Exxon Mobil Is Fighting to Keep Its Dangerous Chemicals in Childrens Toys

[Blue Shoes]

Source: The Intercept

Among Exxon Mobil’s chemical products are phthalates, a family of chemicals widely used to make plastic pliable. Phthalates are in everything from food containers and plastic wrap to rattles, pacifiers, bottle nipples, and teething toys for babies. More than 75 percent of Americans have at least five of the chemicals in their body, according to a 2000 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Exxon Mobil insists its products pose no harm. In response to inquiries for this story, the company emailed a statement to The Intercept saying that “Exxon Mobil phthalates have been thoroughly tested, and evaluations by multiple government agencies in the U.S., EU, and Australia show they are safe in their current applications.” (The email also included a link to the company’s webpage on the health and environmental impacts of phthalates.) But numerous independent studies have linked the chemicals to health problems, including cancer, neurodevelopmental effects, endocrine disruption, and adverse harm to the male reproductive system.

Given the risks, Congress permanently banned several phthalates in 2008, temporarily banned a few others, and directed the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) to study whether several other phthalates should also be removed from kids’ products. The law required the CPSC to act within 180 days of its final decision.

...

“Exxon has been sending letters, having meetings, they’re just constantly in CPSC’s face in a way designed to suggest that, if you go the wrong way on this, we’re going to sue you,” said Eve Gartner, an attorney with Earthjustice. Gartner and a few other environmental advocates try to attend these meetings whenever possible, but they describe being outgunned by the big company’s lobbying efforts.

Read more: https://theintercept.com/2016/12/20/exxonmobil-is-fighting-to-keep-its-dangerous-chemicals-in-childrens-toys/

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I forget which company Trumps SoS used to work for, but surely they must be extremely ethical for him to even be considered. /s

[DK504]

1. Exxon Mobil insists its products pose no harm.

You mean just like the way they began to discredit it's own findings on the reality of climate change. In the 70's their scientists proved without a shadow of a doubt that manmade toxins, like oil and it's products they shove down our throats. In the 80's they took a complete 180 on their studies and proof. When will the reality of that come out?

Seems NPR runs that story all the time, but never have I heard that little bit of sunshine on the TV machine.

[Igel]

2. Haven't seen that on tv.

Then again I don't watch tv.

Have read it in some MSM newspapers--NYT sort of thing.

As an aside, "they lied once, that means they always lie" is an overgeneralization. It labels as false even when they do tell the truth, but it means that you have a ready way to dismiss anything that the person or group you don't like might say without having to think about it.

There's fake news taken to be true news; then there's true news that's assumed to be fake. Both are bad, but in some ways the second is worse. In any event, we need both processes to protect ourselves--fake news to reaffirm the wrong things we believe, and declaring truth to be fake in order to fend off pesky things we don't like.