The fruits of austerity

mac · Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2016 4:50 pm Post subject:

Right you are Boggsy. At some point the raving rationalizations of the right are only of interest to mental health clinicians.

mrgybe · Joined: 01 Jul 2008 Posts: 5181

So, to summarize.......

- the Flint water supply was contaminated due to numerous local/ state level governmental missteps
- the EPA knew that the drinking water was unsafe in February 2015
- The EPA didn't advise water consumers that the water was toxic. Those consumers continued to drink the water for a further 7 months until the story broke
- a former EPA employee here tells us it would have been illegal and unethical for the EPA to take action to prevent families from drinking toxic water and says that arguments that they should have acted, are the "raving rationalizations of the right". Apparently, lifelong behavioral/neurological problems from lead poisoning must be subordinated to inter agency squabbling.
- the regional head of the EPA resigned for reasons our EPA alumnus presumably can't fathom

Hands up all those who think that the EPA were right to keep quiet.

mac · Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2016 6:31 pm Post subject:

It's in the hands of the mental health specialists. Clearly those that taught reading and critical thinking have failed.

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20946

MalibuGuru · Joined: 11 Nov 1993 Posts: 9307

I just read another article about the river polluted by the EPA. Horrible.

But, this lead thing is serious. I believe Mac and Baja may have ingested some. As we know, lead causes mental disorders and, Liberalism is a mental disorder. Is it possible that the liberals in the EPA and Flint are all too happy disabling rational minded people with lead, thereby increasing their voting base....?

mac · Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2016 9:05 pm Post subject: r

The rest of the know-nothings weigh in, parotting talking points by the GOP that describe Flint as a failure of government, and bashing EPA. Perhaps EPA could and should have done more--but I don't see the Governor falling on his sword as the EPA Regional Adminisrator did.

This entire line of reasoning is horseshit. The decision to change water supplies was part of conscious Republican strategy. It is much worse for the hollowed out cities of color in the rust belt. Republican ignorance, contempt for science and civil service and infrastructure. When the State agencies, led by political appointees of the Republican governor, who were responsible for oversight ignored the problem, Republcans argue that EPA's failure to directly notice the citizensis equivalent. Nonsense. Republicans have systematically fought funding for oversight and infrastructure to the point that the unfunded water infrastructure is over $500 billion, more than 60 million people have watewr supplies that are not safe, and no new chemicals have been added to scrutiny under the Drinking Water Act for decades. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/17/us/17water.html?_r=0

MalibuGuru · Joined: 11 Nov 1993 Posts: 9307

Look, I'm the first one here who thinks that if the governor new that there was lead in the pipes and wanted these people to drink the water that he should be charged with a felony.

What is more likely , is that the EPA and local officials knew exactly what was going on in their pipes in their city and in their water supply.

mac · Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2016 3:10 pm Post subject:

Hmm, it may be harder for the governor to duck this one, even with the gybster's relentless spinning. an e-mail was just released from Mike Glasgow, who was the water plant's water quality supervisor. He said that his superiors were prodding him to move faster than prudent. On April 17, 2014, he wrote to the state Department of Environmental Quality, to whit "If water is distributed from this plant in the next couple weeks, it will be against my direction. I need time to adequately train additional staff and to update our monitoring plans before I will feel we are ready."

Perhaps if he had blown the whistle to EPA's Regional Administrator they might have been more helpful. (Mrgybe's citation, used out of context to spin, means that he would have been protected from retaliation.)

There is a long list of conservative de-regulatory ideas that have turned out to be expensive disasters. But when you don't pay attention to the facts, you never figure that out.

mrgybe · Joined: 01 Jul 2008 Posts: 5181

Quote me stating that the Governor wasn't at fault.

mac · Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2016 3:47 pm Post subject: au

Reading comprehension eludes you again? Mrgybe has repeatedly repeated the GOP claims that this is a failure of government at all levels. In fact, it is a direct result of bad judgement and ideological zeal by the Republican governor and his appointees. Against, it now is established, advice from those who knew better. Spin that between your cheeks.