DEBRIS.COMgood for a laugh, or possibly an aneurysm

The Union of Concerned Scientists is a non-partisan advocacy group dedicated to creating a “cleaner, healthier environment and a safer world.” In a February report entitled Restoring Scientific Integrity in Policy Making, 62 reputable scientists “charged the Bush administration with widespread and unprecedented ‘manipulation of the process through which science enters into its decisions.’”

Here’s one timely example, copied from a brochure they mailed me. (See a longer version here: Information on Power Plant Mercury Emissions Censored)

Mercury is a neurotoxin that can cause brain damage and harm reproduction in humans and wildlife. Coal-fired power plants are the nation’s largest source of mercury air emissions. Faced with congressional proposals to strongly regulate these mercury emissions, Bush officials suppressed and sought to manipulate government information about merucry contained in an EPA report on children’s health and the environment. After nine months, a frustrated EPA official leaked the draft report to the Wall Street Journal, which revealed one of the report’s findings that eight percent of women between the ages of 16 and 49 have mercury levels in the blood that could lead to reduced IQ and motor skills in their offspring. The finding provides strong evidence in direct contradiction to the administration’s desired policy of reducing regulation on coal-fired power plants… Perhaps most troubling about this incident is that the report may never have surfaced at all had it not been leaked to the press.

There is a pattern here; in August 2003, the Bush administration lied to New Yorkers about the presence of dangerous asbestos due to the WTC attack.

“I’m from the government; I’m here to help” really shouldn’t be the punchline to a joke.