According to the New York Times, "The White House succesfully put pressure on the EPA to elimate large sections of the original analysis that supported regulation. including a finding that tough regulation of motor vehicle emissions could produce $500 billion to $2 trillion in economic benefits over the next 32 years."
The obstinacy of the Bush Administration is simply amazing.
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2 comments:
Yes, EPA committing fraud is terrible. No it doesn't surprise me. Call me jaundiced. See below.
EPA, Chemical Manufacturers Assn, toluene, Public Health.
My writing is on the very strong possibility, the US environmental protection agency may be influenced by outside forces that make it virtually impossible for it to be totally objective. This includes men in top positions with ties to the Chemical Manufacturers Association. The name is now American Chemistry Council. One of its subgroups is the American Solvent Council. The names and positions of these men are James Connaughton, chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and Jeffry Holmstead EPA's director of Air and Radiation. Both men are directly associated with the American Chemical Council, formerly the Chemical Manufacturers Assn. The official lobbying group for chemical companies.
Several of his oncologists believe my husband's myelofibrosis and possibly his acute myeloid leukemia subtype M7 was caused by a certain substance. This substance was toluene.. Jerry was in contact with this when he was employed in a dry cleaners for seven years. He worked with this chemical weekly. It is a solvent and a hydrocarbon. According to the Oxford American Dictionary toluene is a derivative of benzene.
There are seven subtypes of acute myeloid leukemia. Suffice to say for the purpose of my article M7 is the type caused by scarring of the bone marrow, aka myelofibrosis. Myelofibrosis is considered by the medical profession as a myeloproliferative disease. The definition of myeloproliferative is as follows: Proliferation of cells in the bone marrow. These cells include white blood cells, red blood cells (corpuscles) and platelets. Myelo is the medical term for bone marrow.
I noticed, within days, in my search for toluene as a carcinogen one glaring note. Most of the medical sites claimed the chemical did cause cancer. It was a factor in the blood cancers. The EPA a US govt. agency said it wasn't carcinogenic. It did state it was a probable human carcinogen. However it stopped from stating it caused cancer. In other words it went, metaphorically speaking, getting engaged, planning the entire wedding and then getting cold feet and calling the marriage off.
The chemical is known scientifically as methylbenzene. Benzene is dealkylation of toluene. Dealkylation is when are more than one alkyl group is substituted for atoms of hydrogen. The relationship to toluene is this. Toluene is an alkyl group bound to a benzene ring. I find it at the very
least intriguing that benzene and toluene are so closely tied together. The two are definitely related. Please note benzene is definitely linked with causing leukemia. Its suspected to be a causative factor in Non Hodgkins Lymphoma, Multiple Myeloma and Acute Lymphatic Leukemia. These are cancers of components of the bone marrow. I can hardly believe its a mere coincidence toluene is so closely linked to benzene. Toluene is an analogous compound to benzene. In fact it is derived from Benzene. Hydrodealkylation turns toluene to benzene. Source. www.answers.com hydrodealkylation The link to toluene and cancer been known for 20years
Toluene is used in the paint industry in paint thinners, Dry Cleaning companies, adhesive manufacturing, as a solvent in many industries, machinery manufacturing and repair, insecticides, pharmacueticals, printing, wood staining and varnishes. Source www.scorecard.org. Scorecard is an unbiased source on information on polluting chemicals.
Medical sites such as www.medscape.com, webmd.com, emedicine.com claims it does cause leukemia. US Government sites for the most part says it doesn't. I wonder if the fact that two of the officials of the EPA are with major connections of the Chemical Manufacturers Association. The Chemical Manufacturers Association are one of the biggest contributors to George W. Bush's presidency. I don't believe this is merely coincidence. The CMA defends some of the worst polluters in the US. Or if you're Jungian, synchronicity either for that matter.
Maybe this doesn't exactly prove the EPA is being influenced by the CMA. However at the very least it certainly doesn't look Kosher either. No govt. agency of what ever nation should be composed of people with any conflict of interest of what ever kind.
Here are some links to medical sites I found by doing a search on toluene and cancer using www.medscape.com This is a health search engine used by health care professionals. Health consumers can use it too. It uses www.medscape.com, www.emedicine.com, www.medline.com. Everyone of them are professional medical resources.
http://www.emedicine.com/med/TOPIC78.HTM This is on myelofibrosis. This is a condition that causes scarring of the bone marrow. It can be linked to acute myeloid leukemia. Its the subtype M7 type. http://www.emedicine.com/ped/TOPIC1301.HTM Topic AML.
www.virtualcancercentre.com says certain organic chemicals such as benzene and toluene are linked to AML. Each of these links definitely state there is a direct link between toluene and acute myeloid leukemia and myelofibrosis. Each of these links are true medical sites.
do know the CMA, in 1998, petitioned the EPA (environmental protection agency) to declare toluene as not being a volatile organic compound. This ruling still stands. The truth is it most certainly is. One way of knowing if any substance is volatile is to note an odor. Toluene definitely smells. Its the exact same substance used in glue, nail polish, nail polish remover. Each of these items exhibits a somewhat strong, sweet odor. In fact it was this aromatic quality that led to glue sniffing to get high. This glue contains toluene.
Toluene definitely is odoriferous. Howeever its perfume next t when the EPA says something is non-carcinogenic when medical professionals claim it is. I wonder how many people's health is severely damaged because of this discrepancy? Millions of females from lets say, twelve to whenever paint their nails, practically daily. How many are exposed to toluene. I would venture to say millions, if not tens of
adparams.getadspec('c_billboard1'); I discovered that the secretary of the interior under the George W. Bush administration had direct connections with the Chemical Nanufacturers Association. My suspicion is the CMA is influencing the EPA to the detriment of the health of the US population.
Maybe I'm wrong. Yet when I see some of the top level people of the Bush presidency are connected with an organization with much to gain with lax environmental rulings I became rather suspicious. This is especially so when they just happen to be major contributors to G.W. Bush. I find it quite difficult believe its merely coincidental. On the contrary I think its no accident that the EPA isn't as reliable , trustworthy as it should be.
My husband may have been a victim of the CMA influence of the EPA. I wonder how many others were victimized too. Believing they were dealing with non carcinogens when in reality they were. I wonder too, how many other carcinogens or for that matter, chemicals US citizens are in the dark because of undue influence by professional groups with agendas influencing the EPA?
One may say, well isn't everything composed of chemicals. Yes, of course this is true. However these are firms that deal exclusively in the chemicals themselves. It certainly seems to me that any organization that holds an agenda that prevents any US government agency not totally objective should be disallowed to be an influence. This includes anybody with any connections with such organizations. The EPA and every other US govt. organization should not be tainted. People's health and trust is at stake
Lynda, thank you for your response and personal comments!
I never cease to be amazed at how dramatically one's life can change in response to a seemingly "small change" or "oversight" (intentional or otherwise) on the part of our government agencies.
Judging from your extensive knowledge and research on such issues, I think that you might find interesting a documentary that I highly recommend: "The World According to Monsanto" (or appearing in its original French title, "Le Monde Selon Monsanto").
The documentary examines the actions of Monsanto, a chemical and bioengineering company that has VERY disturbing ties to Congress, the Supreme Court, BOTH Bush administrations, the FDA, etc.
They are responsible for 90% of all GMOs (genetically modified organisms), as well manufacturing the toxin Agent Orange, used in Vietnam. They have also knowingly ruined an entire American town -- Anniston Alabama.
I will be doing an article on Monsanto and the documentary, but it might be a little while as I want to get it ABSOLUTELY right.
I would advise searching YouTube or elsewhere on the web for it, as it is attainable in legitimate form only through a French website, and unless you are bilingual, it would be difficult for you to purchase.
Contact me if you have difficulty attaining it or finding it.
Again, thankyou. Good luck to you and your husband.
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