This was passed on to me in a gang e-mail and I thought it was worth passing on:
This looks worth watching. Now we have to go borrow someone's tv! Note the
website by the Center for Disease Control website on chemicals about 3/4 of
the way through this series of press releases and articles.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jennifer Yane"
To:
Sent: Friday, March 23, 2001 2:43 PM
Subject: PBS Investigative report
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Nature's Country Store"
> To:
> Sent: Friday, March 23, 2001 10:36 AM
> Subject: Vitally Important - Please forward
>
>
> > On March 26, 2001, PBS will air a groundbreaking investigative report,
> > Trade Secrets, on the chemical industry by Bill Moyers. Moyers was
> > compelled to put together this expose´ after seeing some of the chemical
> > industry's secret documents related to a wrongful death and conspiracy
> suit
> > against dozens of chemical companies.
> >
> > This program has vitally important information for every person on this
> > planet. For years, we have been lied to by the chemical companies. They
> > have gotten wealthy selling us chemicals that are now showing up in the
> > fatty cells of every person on this planet. These same chemicals are
> > responsible for what is being called the "dumbing down of Americans" -
the
> > fact that IQs have been consistently dropping over the last 40 years.
> These
> > chemicals are also responsible for the alarmingly increasing incidences
of
> > ADHD which is causing a whole generation to be drugged with
> > Ritalin. Researchers are also finding connections between these
> > synthetically created chemicals that permeate our world and cancer,
> > Parkinson's, seizure disorder, and a host of other diseases that have
> > become alarmingly prevalent.
> >
> > If you are concerned about your future, your children and/or
> > grandchildren's future, and the future of this planet, please watch this
> > program and send this email on to everyone you know.
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> > The Chemical Papers: Secrets of the Chemical Industry Exposed
> >
> > Don Hazen, AlterNet
> > March 15, 2001
> > -------------------------------------------------------------------
> > Bill Moyers TV special to reveal how the public was kept in the dark
about
> > the dangers of toxic chemicals.
> >
> > Every powerful story about fighting for truth and justice has its
heroes.
> > This story, a tale of the secrets and lies behind America's chemical
> > industry, is no exception.
> >
> > Like Erin Brockovich, the paralegal-turned-movie icon who fought against
> > toxic polluters in California, Elaine Ross was determined to uncover the
> > truth. Ross wanted to know what had killed her husband, a chemical plant
> > worker in the bayous of Louisiana, at the untimely age of 46. She teamed
> up
> > with crusading lawyer William "Billy" Baggett, Jr, the son of a famous
> > Southern litigator, and together they have become central figures in a
> > David-and-Goliath battle to protect the health of all Americans,
> especially
> > workers.
> >
> > Now, in the latest chapter of the story, a team led by Bill Moyers has
> > created a PBS special report called "Trade Secrets" that will air on
> Monday
> > evening, March 26. The special, based on a secret archive of chemical
> > industry documents, explores the industry pattern of obfuscating,
denying
> > and hiding the dangerous effects of chemicals on unsuspecting workers
and
> > consumers.
> >
> > At its core, the Moyers show asks a deeply troubling question: With more
> > than 75,000 synthetic chemicals having been released into the
environment,
> > what happens as our bodies absorb them, and how can we protect
ourselves?
> > As part of the report, Moyers took tests designed to measure the
synthetic
> > chemcials in his body -- a measurement known as "chemcial body burden."
> > Moyers learned that his body contained 31 diffferent types of PCBs, 13
> > different toxins and pesticides such as malathion and DDT.
> >
> > When it hits the air, the Moyers special is expected to re-energize
> veteran
> > health activists and medical professionals in their fight against a
> growing
> > problem -- unregulated and untested chemicals flooding the commercial
> > market place. This public heat, coupled with a burgeoning grassroots
> > resistance to chemical producers, may set the industry on the defensive
> > like never before ... but that's getting ahead of the story.
> >
> > Legal Battle in the Bayou
> > Elaine Ross's husband, Dan, spent 23 years working at the Conoco (later
> > Vista) chemical plant in Lake Charles, Louisiana. After being diagnosed
> > with brain cancer, according to Jim Morris of the Houston Chronicle,
"Dan
> > Ross came to believe that he had struck a terrible bargain, forfeiting
> > perhaps 30 years of his life through his willingness to work with vinyl
> > chloride, used to make one of the world's most common plastics."
> >
> > "Just before he died [in 1990] he said, 'Mama, they killed me,'"
recalled
> > Elaine. "I promised him I would never let Vista or the chemical industry
> > forget who he was."
> >
> > And she hasn't. She teamed up with Billy Baggett to file a wrongful
death
> > suit against Vista. Baggett won a multimillion-dollar settlement for
Ross
> > in 1994, but she wasn't satisfied with just the money. She knew that her
> > husband's death wasn't an isolated incident -- that many other chemical
> > plant workers were dead, dying or sick because their employers weren't
> > telling them about potential health hazards. And Vista certainly wasn't
> the
> > only culprit.
> >
> > So Ross told Baggett to take the fight to the next level. Baggett did,
> > suing 30 companies and trade associations including the Chemical
> > Manufacturers Association (now called the American Chemistry Council)
for
> > conspiracy, alleging that they hid and suppressed evidence of vinyl
> > chloride-related deaths and diseases.
> >
> > As a result of the litigation brought on Ross's behalf, Baggett has been
> > able to obtain what he says is more than a million previously secret
> > industry documents over the past decade. These "Chemical Papers," as
they
> > are becoming known, chronicled virtually the entire history of the
> chemical
> > industry, much of it related to vinyl chloride -- minutes of board
> > meetings, minutes of committee meetings, consultant reports, and on and
> on.
> >
> > According to Jim Morris of the Chronicle, the documents suggested that
> > major chemical manufacturers closed ranks in the late 1950s to contain
and
> > counteract evidence of vinyl chloride's toxic effects. "They depict a
> > framework of dubious science and painstaking public relations,
coordinated
> > by the industry's main trade association with two dominant themes: Avoid
> > disclosure and deny liability." The chemical companies were hiding the
> fact
> > that they had "subjected at least two generations of workers to
excessive
> > levels of a potent carcinogen that targets the liver, brain, lungs and
> > blood-forming organs."
> >
> > "Even though they (the chemical companies) may be competitive in some
> > spheres, in others they aren't," Baggett told Morris. "They have a
mutual
> > interest in their own employees not knowing (about health effects), in
> > their customers not knowing, in the government not knowing."
> > "There was a concerted effort to hide this material," said Dr. David
> > Rosner, a professor of public health and history at Columbia University
> who
> > has reviewed many of the documents as part of a research project. "It's
> > clear there was chicanery."
> >
> > And while the documents show that the industry freely shared health
> > information among themselves, "the companies were evasive with their own
> > employees and the government," wrote Morris. "They were unwilling to
> > disrupt the growing market for polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic, used in
> > everything from pipe to garden hoses." The whole case and others like it
> > "accentuate the problem of occupational cancer, which, by some
estimates,
> > takes more lives (50,000) each year than AIDS, homicide or suicide, but
> > receives far less attention."
> >
> > "What I hope to achieve, through Billy, is that every man who works in a
> > chemical plant is told the truth and tested on a regular basis in the
> > proper manner," Elaine Ross told the Chronicle. "I want the chemical
> > companies to be accountable for every little detail that they don't tell
> > these men."
> > In a prepared statement, the Chemical Manufacturers Association called
> such
> > charges "irresponsible." The group said that it promotes a policy of
> > openness among its members.
> >
> > From Courtroom to Television Set
> > Award-winning TV producer Sherry Jones, who got access to the treasure
> > trove of chemical company archives, started deeply probing the industry
> and
> > its secret ways. She brought her findings to Bill Moyers, with whom she
> had
> > previously worked.
> >
> > Moyers agreed that the story needed to be told. The result of their
> > collaboration is "Trade Secrets," the 90 minute special that will be
> > followed by a 30 minute roundtable discussion among industry
> > representatives and advocates for public health and environmental
justice.
> > Coming as it does on Monday night, March 26 -- the night after the
Academy
> > Awards, where Julia Roberts may very well receive an Oscar for her
> > portrayal of Erin Brockovich -- this one-two punch of mass audience
> > attention could deal the chemical industry quite a blow.
> >
> > Meanwhile, the U.S. Center for Disease Control has released its
"National
> > Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals" (available at
> > www.cdc.gov/nceh/dls/report). The report, based on new technology that
> > measures chemcials directly in blood and urine, has found a wide range
of
> > dangerous chemcials present in most humans.
> >
> > Citizen activists and health experts have been fighting for decades to
> > protect their families from untested and unsafe synthetic chemicals. It
> has
> > been a difficult battle, due in part to public misconceptions. Almost 80
> > percent of Americans think that the government tests chemicals for
safety,
> > which is untrue. Aside from chemicals directly added to food or drugs,
> > there are no health and safety studies required before a chemical is
> > manufactured, sold or used in commercial or retail products. The same is
> > true for cosmetic products and the chemicals in them.
> >
> > So if the government isn't regulating chemical safety, who is?
> > Unfortunately, the chemical industry itself.
> >
> > As health advocates have long complained, this self-regulation simply
> isn't
> > enough. "For the most part, we rely on chemical companies to vouch for
the
> > safety of their products," says public health advocate Charlotte Brody,
a
> > former nurse. "That's like relying on the tobacco industry to assess the
> > risk of tobacco."
> >
> > Take the case of Dursban, Dow Chemical's indoor insecticide product.
Even
> > after 276 people filed lawsuits claiming that they were poisoned by
> > Dursban, Dow didn't reveal information about the product that proved its
> > toxicity. When the truth finally came out in 1996, the company was fined
a
> > miniscule $740,000 by the Feds for withholding information from public
> > officials.
> >
> > Critics have long said that strong government regulations would have
> > prevented such fiascoes, and with "Trade Secrets" and the Chemical
Papers
> > as ammunition, they may be closer to getting their wish than ever
before.
> >
> > Taking the Chemical Industry to Task
> > Using the Moyers special as a rallying point, a coalition of grassroots
> > groups called "Coming Clean" has bonded together to oppose the chemical
> > industry. In early March, dozens of national leaders -- health
> > professionals, scientists, activists and media experts -- gathered for a
> > weekend retreat in Northern Virginia to plan the elements of this
> long-term
> > assault. Charlotte Brody, currently Coming Clean's head organizer,
> > expressed the anger and outrage behind the meeting.
> > "For decades, chemical companies kept secret the hazards of chemicals
they
> > produce," Brody said. "These chemicals are in our food, our water, the
air
> > we breathe. Now, they're in all of us. Every child on earth is born with
> > these synthetic chemicals in their bodies, and only a small percentage
of
> > these chemicals have been adequately tested."
> >
> > Dr. Mark Mitchell, a physician from Hartford, Connecticut and one of the
> > leaders of the national effort, insisted that to protect ourselves and
our
> > children from the harm of toxic chemicals, "We must phase out all
> dangerous
> > chemicals over the next 10 years, beginning with those for which there
are
> > safer alternatives. And we must stop making the same mistakes, by
> > prohibiting the introduction of any new chemicals that pose a threat to
> our
> > health and our children's health. There also needs to be government
action
> > to insure the right to know about toxic chemicals, production, use and
> test
> > results."
> >
> > As a first step, Coming Clean plans to engage the public with the
message
> > of "Trade Secrets." All across the country, thousands of events and
> viewing
> > parties are being organized, timed to coincide with the Moyers show. The
> > events harken back to the campaign surrounding the 1980s nuclear
holocaust
> > film, "The Day After," which galvanized a vanguard of anti-nuke
activists
> > to oppose the arms race.
> >
> > "The local viewing parties will give people a chance to talk about the
> film
> > after they see it," says Stacy Malkan, Coming Clean's media coordinator.
> > "Rather than going to bed angry, they can discuss the issues with other
> > concerned neighbors, and then channel their outrage and ideas into
> powerful
> > grassroots coalitions."
> >
> > Momentum around the Moyers special seems to be picking up. The Whole
Foods
> > supermarket chain has agreed to carry Coming Clean's flyers in every one
> of
> > their stores, and many email listservs, chat rooms and message boards
are
> > buzzing about the March 26 show.
> >
> > While most viewings will happen in private homes, activists in dozens of
> > cities -- from Anchorage to Austin to Biddeford, Maine -- are holding
> > public viewing events. In Ann Arbor, for example, a public viewing will
be
> > held in an organic brew pub. In Buffalo, New York, environmental and
labor
> > leaders will stage a public showing, and will use it as an opportunity
to
> > recognize three local whistle blowers battling pollution and
environmental
> > injustice. And in San Francisco, where breast cancer rates are among the
> > highest in the country, Mayor Willie Brown, Representative Nancy Pelosi
> and
> > Senator Barbara Boxer will all watch the show at the public library.
> >
> > Eventually, the coalition hopes to harness the public outcry to push for
> > government regulations and class action suits against the chemical
giants.
> > Some organizers are hoping that Congress finally wakes up and focuses a
> > spotlight on the chemical industry, while others are calling for
corporate
> > accountability.
> >
> > "The American people deserve to know what chemical executives knew and
> when
> > they knew it," said Gary Cohen, a leader of the Boston-based
Environmental
> > Health Fund and co-coordinator of the group Health Care Without Harm.
> >
> > The Chemical Industry Backlash
> > In all likelihood, the chemical industry will trudge out familiar
> responses
> > to "Trade Secrets." They will bring in experts to argue the scientific
> > validity of chemical poisoning. They will say, for example, that doses
are
> > so low that animals would have to drink 50,000 bathtubs of contaminated
> > water to suffer any harm. But health professionals counter that small
> doses
> > can have measurable impact in humans, and that people are often more
> > sensitive to toxic substances than test animals. Furthermore, no tests
> have
> > been done on the cumulative, long term effects of small doses.
> > The industry also likes to tell the public that it has changed since the
> > 50's, 60's and '70s, when chemical companies stonewalled every request
for
> > information or hint of danger. Of course, major incidents like the
debacle
> > over Dursban undermine that claim. Thus, despite millions of dollars of
> > effort over the years, the public ranks the industry next to last in
terms
> > of public confidence (trailing only the tobacco industry).
> >
> > So the chemical industry has essentially abandoned it's efforts to
change
> > public opinion. As in most industries with health and safety issues, the
> > chemical giants focus instead directly on Congress, where lobbying and
> > campaign contributions are often more effective ways to wage their
battle.
> > Their goal is a simple one: to make sure that no laws would ever require
> > them to perform health and safety testing for the compounds they
produce.
> >
> > Needless to say, they have been totally successful thus far. But the
time
> > may be ripe for change. Polls show public sentiment is increasingly
> > anti-corporate. According to a recent Business Week poll, 82 percent of
> the
> > public feels that corporations wield too much power. According to a
recent
> > Roper poll, half the population feels that environmental regulations
> > haven't gone far enough.
> > With the chemical industry at the bottom of the public's "good corporate
> > citizen" list, a critical mass of citizens may soon come together to
fight
> > back.
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> > http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40356-2001Mar21.html
> > Moyers's Exclusive Report: Chemical Industry Left Out
> >
> > By Howard Kurtz
> > Washington Post Staff Writer
> >
> > Thursday, March 22, 2001; Page C01
> >
> > Bill Moyers, the dogged crusader of public television, is about to air a
> > typically tough exposé on the chemical industry.
> >
> > But unlike the most routine news story, the 90-minute documentary
includes
> > not a single comment from the industry under fire. Instead, Moyers has
> > invited two industry officials to play defense in a panel discussion
after
> > the program.
> >
> > "We're looking at this as Bill Moyers, media icon, statesman: Why isn't
he
> > including us in a story that's going to have a big impact on us?" said
> Terry
> > Yosie, vice president of the American Chemical Council. "We just want a
> fair
> > shake."
> >
> > But Moyers, noting that his report is based on hundreds of thousands of
> pages
> > of industry documents, said yesterday: "It's not that kind of story. We
> > designed the special to include them from the beginning, but in the
> half-hour
> > that follows the reportage. These documents exist. They are fact. They
are
> > not a matter of opinion or conjecture. We wanted to lay the record down,
> and
> > then we want the industry to respond to the whole."
> >
> > Yosie and his colleagues have peppered Moyers and PBS with letters
> > complaining about their exclusion in an effort to change the "Trade
> Secrets"
> > documentary before it airs Monday night. (The letters are posted on a
Web
> > site called AboutTradeSecrets.org.) Yosie spoke to Moyers yesterday
after
> a
> > meeting earlier this month, but the veteran newsman and onetime Lyndon
> > Johnson aide insisted there was no need for an on-camera interview.
> >
> > Despite the exclusion, Yosie said he and another industry official would
> join
> > PBS's taped panel discussion. "He's trying to make a comparison between
> our
> > industry and the tobacco industry -- that we're secretive, deceptive,
> > covering up information," Yosie said. "If we don't show up, that's going
> to
> > reinforce a message he's trying to peddle that we're tobacco-like. We
> think
> > we can hold our own."
> >
> > The program is likely to cause a stir, for there is no question that
> Moyers
> > has some highly damaging evidence. "It will open the eyes of a lot of
> people
> > in this country," he said.
> >
> > The documentary, which includes interviews with people affected by vinyl
> > chloride, draws on an archive of "secret" and "confidential" documents
> > unearthed in a lawsuit by the widow of a Louisiana chemical worker.
> > A 1959 memo to B.F. Goodrich, for example, says vinyl chloride "is going
> to
> > produce rather appreciable injury when inhaled seven hours a day, five
> days a
> > week for an extended period."
> >
> > A 1966 Goodrich memo says "there is no question but that skin lesions,
> > absorption of bone of the terminal joints of the hands and circulatory
> > changes can occur in workers associated with the polymerization of PVC."
> > "In other words, they knew vinyl chloride could cause the bone in the
> hands
> > of their workers to dissolve," Moyers says on the show.
> >
> > Ironically, the memo says of company officials: "They particularly want
to
> > avoid exposés like Silent Spring or Unsafe at Any Speed." Another
> document, a
> > 1973 Ethyl Corp. memo, says after rat tests that "the results certainly
> > indicate a positive carcinogenic effect."
> >
> > Should industry officials have been allowed to weigh in? "Sure, we could
> have
> > interviewed them and cut them down to fit my notion of what I wanted,"
> Moyers
> > said. "But that would have been unfair."
> >
> > In a letter last week to PBS President Pat Mitchell, Frederick Webber,
> > president of the ACC, said: "We fail to see how his investigative report
> will
> > be fair, accurate, balanced or complete.It should tell more than one
side
> of
> > a story."
> >
> > Yosie acknowledged that "this industry, like a lot of industries, has
> learned
> > a lot from past performance," but cautioned against "just picking out
one
> > segment of time and saying it's representative of today." Besides, he
> said,
> > "our concern about the records he has is that many of them have been
given
> to
> > him by plaintiffs' lawyers who represent a self-interested point of
view."
> >
> > But Moyers, who will plug the show in a National Press Club speech
today,
> is
> > comfortable with his approach. "If I had given it to them too far in
> advance,
> > they would have tried to do what industry has always done" -- launch a
> > preemptive strike against the broadcast. "The documents are the story,
not
> > the debate about the documents."
> >
> >
> > © 2001 The Washington Post Company
-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), March 23, 2001