Fighting the Wrong (Culture) War

By KIM BELLARD News flash from the culture wars: they’re coming to take our gas stoves! Well, actually, “they” are not, but the kind of people who got alarmed about it are a threat to our health, and to theirs. The gas stove furor started with a Bloomberg News interview that Richard Trumka, Jr, a Consumer Product Safety Commission commissioner. “This is a hidden hazard,” he said. “Any option is on the table. Products that can’t be made safe can be banned.” He was referring to the well known but little acknowledged fact that gas stoves emit various pollutants, especially nitrogen dioxide. Last year the AMA adopted resolutions about the risks of gas stoves, and urged migration efforts to electric stoves. Shelly Miller, a University of Colorado, Boulder, environmental engineer has said: Cooking is the No. 1 way you’re polluting your home. It is causing respiratory and cardiovascular health problems; it can exacerbate flu and asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in children…you’re basically living in this toxic soup. So one can see why the CPSC might be concerned. But the outcry about Mr. Trumka’s comments were immediate and vociferous. “I’ll NEVER give up my gas stove. If the maniacs in the White House come for my stove, they can pry it from my cold dead hands. COME AND TAKE IT!!” Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX) tweeted. The Atlantic further reported: Governor Ron DeSantis tweeted a cartoon of two autographed...
Source: The Health Care Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health Policy Culture Wars Gas Stoves Kim Bellard Source Type: blogs