When Abraham Lincoln said that our Fathers brought forth a new nation
in which All Men were created equal, he did not need to remind folks
that "All Men" meant only White Men, Land Owners 21 years and older.
And when Lincoln emancipated the slaves, he did not do so because he
believed that Black Skins were equal to White Skins. This was a
strategic move to create chaos in Southern States. Lincoln did not
free America from our White Superiority complex. Free Blacks were
actually in worse conditions, physically. Native Americans were still
forbidden to vote, or to intermarry with White women. Nor were the
Chinese who had been imported to build the nations railroads. For
better than 50 years following the Gettysburg speech, women continued
to have no voice in the nation's affairs, and Blacks continued to be
hunted and lynched and treated as personal property.
But we, all the rest of the people, were fed the lie that we owned our
government. We were taught to believe that we were World Leaders in
spreading democracy and Peace around the Globe.
But in recent days we find stories buried deep in our Mass Media
News/Entertainment that suggests not only do we not have control over
our government, but we've never had control, and this present
government continues to protect the descendants of our original
Forefathers. If we truly were a nation "of the people, by the people
and for the people", we would have turned our overabundance of wealth
toward creating a nation that would rival Paradise. We would not be
poisoning our people's air and water. We would not have Americans
living in squalor, or on the streets. We would not be bleeding our
children in order to obtain an education, or turning them into cannon
fodder to defend our corporation's overseas holdings. And especially,
we would not be confused regarding just what Donald Trump and his
Merry Band of Profiteers were doing to our nation.
Carl Jarvis
***
04/23/19. polluted-water-near-air-bases-endangers-pa-communities/
Polluted water near air bases endangers Pa. communities
/ 12 hours ago
faucet-1501177480-9021By JOHN LESLIE
In the suburban Philadelphia neighborhoods surrounding a two now-closed
U.S. Navy air bases, residents are faced with a drinking water crisis.
Groundwater contaminated with carcinogens linked to a fire fighting foam
forced the closing of both public and private wells. The Department of
Defense (DoD) knew as early as 2001 that fire fighting foam contained
potentially carcinogenic compounds. Pennsylvania Department of Health
studies have found an increased rate of pancreatic and bladder cancer
among residents in these communities.
Since 2014, public wells in Horsham, Warrington, and Warminster, Pa.,
have been shut down, affecting more than 83,000 customers. In all, a
total of 16 of 36 public wells and more than 200 additional private
wells have been taken out of service. The Navy and Air Force are paying
to connect well owners to public water systems.
The Naval Air Warfare Center in Warrington was closed in 1996. The
property was redeveloped into parks, homes, and businesses. The nearby
Willow Grove Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base has also been
shuttered, with a small section still under the jurisdiction of the Air
Force. Plans to build homes, schools, a retirement community, and
businesses on the site have been put on hold.
The government is investigating 400 military sites for water
contamination and has found it at more than two dozen bases so far. In
Bucks and Montgomery Counties, the contaminants have been found in
groundwater miles away from the bases.
The response by government authorities has been slow. The EPA has yet to
release a comprehensive plan for how to deal with these dangerous
chemicals. The chemicals, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl compounds,
or PFAS, including PFOA and PFOS, are implicated in kidney cancer,
testicular cancer, ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, and other health
conditions. These chemicals can be found in a wide range of household
items, including fabrics, rugs and carpets, cookware, outdoor gear,
shampoo, shaving cream, and cosmetics.
With more than 1000 bases overseas, and hundreds more in the U.S., the
U.S. military is widely recognized as a major polluter. However, this
pollution is rarely discussed in public or considered in terms of its
impact on the environment. Despite the military’s seeming unlimited use
of Climate Change inducing fossil fuels, the U.S. and other military
machines are not considered in international Climate Accords.
The issue goes beyond the use of fossil fuels and creation of greenhouse
gases. Military operations are implicated in radioactive and toxic waste
contamination. In Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, for example, the use of
depleted uranium rounds by tanks and aircraft has been linked to birth
defects and cancer. During the first Gulf War, the U.S. and its allies
targeted civilian infrastructure, destroying power stations, dams,
sewage treatment plants, hospitals, and schools. The sanctions following
the war made reconstruction of these facilities almost impossible and is
implicated in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis.
Frequently, foreign bases dispose of trash, medical waste, tires, and
other refuse in open-air burn pits. An Air Force staff sergeant told
this writer that, while they were deployed in Afghanistan, the smoke
from one such burn pit would envelope the flight line, forcing personnel
to breathe the toxic air.
The U.S. imperialists and other imperialist countries continue to use
their forces in wars for oil and other resources. As the climate crisis
continues to unfold, the probability exists that wars will be fought
over arable land and water sources. Likewise, the climate crisis could
lead to the use of military forces to maintain order, leading to attacks
on democratic rights.
War and militarism are a threat to our rights and very existence. The
billions of dollars squandered on maintaining military apparatuses and
wars worldwide must be redirected to meet human needs, remediate the
environmental damage already done, and prepare society to address the
effects of climate change. Building an effective movement against
climate change requires an internationalist and anti-imperialist
perspective.
In the communities of Bucks and Montgomery counties that have been
affected by toxic groundwater, the government must do more to remediate
the harm already done and ensure that drinking water is safe to drink.
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April 23, 2019 in Environment, Philadelphia.
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Christopher Hitchens
“ What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without
evidence. ”
― Christopher Hitchens,