Impacts of Waste: You are what you eat, drink, and breath! (Basic Etiology)

     Many man made chemicals have been observed to impede the absorption of nutrients, weaken immunity or cause abnormalities in the body.   Biochemical and genetic damages are caused by (teratogens) harmful substances that cross the placenta barrier such as drugs, alcohol, pollution, and radiation (Sue, Sue, Sue, 2000).  Damages include birth defects and adverse impacts on bodily functions and can damage the brain, the central nervous system and other areas of the body- contributing or potentially causing a long list of mild, moderate and severe physical and mental health conditions. 

     It is generally known that weakened immunity increases risks for the development or progression of illness.  In simple terms the greater, longer, or the more repeated the exposure to anything weakening the immune system, the greater the risks posed.  Therefore, teratogens (toxins) should be treated as serious threats to safety and welfare.  A correlation to the capability of toxins to destroy life has been scientifically demonstrated, yet the tolerances of such hazards are routinely permitted.  Thus, infatuation with poisons, limits of knowledge and a need for humanity to adapt healthier ways of living is evident. 

     The consequences of waste resulting from the growth of human populations and the industrial revolution are presenting an opportunity for a major shift in how productivity and success are defined. Synthetic toxins impact life on earth, our habitats, atmosphere, and even outer space.  How controls and accountability processes applied to the development, sale, and use of toxins becomes a central task once it is accepted there is a significant threat posed by toxins.   Doctor Rachel Carson wrote, "If we are going to live so intimately with these chemicals, eating and drinking them, taking them into our very bones-we had better know something about their nature and their power."  In 1994 editions of Silent Spring former Vice President Al Gore wrote of environmental regulation this way, "we have inherited a system of laws and loopholes, deadlines and delays, facades that barely disguise a wholesale failure of policy.”  Since society at large is implicated for consenting or at least tolerating toxic abuses, it is society at large who should, in my opinion, assume the responsibility to advocate for and ensure the implementation of reforms regarding toxins. 

Sustainable enforcement of reasonable and safer lifestyles with regard to the use of technology (including toxins) which is more in harmony with nature depends largely on the willing cooperation of people and available intelligence and other resources in the supply and demand chain.  However, before adequate limits and methods may be established regarding the use of technology, awareness of dangers and agreements must be forged.  Without greater awareness of dangers and practical agreements, ideal practices in one area of the world may be rendered entirely irrelevant based on actions taking place elsewhere on earth.  Therefore, the solution necessarily requires a cross-section of society including government, business, and consumers.   

The precarious condition of statehood and recent dawn of the intelligent machine age presents serious challenges to the presumed albeit rapidly decaying role of ethics and values. Under historical review, ethics can be viewed as an instrument of manipulation for opportunists. On the micro scale ethics are minor, but important influences on human behavior in contrast to impulse and modes of behavior driven by variables acting on personality in the realm of immediate action.   Still, standards, ethics and awareness are central to gaining cooperation in the implementation of solutions and regulations that work to protect or otherwise advocate for a reasonable quality of life.  Based on the track record of dominant nations in the 21 Century, however, it is entirely understandable that the imposition of regulations concerning development and any limits on the use of technology, should not be imposed militarily, if avoidable, but rather led by civil unions around the globe.   

Trust and the theory of mutual reliance are also critical in gaining a universal foothold on the problem describe as the exaggerated Death and Destruction Tendency. Moving society in the direction of not needing so much policing and greater freedom and advances in equality requires planning and commitments to uphold a basic commitment to nonviolence. 

The duty to sufficiently explain and prevent harm and it’s causes rests with anyone interested in protecting life.  Moving in the direction of agreement on the universal definitions of toxins and responsible use of technology and defining universal standards that protect the interest of the biodiversity on earth is key to the stabilization of global affairs. In fact, this issue is as a matter of domestic and foreign policy, a top priority in the institutionalization of a code of care.  Such a code, should  be supportive of the principles collectively described as a threshold of mutual reliance and should be symbiotic with natural laws.  This mutual reliance point may be best defined as the point at which humans, in order to survive, must have specific opportunities and work to secure those opportunities with minimal interruption elsewhere in the chain of life. 

     Synthetic pesticides are created by humanities persistence in the alteration of molecules, substituting atoms and manipulating their arrangement.  Some poisons destroy enzymes whose function is to protect the body from harm.  Enzymes help in metabolism, without them the body loses the ability to gain energy and materials from food.  Enzymes are involved with the oxidation processes from which the body receives its energy.  Toxins prevent the normal functioning of various organs and they may initiate in certain cells the slow and, so far, irreversible change that leads to malignancy or cancer (Carson, 1962). 

     Furthermore, nutritional imbalances caused either by a lack of proper nutrition or abnormalities in how the body grows and processes nutrients can impede development or the normal functions carried out by the body.  For example, Multiple Osteochondrama (MO), a rare bone disease involves a genetic variation that inhibits vitamin D uptake and causes a lapse in markers which typically cue bones to shape and grow as needed  ( http://www.mheresearchfoundation.org,2012).   The variation in genetic predisposition in MO patients causes bones to grow in an irregular manner and bones can intrude into other regions of the body and cause many different types of complications in addition to increased risks of cancer. The original cause of this genetic mutation is currently unknown.  While natural organisms and naturally occurring substances, such as radiation, attack the genetic code of life, rationalizations to speed or cause disease or death or cause unnecessary man-made risks is concerning and usually not very well justified.      

     When you introduce a substance or element that does not already naturally exist in a being, a properly working immune system attempts to fight off detected invaders. This effort to defend oneself can cause the immune system to tire (be suppressed) and the person made more susceptible to disease.  Even daily stress unchecked can weaken the body and pose as a significant health risk, even sudden death.  The constant exposure to poisons and other environmental hazards weakens the immune system and could produce several consequences including acute toxicity, mental health problems, developmental problems, genetic damage, brain damage, liver damage or the loss of function in several internal biological systems including the central nervous system. 

     If poisonous exposures are not neutralized or expelled, people can suffer neurological and physiological damage.  People with compromised immune systems are more vulnerable to catch viruses, develop diseases including tumors.  Some poisons weaken our bodies natural defenses and make us more susceptible to deadly disease, especially cancer, due to the way toxins inhibit the body’s natural production of energy, damage our nervous systems, and prevent processes like oxidation in cells from occurring. 

     Chemicals combine and suspected to cause mutations which are beyond our ability to track, observe and classify with current equipment in the scientific community. Also, the effects of chemicals may not become apparent for many generations.

     Toxins impact replication of DNA.  Regarding exposure to toxins, one study showed increased vulnerability in some stages of human development.  For example the mortality rates of children and embryo’s differed pointing to specific periods of increased risk for abnormal development or death following exposures particularly for embryos.  Generally, following toxic exposures of radiation, significant abnormal developments and increased deaths were trends observed by scientists following the Nuclear explosions at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan (Kato, H. 1971).  

Exposure Points:

     Toxins are absorbed through the skin, breathed in as spray or dust, injected or swallowed. Toxins can be found in water, air, soils, cleaning supplies, fragrances, aerosol sprays, fertilizers, pesticides, detergents, personal hygiene products, dental products, automobiles, seafood, manufactured goods, building materials, consumer and commercial goods, medicines, medical devices, ammunitions and chemical weapons including weapons of mass destruction, paints, herbicides and in many fruits, vegetables and processed foods as additives or preservatives, drugs, genetically engineered seeds and more.

     In fact, there are no full-proof tests to detect harmful substances since they combine and mutate beyond our ability to track and classify them (Cadicott , H., 1994 Carson, R. 1940’s, and 1994,Hunsucker, R, Botanist/ Naturalist WV, 1994.)   

  Observing Corruption

     The CIA 2012 report (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html) on the territory of the United States of Americareports the U.S.has become a leader in the consumption of toxic drugs, “world's largest consumer of cocaine.”  Interestingly, other records implicating the growth of fraud and other internal issues occurring within the U.S. are no longer viewable on the CIA site, but the criminal statistics offered by the FBI and other agencies in year over year reports show concerning trends that reinforce the general notion that laundering and corruption remain serious problems in the U.S.  Motivations like immediate gratification, impulsive decision-making, and increasing wreckless disregard can be attributed to problematic forms of lawlessness driven by bias, distorted and error-prone subjectivity and a fast shrinking law enforcement systems, weakening education and substantially compromised Judicial systems within the U.S. The overall-weakened economy and recent decade spending priorities and the efficiency and real effectiveness of that spending helps to explain how many social problems have compounded  with decreased law enforcement and drops in education and jobs in the U.S. 

Problem Statement

     Dr. Carson observed, “Since the mid- 1940's over 200 basic chemicals have been developed to kill insects, weeds, rodents and other organisms... They are sold under several thousand different brand names (Carson, 1962 p.7). Such chemicals are being unleashed in the world causing illnesses and contributing to the rise of environmentally related diseases and deaths- accidental or otherwise. 

     Profitable, but harmful chemical agents that often are not essential and not well enough researched or disclosed are causing harm to a growing number of victims.   

Globally, too many toxins are misclassified, unclassified, unknown, produced, distributed, and permitted to freely exist in essential and non-essential products and often  toxic materials are added as non-essential ingredients to the demise of the environment and consumers whom are ignorantly placed in harms way without being in possession of the facts and associated risks. 

     Part of building sustainable environments means having a practical approach to managing toxic waste and harmful behavior in general. 

     Interventions are needed to protect deoxyribononucleic acid (DNA), the building blocks of life because the production of toxic chemicals is widespread (Kaufman & Franz 1996), not adequately controlled and causing harm to life in many ways (Gore, A. 1994).  Until toxins are contained and controlled at the source, the death toll will continue to escalate, the quality of life will continue to decline, and DNA will remain plagued and corrupted. 

     As the process of toxic accumulation accelerates, health care costs have risen dramatically over the last century and will likely continue to rise unless healthier environments and lifestyles are achieved. 

     While it is a significant good intention to improve health care delivery systems, we must not ignore that lifestyles and behavior choices greatly impact illness or wellness outcomes.  Unhealthy dependencies on health care systems largely oriented to responding to crises versus being prevention oriented is worth reviewing.  Expanding preventative medicine as a legitimate form of health care is key.  Especially when resistance to health care reform is present regardless of the law. 

Containment, Caps, Consensus and Clean-up:  Shifting culture and Economy to Clean and Green- a 21 Century Agenda.

     Making the decision to exert more effort to better contain and better control the use of toxins comes with immense responsibilities.  Affirming a commitment to equal opportunity to maximize potentials and preserve delicate balances necessary to sustain life for us all has far reaching implications. However, the term equilibrium is still not a fixed concept.  Scientific, law and common behavioral practices and ideological constraints make preservation of natural habitats a challenging task.   

    Since toxins contain known and unknown risks, it is argued that limits or caps placed on the use of toxins should be subject to rigorous controls, subject to scientific scrutiny and that consistent monitoring with transparency and input from the public, whom ultimately must bare the consequences of hazardous materials that are showing up in our food (Robbins, J. 1991) water, (Kaufman & Franz,1996), (Congressional Research Service, 1990) and air Caldicott, H. 1994 p.22).  In some cases caps on toxins are in place, but in other places caps are lacking or plainly failing or not properly implemented (Peterson, R. ) (Gore, A. 1994).  Additionally, many toxins are logically argued to be avoiding detection due to limits in technology, available tools and strained monitoring capabilities (Hunsucker,R. 1993).   

     According to Al Gore’s introduction in 1994 editions of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, pesticide use on farms alone had doubled to 1.1 billion tons a year. The production of known dangerous chemicals had by 1994 increased by 400 percent over the baseline observed by Dr. Carson in the 1950’s.

    Many toxins are alleged to be currently inconsistently regulated locally and globally due to competing interests such as; private wealth, public constituency conflicts of interest issues (politics), limitations of knowledge and breakdowns in the application of intelligence that produce weak consensus on thresholds used to determine safe limits on toxins.  Inadequate prevention measures and what allowable tolerance ratings and definitions are established are sharply debated (Caldicott, H. 1994).  Allowed toxic tolerance levels in and of themselves are not reliable because immune system responses can vary significantly between people.

     Unfortunately definitions that define toxins within various industries using toxins largely do not match.  Even within scientific communities sufficient agreement to produce a universally applied definition to the very term TOXIN itself is not easily found and tends to vary significantly.  A universal definition is proposed in this article to help outline and focus the scope of concern.     

     Environmental Related Illnesses (ERI) and rising consumer demands are pressing for transitions away from the industrial “waste” age.  Luckily, demand for more new cleaner and greener methods, products, and solutions are spurring positive revolutions in many sectors of society. Healthier alternative futures have an encouraging opportunity to be better supported, developed, and implemented globally as humanity attempts to learn from recent experiences managing and suffering the damages caused by pollution.  Faluga, Japan, 3 Mile Island, Cheynoble, countless oil spills, smog, rising temperatures are all painful reminders that we are far from being a green economy.  In fact, trends from EPA violation records show a pattern of elevating violations over a ten year period (U.S. EPA, 2013).  That observation draws into question the usefulness of fines originally intended to deter environmental crimes and points to a need to more effectively control wreck-less endangerment now in progress on a major scale.     

     Stronger industry standards and regulations which conform to meet consumer demands for safe non-toxic food and products and simultaneous protections for the integrity of natural ecosystems are needed. 

     Greater controls regarding the development, manufacture, and use or toxins is needed.  Furthermore, the containment and destruction or required replacement of toxins with effective non-toxin alternatives (where possible) are also needed.  Where non-regulatory methods are concerned, the optimal end-result method is the wholesale conversion of toxic production to cleaner and safer options.  In many cases education on nontoxic alternatives has proven to be effective in preventing hazardous waste related problems.  However, greater controls that eliminate or reduce toxins and destructive behaviors in general are equally important.  Due to competing interests, business can’t be left to regulate itself and government dependent on business is also vulnerable to corruption. Watchdogs are substantially weak in contrast.  Thus, consumer awareness and actions are key to managing the green crisis.  Also, developing mechanisms to grow better self-regulation in business and lessen corruption in government is central in the partnership between business, government and civil populations. 

     Many disease epidemics can be reasonably predicted given available reliable data trends based on existing facts.  Advancements in the identification and treatment of environmentally related diseases is important, but what is more important is that drastic progress may be greatly achieved with greater attention and support for disease prevention strategies and actions.  The rapid implementation of disease prevention strategies requires a different level of response from communities shifting from passive to active. Information alone is not capable of dramatically altering human behavior, which is subject to multiple variables of influence (Jackson, R. 2007.)  So while education is seen as a helpful method, incentives and supportive actions that produce changes in behaviors where they are identified to be problematic is key.  For example, someone diagnosed with diabetes and given dietary recommendations as a part of treatment plans might be more inclined to make changes if adequate support to execute significant lifestyle changes was provided. 

Central Recommendation

     A variety of pollution sources points allow contaminants to enter the environment. Those pollutants interact in food chains or in nature generally to cause defects and damages to life and even future life in some instances.  Therefore, it is clear that pollution prevention is key to preservation and quality of life issues.    

     Disease Control is fundamentally tied to global security interests, because in the case of the U.S., preventing health epidemics lower health costs, U.S. debt obligations, strengthens the economy, and upholds the intent of mandates implicit inside the Constitutional declaration that Government derives it’s just power by and for the protection of the people (U.S. Constitution, 1776). Preventing further toxic contamination in water and food supplies is central to security efforts.  Dr. Carson, Dr. Caldicott, and countless other scientists and environmental law enforcement agents have previously illustrated that damaging pollution is being found at alarming levels in food, air, and various waterways across the U.S. with wide ranging devastating health impacts on people and the equilibriums of environments upon which the quality of all life depends (Kaufman & Franz, 1996).  The pollution problem is further compounded due containment limitations, a wide array of exemptions, loopholes, toxin export business activities, and enforcement constraints due to shrinking enforcement budgets and the availability of trained enforcement staff and a lack of community support.  Often, the incentive to pollute outweighs the monetary fine and slap on the wrist violators are subject to.

     The U.S. relies on a vast amount of food imports to meet consumption needs.  The ability to measure or even detect some toxins is often beyond modern tools detention abilities.  The ability to efficiently monitor food supplies is not a simplistic matter either.  Competing private and commercial interests vary widely and tend to change through time from country to country, even state to state in domestic commerce.  This competitive culture internationally produces inconsistent approaches to regulate food and other products safety practices.  The result is we are seeing recalls of products (I.e baby toys) and food, usually after alleged “accidents” have occurred.  This is especially concerning when goods are being imported from countries that the U.S. has a complicated relationship with.      

     Enforcement of toxic limits are substantially limited and often skewed even where and when significant and perhaps well intentioned regulations exist. Thus, the best solution is actually to push for elimination of non-critical toxins and to drastically restrain the availability and use of toxins.   

The Survival Factor:

     Toxins are presenting significant health and regulatory challenges.  The quality of life, and single factor of survival rest in large measure on the simple demand that non-essential toxins be eradicated and greater safeguards and controls be placed to contain the damages and potential damages caused by what should in my opinion be a radical reduced number of allowed toxins or essential waste products based on specific life protecting criterion subject to full disclosure and rigorous multi-discipline critiques and clear controls. 

     Adverse toxic trends that strike at the foundations of life and how such contaminations are contrary to the basic virtues of all truly prosperous societies is vital to review- especially when population growth and political instability is rampant.  As more countries undertake development projects there are real opportunities to learn from past mistakes and better manage the use of toxins to avoid repeating mistakes.   This includes industrial and military uses of toxic materials.  The incidents in Syria in 2013 and other parts of the world where civilians are victims in wars serve as reminders that greater control actions and prevention methods are needed to reduce or prevent contamination which leads to an array of biological and compounding psychological damages. 

     The response to the toxin crisis must include compassion and safer alternatives and officially end the injection of harmful toxins into our environments which began to rapidly intensify in WWI & WWII (early to mid 1900’s.)  It is important to note that the massive destruction of forests in late 1400-1800’s in the America’s and in the last few decades in South America where the last remaining larger tracks of original forests remain, significantly weakens nature’s ability to clean toxins out of the air.  Less trees are alleged to be accelerating the ozone problem, which is argued by many, but not all, ecologists to be contributing to the earths warming and related chain reactions observed in nature.  The destruction of tree’s and escalation of chemical assaults on the planet are an incredible unintelligent precursor to what may soon be accepted as major contributors to a wide range of diseases and the already observed acceleration of Cancer epidemics (Anand, P, et al. 2008).   

     Destroying forests impacts habitats and disrupts the balance in the diversity of life. Destroying undiscovered life and potential medicines can have incredible unforeseen consequences and propel destructive chain reactions that are now in motion and have been observed to some extent in marine life and remote regions such as the Alaska’s with vast melting of the Earth’s ice caps held to be critical to maintaining both temperature, water and air currents, and geographic coastal waterlines besides habitat.

Solutions and Recommendations to Minimize Toxic Problems:      

     Many harmful toxins are currently inadequately controlled and accountability is weak.  Increasing controls over toxins and encouraging greater accountability through education and policy which illustrates medical consequences and the implementation of much more severe penalties for violators of law(s) may help curb damages resulting from toxins. 

 

     Waste management costs and medical casualties stemming from toxins are not currently being calculated in profit making margins, but ultimately such costs are picked up by tax payers.  Greater product public health safety regulation can help reverse  trends for toxic consumption and encourage reforms.  However, the social tolerances of toxins, the public’s willingness to absorb the risks and ignorance about those risks, appears to be a strong force driving the escalating use of toxins.  Disproportionate  slower paces of change to more sustainable positions is explained by socio-economic conditions, mainly awareness and opportunity, which inherently impact consumer choices.   

 

     The following actions encourage and support healthier developments and deters destruction caused by toxins:      

·        Promote a Universal Definition to the term Toxin- Common definitions for toxins do not yet sufficiently exist.  Developing a common universal definition for the term toxin would impact enforcement capabilities and priorities globally.  The suggested definition is :

     Toxins are liquids, solids, and/or gases that cause damage to life and may result in impaired development, disease, involuntary death or the extinction of species.  Toxins are man-made and naturally occurring from elements that produce harmful reactions and effects (Jackson, 2005, The Brink Pg 22).   Due to the manner in which toxins may combine the ability to identify and observe toxins is limited by the available intelligence and tools which must be routinely updated through time.

• Institutionalizing a zero tolerance policy for non-essential man-made toxins and strengthening education initiatives to support alternatives to toxins are key to the eradication of non-essential toxins and implementing greater controls over essential toxins.   It is apparent that nothing short of sweeping changes in technologically sophisticated lifestyles and curbing destructive unsustainable behavioral trends will preserve the rights and liberties of current or future generations.  Dramatically restructuring industries and lifestyles to eliminate all non-essential waste productions and converting adverse manufacturing methods to utilize non-toxic alternatives is critical to protecting safety and welfare.  The partnership between consumers, producers, and environmental safety regulators is an important determinant in the preservation of the environment and reflects the commitment level to the allowance for optimal development to occur without the influence of terratogens.   It is important that the institutional machinery not be dramatically influenced by a particular administration or philosophy.  Just as one could reasonably anticipate laws would be maintained from one presidency to the next, so should the commitment to uphold commitments to scientific advancement and the preservation or advancement of the quality of life.  Partisan politics and politicians in general should not be the agenda setters based on supporter funding and back door deals.  The job of the modern politician is to represent constituent concerns and promote or preserve mutual interests.  Thus, where law is concerned, environmental or otherwise, standards and guidelines should be based in evidence and strategies proven to help and that give back tangible results. Likewise, the public should demand no less of policy makers, that they produce results in the common interest, least we be content being governed by hypocrites.  Such guidelines or standards can help to validate the investment of resources dedicated to enforce and further develop strategies that reflect and even protect the public’s interests, which is the job of leadership.  Achieving and maintaining such standards designed to maintain healthy development equilibriums aides trust and combats corruption, which is presently evident in alarming trends in health, education, poverty, war, crime, unemployment, resource use and distribution, concentration of wealth and the contamination and depletion of natural habitats.   

 

·        Develop Alternatives: Conversion Investment Initiatives-

A)    Investing in alternative energy research and projects moving to renewable energies and supporting conversion projects is important.  Public education designed to help consumers make better choices is critical.

B)    Many large companies are transitioning their business to more sustainable practices simply because in the long run it is the only way they will be able to keep themselves operating.  Despite and slow march towards greener (symbiotic) lifestyles, and the heavy investment needed up front cutting into profits now, change is certainly happening and the payoff will be less contamination, healthier people, and hopefully a lighter footprint on the earths non-renewable resources and wildlife.  

C)    Advocate for the return of empirical methods and accountability and reinvigorate ethics of accountability, the greater good, and standards for success and good health that are valid and reliable. 

D)    Support independent critical thinking and instill skills for the optimization of human development and support free thinking, but be practical regarding the behavior and consequences of the less ingenious inventions and destructive activities of even well intentioned, but naïve practitioners.

E)     Offer incentives (social and economic) to companies that meet specific carbon/ toxic emissions and waste reduction goals which consequently lowers costs in enforcement and reduces costs following accidents or intentional acts of violence where toxins are often involved.     

 

•  Constitutional Controls and protections that provide for the Containment of Toxins- Responsibility over the protection of the people and the welfare of the State are currently subject to constitutional (U.S. Federal, State and Local) regulations.  Such provisions allow for power to be allocated through a variety of bodies designed to execute the will of the people as expressed via existing policies and procedures- the mandate and test of Government.  Thus, security protocols aimed at preserving the welfare and the safety of the people necessarily includes reasonable responses to challenges presented by the abusive or gross use of toxins.  Enforcement and emergency response agencies should have adequate abilities to respond to problems, accidents, and new discoveries concerning the impacts of toxins in order to protect populations or minimize damages.  To ensure the separation of powers and prevent conflicts of interests that could compromise public safety, data used in making decisions regarding policies for and or against the use of toxins should be subject to transparent reviews.  Discourse should be encouraged in congressional over-site committees that provide mandates and direct enforcement agencies.  Such committees should be transparent and enjoy the input and scrutiny of watchdogs and partners in the community.  To protect the public from false positives, errors, and poor research methods, there should be checks and balances established.  Checks and balances to ensure any actions forced upon the public, like school vaccinations or adjustments in allowable levels of toxins in food are consistent with missions to protect the public and therefore should be tightly and fairly regulated by qualified personnel.  This checks and balance system whatever shall prevail must be sufficient as to not allow the State to become an unintended instrument of wreak less endangerment. 

 

Amendments both locally and nationally to strengthen protections- Current rules, classification systems, and regulations need to be revised to include much stiffer penalties for violators in relation to toxic materials (hazardous waste). 

 

Conflicts of Interests: 

    Analysis, regulations, and enforcement must have safeguards to prevent conflicts of interests within toxic industries. For example monopolized markets, or otherwise controlled markets dependent on the use of chemicals should be limited in their ability to buy candidates through political caps on funds contributed to Super Packs or other influential mechanism that could impact decision making and permit processes concerning toxins.   Caps to candidates can allow donors money to go to solving problems and discourage embezzling.    Furthermore, an amnesty period to permit the necessary adjustments with regards to the use of toxins is suggested. 

 

    To address corruption and conflicts of interests existing in current regulatory efforts, a new checks and balance process needs to be developed and introduced by neutral agencies with protected funding streams.  Major changes in the use of toxins will have far reaching economic impacts.  Thus, this program needs to be phased in over time, except in known immediate life threatening situations. 

 

• Deter use of non-essential Toxins through Mass Media Campaigns -    Massive consumer education campaigns that highlight nontoxic alternatives need to be launched at local, national, and international levels to also help empower consumers to make better selections among existing products.  Such campaigns may align and deter the use of toxins simply through consumer demands and purchasing power.  Encouraging lifestyles that are more sustainable and less damaging overall requires informed decision-making.  Thus, mass media is a vehicle where social responsibility can be expressed and hopefully modeled. 

 

Ethics and  traditions where knowledge, regulations, or enforcements regarding toxins are lacking are a major threat.  The stronger the ethics, and stronger the rewards for not violating life, the greater the odds that behavior will be sufficiently checked by motivations to preserve the greater good, except for where abnormal behavior is present.  However, immediate gratification is often a stronger motivator that clouds judgment and it is argued that the norm is actually to act on the perceived notion of comfort, avoidance of pain, and self interests, which is often misinformed or strained.  For those reasons, ethics and education are less helpful and the lack of availability of toxins or instruments of destruction is generally the most effective means of control. While elimination is unlikely,  advocating elimination will produce reductions and hopefully more rigorous controls.     

 

     One suggestion to people trying to reduce toxic exposures is to avoid buying products that contain harmful ingredients and poisons. People will find it necessary to become familiar with ingredients, nutrients, and controversial additives.  Learning to identify and avoid companies and products putting questionable ingredients in goods is currently a complex challenge that could be made easier with color coded product rating systems.  For example, organic farming that does not rely on highly toxic manure from the local turkey plant which uses growth hormones on turkeys should have a higher rating than an organic farm that uses only non-toxic methods to grow the food from start to finish.  Ironic contradictions and loop holes exist.  For example, an organic farmer can use highly toxic chicken manure and use contaminated water supplies which contain chemical traces of toxins to grow food, but still sell the food as organic produce if the trace elements are not tested or, if there detected levels are low enough on the scales of acceptable levels.  Virtually, we have created systems regulating allowable levels of toxins based on what is known- which from a scientific point of view is a dangerously ignorant gamble.  It’s dangerous because what is known about how toxins accumulate, how toxins attack the organs and central nervous system, and how toxins mutate once combined with other chemicals.  Thus, the license to regulate toxins is a license to shatter the genome, the very hereditary information once held as sacrid or supreme is now held to be expendable in the pursuit of profit and technological innovation although true prosperity is tarnished by futile attempts to disregard natural laws such as depletion theory, which holds any unsustainable system with self destruct and show observable factors which indicate the deterioration of the failing system(s).    

 

     Any rating system gets difficult, when ground water is polluted and when acid rain is also considered.  All this points to the danger of allowing man-made toxins to be used for any purpose whatsoever.   The long-term consequences of toxins should not be justified when the scientific data of damages are unknown and not fully considered and understood.  Furthermore, cumulative nature of toxins make it important to not take unnecessary risks using toxins where and when safer options exist.       

 See Part 3