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Another WW-I Chemical Site In Washington, DC
WrongSizeGlass writes "The AP is reporting that the US Army Corps of Engineers has uncovered what appears to be the fourth major disposal area for World War I-era munitions and chemical weapons in the nation's capital. Digging was suspended at a construction site after 'workers pulled smoking glassware from the pit — preliminary tests show the glassware was contaminated with the toxic chemical arsenic trichloride. ... Workers also discovered a jar about three-quarters full of a dark liquid that turned out to be the chemical agent mustard.' Someone needs to remind our government of the meaning of NIMBY."
The summary gives the impression like the U.S. Government has has been willfully ignoring the problem. The fact is there were so many munitions created for WWI and they were used in such a concentrated area that it's no surprise that there are stockpiles of the stuff still around. For example, 16 million acres of northern France had to be cordoned off at the end of the war. They are still pulling chemical weapons out of the ground in some places too, like a site off of a beach resort or this stockpile where farmers to this day plow up unexploded rounds in Belgium. The fact is, there are massive amount of chemical weapons scattered around still from that era and there isn't a hell of a lot that anyone can do about it so quit trying to pin this on the current government. In fact, if you read those links, you'll find the army corps of engineers is responding in a pretty responsible way compared with what they're going through in Houthulst (the last link).
Gentlemen! You can't fight in here, this is the war room!
The area was the Government's back-yard at the time, and the actual home where the munitions were found is Federal property today, so I think the NIMBY tag is misapplied.
There was a chemical weapons lab at American University during the first world war, and they apparently also were testing the weapons delivery systems, and fired all kinds of nasty stuff into what was then vacant land.
Which is not to say that it's OK, of course, only that it's a documentation and clean-up FAIL, and not really a NIMBY FAIL.
Also, I was surprised to see the article actually did refer to "smoking glassware", I had assumed that was an alarmist mis-interpretation of "smoked glass", but apparently they did find "smoking and fuming glassware".
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I thought the meaning of NIMBY was, "Yes, I agree that our town needs a new trash dump/electrical plant/sewage plant/prison, but Not In My Back Yard.
Put it on the Black/Poor side of town.
That is, historically, the meaning of NIMBY.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience with the VA, and I hope things get better for you. I've been getting my health care from them for decades and my experience is that it's much better now than it was twenty years ago. Almost everybody I interact with there understands that if it weren't for people like me, most of them wouldn't have jobs and that their income depends on how well they take care of us. And, mind you, most of what I use the VA isn't even service connected.
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Everybody was preparing for the war back then. Everybody.
One that hath name thou can not otter
George: The war started because of the vile Hun and his villainous empire-building.
Blackadder: George, the British Empire at present covers a quarter of the globe, while the German Empire consists of a small sausage factory in Tanganyika. I hardly think we can be entirely absolved from blame on the imperialistic front.
Blackadder: You see, Baldrick, in order to prevent a war in Europe, two super blocs developed: us, the French and the Russians on one side; and the Germans and Austro-Hungary on the other. The idea was to have two vast, opposing armies, each acting as the other's deterrent. That way, there could never be a war.
Baldrick: Except, well, this is sort of a war, isn't it?
Blackadder: That's right. There was one tiny flaw in the plan.
George: Oh, what was that?
Blackadder: It was bollocks.
Divide a cake by zero. Is it still a cake?
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/secret-airlift-of-nuclear-mate
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/iraq/tuwaitha.htm
http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/168/37640.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2856647.stm
http://www.mediamonitors.net/gowans36.html
That should get you started. Learn to use a search engine AC.
"Think about how stupid the average person is. Now, realise that half of them are dumber than that." - George Carlin
The problem is that we didn't just have a vote for the government to take over health care. If we did, there might be some hope.
You're right. Instead, we had an election where we (overwhelmingly) voted for a party that touted HCR as a huge portion of its platform. Shame on them for following through on their promises!
-- If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done? - Uli's moose
At least credit Wilfred Owen for his work, "Dulce et Decorum Est".
The First World War poets turned out some amazing work. I prefer Siegfried Sassoon, who is well worth reading,
"This post is an artistic work of fiction and falsehood. Only a fool would take anything posted here as fact."