Even if there was a \"suspicion\" or the threat of danger,
wouldn\'t anyone concerned with safety, stop and investigate it properly ?
I would think so. You KNOW our government routinely denigrates these
issues, in favor of the corporate complex or cartel. You knew that.
Someone who places profits, greed, or power over the public good is your
enemy. They are maliciously, knowingly, harming us. This, in part, is
the Business of Disease. It is intertwined within the Industrial-Congressional
Complex and the Pharmaceutical and Banking-Finance Cartels....
....the real driving policy decision-makers of our politics, et al.
Only such an devious and conspiratol, evil enemy (and, right within our own
country !!) would disregard safety precautions in the face of any public
outcry; It should be painfully obvious that this corporate agenda is not
for the public or national good. I believe it serves another purpose...part
of an even bigger picture.
And, why has this long standing problem just coming to light of
politicians, now ? Hmmmm. So, is this rape, or a romp in the hay among
consenting groups ?
To find out more: See the educational movies, \"Sweet Misery...A Poisoned
World\", ( Cori@soundandfuryproductions.com )
or Bill Moyer\'s television PBS special called, \"Trade
Secrets\"....transcripts available, I believe.
In any event, folks, stay diligent, and be wise....
~ Arthur Evangelista
Chemicals in kids.... new WHO foe ?
Ministers call for \'decisive action,\'
while the chemical industry says, \"WHO threatens business\" !!
| By Robert Walgate
BUDAPESTAt a <http://www.euro.who.int/budapest2004>meeting of European
health ministers here last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) moved
action against synthetic chemicals that affect child development higher on
the global health agenda.
Scientists said action was overdue, with tens of thousands of novel
chemicals of unknown effect circulating in our bodies, but chemical
industry representatives told The Scientist the new stance could delay
chemical research and development by 15 years, and raise issues of
international competition and equity.
<http://www.cdc.gov/eis/about/landrigan.htm>Philip Landrigan of Mount Sinai
School of Medicine, NY, said in a scientific meeting at the Budapest summit
that \"children are very heavily exposed to an enormous number of synthetic
chemicals that have been invented in the last 30 to 50 years, that didn\'t
even exist before, that are widespread in the environment, and present in
children\'s bodies and mother\'s milk.\"
While the toxic effects of a few, like lead and methyl mercury, are now
known, the impact of most remains unknown, Landrigan said. A massive new
research effort will be needed to identify the safety or dangers of the
others, he argued.
At the meeting, under the aegis of the <http://www.euro.who.int/>WHO
European region, the ministers of health and environment of 52 countries
from Ireland to Uzbekistan issued a declaration calling strongly for more
research on these substances.
Ministers said: \"Decisive action should be taken without undue delay to
overcome the gaps in knowledge about the effects of chemicals on human
health and to achieve sustainable development in the chemical industry.\"
Ministers cautiously supported WHO in a widespread and stronger use of the
\"precautionary principle,\" which is employed by the European Union and
others to suspend production of chemicals in which initial evidence shows
risk.
Some scientists at the Budapest meeting, like
<http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/faculty/PhilippeGrandjean.html>Philippe
Grandjean of the Institute of Public Health, University of Southern
Denmark, likened the chemical industry to the tobacco industry.
But Marc Danzon, Regional Director of WHO Euro told The Scientist: \"I think
the chemical industry ignored health for many years and has been a bit
stressed by what\'s happening with the tobacco industry. But we don\'t
consider the chemical or food industry to be the same as the tobacco
industry. Tobacco gives nothing positive to health. You can\'t say that for
the chemical industry.\"
Danzon wants constructive dialogue but said, \"WHO will maintain our
position as the advocates for health… Health cannot be negotiated. The
dangers should be known, and we cannot be weak on that… If they want to
locate themselves [like the tobacco industry], it\'s up to them. But we are
not at all in the same configuration.\"
Colin Humphris, executive director for research at the
<http://www.cefic.be/>European Chemical Industries Council, told The
Scientist: \"Industry experience is that at the technical level we get
cooperation,\" with government and regulatory bodies such as those of the
European Union. \"This is a different sort of political debate,\" he said.
Humphris acknowledged that \"there are gaps in the data sheets on some
chemicals and there are issues over quality of data for othersbut the
industry has a voluntary program to fill those gaps for the 1000
top-tonnage chemicals. That\'s a big fraction of chemical production,\" he said.
The combination of public concern and the new WHO position means \"the
chemical industry is headed to be like the pharmaceutical industry,\"
Humphris said. \"They go through all the various phases of trials, which
take typically 15 years to get approval. So the first thing you\'ll see is
that some of our technological development will become long term.\"
But drugs and chemicals have some specific differences, Humphris said.
\"Largely pharmaceuticals are being given in known doses to a known and
defined population. And even so, unknown risks arise later, like breast
cancer and HRT. The issue for the chemical industry is we don\'t have
control over exposure. What a child might be exposed to is very difficult
for our industry to handle.\"
\"This has a way to run… There are a lot of potentially conflicting issues
here,\" Humphris said.
Links for this article
Fourth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health: The Future for Our
Children, Hungary, June 23–25
<http://www.euro.who.int/budapest2004>http://www.euro.who.int/budapest2004
Philip Landrigan
<http://www.cdc.gov/eis/about/landrigan.htm>http://www.cdc.gov/eis/about/landrigan.htm
World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
<http://www.euro.who.int/>http://www.euro.who.int/
Philippe Grandjean
<http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/faculty/PhilippeGrandjean.html>http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/faculty/PhilippeGrandjean.html
European Chemical Industry Council
<http://www.cefic.be/>http://www.cefic.be/
\"None are so hopelessly enslaved,
as those who falsely believe they are free.
The truth has been kept from the depth of their minds
by masters who rule them with lies.
They feed them on falsehoods till wrong looks like right in their eyes.\"
~~ Johann Goethe
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