August 25, 2011
— Gabriel Malor Beware activists masquerading as scientists; they're usually just working out their pet peeves. Case in point: a particularly unscientific "study" done by a hypochondriac who thinks dryer sheets are causing cancer:
The research was carried out by Professor Anne Steinemann, an expert on the effects of pollution at the University of Washington in Seattle.Researchers analysed the fumes emitted from tumble dryers when cycles were run with the detergent and scented dryer sheets.
Analysis of the captured gases found more than 25 volatile organic compounds, including seven hazardous air pollutants, coming out of the vents.
See, it uses all those sciencey-sounding words like "analysed" and "research" and "expert." The study is here (PDF), if you want to look. Professor Steinemen claims that dryer sheets can "affect not only personal health, but also public and environmental health. The chemicals can go into the air, down the drain and into water bodies."
There's a major problem with Steinemen's "study." Mere exposure to chemicals does not lead to cancer. She completely sweeps the potential toxicity (or lack thereof) under the rug. This is the same flaw that the folks claiming that cell phones cause brain cancer make. Yes, if you hit the brain with enough RF bad things will happen to it. No, cell phones do not emit enough.
Like her irrational fear of dryer sheets, Steinemen has shared some other interesting beliefs in the past. Steinemen, who does not live in Missouri, once asked the state to ban air fresheners in schools. Apparently, her "studies" weren't getting enough traction, so she went right to the authorities.
This is the tried-and-true method for hack scientists to gain traction. They must compensate for a lack of evidence by simply screaming louder, claiming epic-levels of danger, and crying "It's for the CHILDREN!" while hoping that their shrillness will cause risk-averse government authorities to give in to their silly theories. When it comes to dryer sheets, Steinemen gives the game away too easily:
This is an interesting source of pollution because emissions from dryer vents are essentially unregulated and unmonitored.
Posted by: Gabriel Malor at
08:15 AM
| Comments (254)
Post contains 361 words, total size 3 kb.
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:16 AM (iYbLN)
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:17 AM (iYbLN)
Posted by: Truman North, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:17 AM (K2wpv)
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 25, 2011 08:18 AM (jx2j9)
Posted by: Vic at August 25, 2011 08:18 AM (M9Ie6)
btw, this "professor" is no more radical than Obama and the rest of his college-faculty administration.
Posted by: Soothsayer at August 25, 2011 08:19 AM (G/zuv)
Personally, I'm more frightened of fluoride harming my precious bodily fluids....
Posted by: shibumi at August 25, 2011 08:19 AM (z63Tr)
Posted by: MWR, Proud Tea(rrorist) Party Hobbit at August 25, 2011 08:20 AM (4df7R)
Posted by: Jimmah at August 25, 2011 08:21 AM (NIjD4)
Posted by: huerfano at August 25, 2011 08:21 AM (kD+se)
Posted by: working man's PhD at August 25, 2011 08:22 AM (le5qc)
I took a course in epidemiology. The professor, a woman, was worried about what everyone else ate and how much they weighed. You know the type.
Anyway, she pestered the university's food services to remove the dessert cart from the floor. I shit you not. She made it so you had to ask for dessert if you wanted.
Her point was that if the dessert was not in front of you, tempting you, you would be less likely to eat it.
Posted by: Soothsayer at August 25, 2011 08:22 AM (G/zuv)
The method only works if there are sympathetic loons in the government. The scientists will eventually out the bad scientists among their ranks, but there is no good mechanism for getting rid of the apocalyptic scare-mongers without science backgrounds. If there were, Barney Frank wouldn't still be in office.
Posted by: pep at August 25, 2011 08:22 AM (GMG6W)
Posted by: working man's PhD at August 25, 2011 08:23 AM (le5qc)
FFS! Dryer sheets pollute the earth? Seriously? You know something, you officious little twat? Emissions from dryers do not NEED to be regulated.
Now, if you'll pardon me, I'm going to the store to stock up on dryer sheets. Just one more thing I have to hoard that's probably going to be taken away from me. *sigh*
Posted by: Hobbitopoly at August 25, 2011 08:23 AM (h1p5V)
Wake me if she gets this work published in a biomedical journal with an impact factor of 10 or better.
Posted by: Y-not at August 25, 2011 08:23 AM (5H6zj)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 25, 2011 08:23 AM (hySxX)
Posted by: Fred "Lightbulb" Upton (R - Beltway) at August 25, 2011 08:23 AM (AZGON)
at least distilled vinegar is not on their list... yet.
Posted by: Gushka goes blue at August 25, 2011 08:23 AM (QNeKQ)
I've conducted a study. It proves that faux science causes high blood pressure. It may also cause tire iron-like depressions to form on the skulls of fuax scientists.
"“This is an interesting source of pollution because emissions from dryer vents are essentially unregulated and unmonitored."
OMG Noooooooooooooo! But at least she's not like those religious nuts who believe and the Eucharist and shit.
Posted by: WalrusRex at August 25, 2011 08:24 AM (jUZRg)
Posted by: Soothsayer at August 25, 2011 12:18 PM (G/zuv)
I'd make the same bet except for my lack of the correct biology. So I'll just bet my chicken dinner on same.
Posted by: MWR, Proud Tea(rrorist) Party Hobbit at August 25, 2011 08:24 AM (4df7R)
Bath salts are now illegal in PA,
. Not that I'd ever use them, but had I ever wanted to, that option is now unavailable to me. Posted by: Zombie Thomas Jefferson at August 25, 2011 08:25 AM (9hSKh)
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:26 AM (iYbLN)
Posted by: Chris M at August 25, 2011 08:26 AM (7GpjJ)
Posted by: Jane D'oh at August 25, 2011 08:26 AM (UOM48)
This is an interesting source of pollution because emissions from dryer vents are essentially unregulated and unmonitored
Getting the dryer through the DMV for emissions testing is going to be a bitch and a half.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 08:26 AM (6rX0K)
Once when I was in the grocery store, the checker asked me if I wanted plastic or paper. I said plastic and some brainless douchebag behind me told me I should take paper bags.
I not very nicely informed the dope that I used doubled grocery bags for my food garbage so that I didn't have to buy hefty bags.
I'm old enough to remember when if you used paper bags you were an Earth raping oppressor pig. Plastic bags would save the environment.
Posted by: WalrusRex at August 25, 2011 08:27 AM (jUZRg)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:27 AM (AZGON)
The one thing in my house that still works is the fucking dryer, and now they're going to figure out how dryers need fucking catalytic converters or thermal reactors or something before the lint blocks out the sun or kills polar bears and penguins.
God I hate fucking penguins.
Posted by: Clutch Cargo at August 25, 2011 08:27 AM (p+mzQ)
Posted by: Zombie Thomas Jefferson at August 25, 2011 12:25 PM (9hSKh)
Srsly??
Posted by: Jane D'oh at August 25, 2011 08:27 AM (UOM48)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (hySxX)
Posted by: working man's PhD at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (le5qc)
I have a PhD in physical chemistry & medieval French poetry, so you will have to take seriously my commentary on the health hazards posed by Etruscan pottery.
Posted by: pep at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (GMG6W)
Posted by: joeindc44 at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (QxSug)
Behold the new scientific authority on DRYER SHEETS!
http://tinyurl.com/3kqrryr
I for one welcome our new Scent Free Overlords.
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (iYbLN)
I remember being schooled on pollution several years ago, my response was to post a photo of my carpet laden fire pit.
Posted by: Jimmah at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (NIjD4)
The ability to actually detect and diagnose cancers has absolutely nothing to do with "the sudden increase in cancer deaths" from 1890 onwards. People were always dying of the same stuff, it's just that medical science advanced to the point that we actually knew what was killing people beyond simply calling everything "natural causes".
Rather than accept that the higher rate of disease has more to do with improved detection and diagnosis methods, they start blaming every environmental factor. Not to say there aren't environmental factors, but these people focus on factors which have never been proven to be factors.
Posted by: Blue Falcon in Boston training for the ONT mudwrestling match at August 25, 2011 08:28 AM (ijjAe)
Our dryer exhaust is unregulated and now a hurricane is getting ready to wipe out the leftist seaboard. Coincidence or conspiracy? I'm only asking questions.
Posted by: WalrusRex at August 25, 2011 08:29 AM (jUZRg)
----
They are thinking of (or perhaps they just did) banning them in Utah. The kids get high off of them.
Posted by: Y-not at August 25, 2011 08:29 AM (5H6zj)
"I dont know why it is that people are always surprised when we get learn all these tumble dryer sheets, fabric softners, air freshners etc are not good for us! They are all made from man made chemicals! [...more in that vein]"
Someone should offer the lady some nice, all-natural botulinum toxin. It's organic! Not a man-made chemical!
Seriously, we're pikers at chemical warfare compared to Mother Nature.
Posted by: JPS at August 25, 2011 08:29 AM (rGmMZ)
A few days ago Ace posted about another foolish study claiming Tea Partiers held a deference to authoritarianism.
Since when do the Tea Party conservatives want the govt authorities to, say, regualte and monitor dryer exhaust?
Posted by: Soothsayer at August 25, 2011 08:29 AM (G/zuv)
Posted by: The Snuggle Bear at August 25, 2011 08:30 AM (WDySP)
Posted by: The Drizzle at August 25, 2011 08:30 AM (ysCLj)
>>>Her next study will be on the manifold hazards of dihydrogen monoxide.
If may be in your home right now!! Find out what THEY'RE not telling you!!!
Posted by: Ben at August 25, 2011 08:30 AM (wuv1c)
It sounds like she designs sewers.
Posted by: Y-not at August 25, 2011 08:30 AM (5H6zj)
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 12:28 PM
Who cares about the scent? I'm all about eliminating STATIC CLING!
Posted by: huerfano at August 25, 2011 08:31 AM (kD+se)
You should have said, 'Then plastic, and double-bag 'em, please.'
Posted by: Obama is a Stuttering Clusterfuck of a Miserable Failure Ebook at August 25, 2011 08:31 AM (MMC8r)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:31 AM (AZGON)
Bath salts are now illegal in PA
Yeah, they aren't banning actual bath salts they are banning a meth like drug being sold legally as "bath salts".
Posted by: Ben at August 25, 2011 08:31 AM (wuv1c)
I demand SOFTNESS IN MY FABRICS!!!!eleventy!!!!
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:31 AM (iYbLN)
4937Bath salts are now illegal in PA, . Not that I'd ever use them, but had I ever wanted to, that option is now unavailable to me.
----
They are thinking of (or perhaps they just did) banning them in Utah. The kids get high off of them.
-------
Because they would be prosecuted for smoking weed, which has a lethal dose (ld-50) of 100 pounds or so.
Posted by: Jimmah at August 25, 2011 08:31 AM (NIjD4)
Posted by: Ben at August 25, 2011 08:32 AM (wuv1c)
Or the CFC's that were causing the ozone hole over Antarctica (that is still there)?
The founding father of this bullshit is Nader and his "unsafe at any speed (despite almost no deaths ever attributed to such)."
And of course the Queen bitch of the movement who ought to DIAF is that whore who got DDT banned. Yeah, let's let millions and millions of humans die because we think some bird might die.
Posted by: Jimmuy at August 25, 2011 08:32 AM (JRjWw)
(Probably should have saved this post for the weekend AoSHQ Lifestyle thread.)
Posted by: Jane D'oh at August 25, 2011 08:33 AM (UOM48)
I said plastic and some brainless douchebag behind me told me I should take paper bags.
]
You should have said, "But I need the plastic bags, it would be awfully hard to suffocate you out in the parking lot with a paper bag, wouldn't you agree?
Posted by: Ben at August 25, 2011 08:33 AM (wuv1c)
The utopian ideal imagined by these miniature Stalins is a world where nothing is unregulated or unmonitored.
That which is not prohibited is mandatory.
Posted by: WalrusRex at August 25, 2011 08:33 AM (jUZRg)
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:33 AM (iYbLN)
If may be in your home right now!! Find out what THEY'RE not telling you!!!
Posted by: Ben at August 25, 2011 12:30 PM (wuv1c)
It's highly corrosive, and is a major component of ACID RAIN!!
Posted by: Nighthawk at August 25, 2011 08:33 AM (OtQXp)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:34 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Obama is a Stuttering Clusterfuck of a Miserable Failure Ebook at August 25, 2011 08:34 AM (MMC8r)
You should have
said, "But I need the plastic bags, it would be awfully hard to
suffocate you out in the parking lot with a paper bag, wouldn't you
agree?
I am stealing that and using it at the next opportunity.
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:34 AM (iYbLN)
Acknowledgments
We thank the individuals who volunteered the use of their homes, and their washing and drying machines, for this study.
"This I swear - your deaths shall be avenged!"
Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at August 25, 2011 08:34 AM (EeYDk)
Don't I feel sheepish...
Thanks for the information, Vic. I jumped the gun on that.
Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 25, 2011 08:34 AM (9hSKh)
My apologies for saltiness in advance, but who the h@!! would want to live on Silent Spring Road?
Posted by: Kevin in ABQ at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (BvTwT)
SMART GRID, anyone?
Obama wants the UN to control our thermostats. This idiot with her dyer-fumes crusade is no more radical than Obama.
Posted by: Soothsayer at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (G/zuv)
65Remember Alar, how that was going to kill all the children?
Or the CFC's that were causing the ozone hole over Antarctica (that is still there)?
The founding father of this bullshit is Nader and his "unsafe at any speed (despite almost no deaths ever attributed to such)."
And of course the Queen bitch of the movement who ought to DIAF is that whore who got DDT banned. Yeah, let's let millions and millions of humans die because we think some bird might die.
----
I remeber when the military had to convert the coolant systems of nuclear warheads over to a non freon solution. Cost - who fuck knows.
Posted by: Jimmah at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (NIjD4)
The "necessarily skyrocketing" energy costs aren't regulating my dryer already? Un-inspired, un-informed, myopic craziness.
When will we get around to regulating these regulation addicted irregulars?
The ignore button doesn't seem to be doing a good enough job.
Posted by: Dadof3 at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (2DErN)
So impeachment it will have to be...unless you hate baby panda bears...right?
Posted by: 18-1 at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (7BU4a)
Posted by: The terrorist Hobbit formerly known as Donna at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (OVCfn)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:35 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: DarkLord© sez Obama is a stuttering clusterf--- of a miserable failure
Oh, and F--- Nevada! at August 25, 2011 08:36 AM (GBXon)
(Probably should have saved this post for the weekend AoSHQ Lifestyle thread.)
Posted by: Jane D'oh
add one or two sheets to the dryer, set to permanent press and you have a great way to pluck, bake and tenderize a spotted owl.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 08:37 AM (326rv)
66Down here in the "gnat zone" you can rub a dryer sheet on your hair before you venture outside and it keeps the little bastards off your scalp. Also, dryer sheets are great for cleaning the lint and dust off lamp shades.
---
What species of knat? You may be breaking TWO laws.
Posted by: Jimmah at August 25, 2011 08:37 AM (NIjD4)
We don't use them because my daughter has eczema. Honestly, I don't really notice a difference. The key is to keep synthetics out of the dryer.
Of course, I don't want them banned. That's just ridiculous.
Posted by: Lauren at August 25, 2011 08:38 AM (Z4ldN)
Hey, have you guys heard of this corrosive gas called "O2 "??
I think we should probably regulate it. Just look at what it does to our steel bridges and metal structures over time.
It's a real menace to our way of life.
Posted by: Ben at August 25, 2011 08:38 AM (wuv1c)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:38 AM (AZGON)
The Snuggle Bear is Joe The Camel!!!
Posted by: George Orwell
We need a photoshop of the snuggle bear smoking on a camel.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 08:38 AM (326rv)
I seriously hope no one shows her the nasty-ass chemicals that go into blond hair dye, or Anne is going to be severely conflicted.
But seriously, the federal agency she wants to spawn should be named Department of Evaporative Vellum Oversite and Laundry Vent Emissions- DEVOLVE for short. 'Cause that's what the intent is here.
Posted by: Sort-of-Mad Max at August 25, 2011 08:39 AM (2PTT7)
add one or two sheets to the dryer, set to permanent press and you have a great way to pluck, bake and tenderize a spotted owl.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 12:37 PM (326rv)
*taking notes*
Posted by: Jane D'oh at August 25, 2011 08:39 AM (UOM48)
Posted by: Thoughtful Liberal at August 25, 2011 08:39 AM (nrX2Y)
Posted by: WalrusRex at August 25, 2011 08:39 AM (jUZRg)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:39 AM (AZGON)
Static cling is green energy!
Posted by: George Orwell
Given enough static in the ladies unmentionables, and you can reduce battery usage. I'm thinking of the planet.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 08:40 AM (326rv)
Posted by: WalrusRex at August 25, 2011 08:40 AM (jUZRg)
We need a photoshop of the snuggle bear smoking on a camel.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 12:38 PM (326rv)
I could share a photo of me smoking a bear.
Posted by: Andi Sullivan at August 25, 2011 08:41 AM (7BU4a)
Posted by: Dave C at August 25, 2011 08:43 AM (vYdFh)
I wonder if she takes any of her clothes to a dry cleaner?
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 08:43 AM (iYbLN)
Posted by: working man's PhD at August 25, 2011 08:43 AM (le5qc)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 25, 2011 08:43 AM (hySxX)
PEMS for consumer clothes dryers. The next frontier from government regulation.
Posted by: MikeTheMoose Camellia Sinensis Operative at August 25, 2011 08:44 AM (0q2P7)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:44 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: al-Cicero, Tea Party Jihadist at August 25, 2011 08:45 AM (QKKT0)
Sounds like an odor nazi. She probably threatens everyone who lights up a cigarette within 10 miles of her.
People like this serve no purpose other than to raise entropy in a subconscious (though very active) defense of Newton's Second Law.
Posted by: progressoverpeace at August 25, 2011 08:45 AM (F5tJy)
Posted by: working man's PhD at August 25, 2011 08:46 AM (le5qc)
Behold the new scientific authority on DRYER SHEETS!
Posted by: mpfs, TPT
Mr. Ed hates dryer sheets?
Posted by: Hobbitopoly at August 25, 2011 08:47 AM (h1p5V)
Posted by: dagny at August 25, 2011 08:47 AM (7dzTo)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:47 AM (AZGON)
Her bush is like a barbed-wire jungle
Soothsayer, you're doing a hell of a job ruining my appetite for lunch.
What do you do in meat-space, sell Subarus in Vermont or something? The girlzzzzz in the LL Bean flannel shirts must sign on the dotted line like crazed robots with that line of sweet-talk.
Posted by: Sort-of-Mad Max at August 25, 2011 08:48 AM (2PTT7)
Not political at all.
Posted by: LC LaWedgie at August 25, 2011 08:48 AM (PcoXF)
Ahhh. The poor stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure! ItÂ’s heartbreaking! The MFM has been so hard on him! CanÂ’t we just show him some kindness? Some understanding? Some Christian charity? After all, what would Jesus do?
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 25, 2011 08:48 AM (jx2j9)
Yes, in today's world of soaring uneployment, financial catastrophies, civil unrest, middle east instability, and ongoing wars, the most important issue that we must deal with immediately is unregulated dryer vents.
The horror.
Posted by: West at August 25, 2011 08:49 AM (1Rgee)
Posted by: chique d'afrique (the artist formerly known as african chick) at August 25, 2011 08:49 AM (21lBC)
They have always been around. They were just the neighborhood busy-body until they learned to communicate.
Posted by: formerly known as cherry pi at August 25, 2011 08:49 AM (OhYCU)
I know a home builder and he told me before he builds a home, he has to pay $42,000 in fees before he can even dig a hole in the ground.
Government = graft.
Posted by: Lemon Kitten at August 25, 2011 08:50 AM (0fzsA)
Posted by: A Balrog of Morgoth at August 25, 2011 08:50 AM (9CM5J)
Posted by: Osama bin Truck Monkey, TEArrorist at August 25, 2011 08:51 AM (jucos)
Hey, have you guys heard of this corrosive gas called "O2 "??
I think we should probably regulate it. Just look at what it does to our steel bridges and metal structures over time.
It's a real menace to our way of life.
It is also responsible for 99.99% of all oxidation events in the human body, leading to free radicals, and accelerated aging. Antioxidants can only do so much to protect us from this scourge!! It is time to stop this menace at the source!!!!!
BAN Oxygen!!!
Posted by: MikeTheMoose Camellia Sinensis Operative at August 25, 2011 08:51 AM (0q2P7)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:51 AM (AZGON)
"As a bonus there are no more cats in the neighborhood."
Maybe that's why this cat is so angry.
And regarding a previous day's discussion about cats versus dogs. This cat will not hesitate to eat you.
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 25, 2011 08:52 AM (hySxX)
except when they alter your laundry choice
Send her back to the barn by force
The fascistic Anne Steinemann!
Posted by: Sort-of-Mad Max at August 25, 2011 08:52 AM (2PTT7)
I would hope that is closer to 100%. Any house which had the dryer vented inside would soon be overrun with mold and mildew from the excessive humidity.
Not to mention a ton of lint everywhere.
Also, does not meet code.
Posted by: Vic at August 25, 2011 08:52 AM (M9Ie6)
Posted by: Jean at August 25, 2011 08:52 AM (WkuV6)
an expert on the effects of pollution at the University of Washington in Seattle
Wow, that's kind of narrow specialization isn't it?
Posted by: Circa (Insert Year Here) at August 25, 2011 08:54 AM (B+qrE)
Posted by: Keith Arnold at August 25, 2011 08:54 AM (Jdtsu)
Posted by: Jean at August 25, 2011 08:54 AM (WkuV6)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 25, 2011 08:55 AM (hySxX)
Posted by: Sub-Tard at August 25, 2011 08:55 AM (0M3AQ)
because I am not a light bulb.
Then they came for the phosphates in my dishwasher detergent, and I said nothing-
because I am not phosphate.
Then they came for my dryer sheets...
Posted by: Johnny (John E.) at August 25, 2011 08:55 AM (nRTou)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at August 25, 2011 08:55 AM (cbyrC)
BAN Oxygen!!!
Children as young as 3 have been known to purposely inhale large quantities of Oxygen in order to achieve a temporary euphoric "high".
It's for the CHILDREN!!!!
BAN Oxygen!!!!
Posted by: MikeTheMoose Camellia Sinensis Operative at August 25, 2011 08:55 AM (0q2P7)
I know a home builder and he told me before he builds a home, he has to pay $42,000 in fees before he can even dig a hole in the ground.
Government = graft.
Posted by: Lemon Kitten
Yet another argument against ending the home mortgage interest deduction. Government is already getting a cut, then another when the house is transferred. If we want to reduce the cost of housing, let's take a whack at some of this crap.
Posted by: Blue Hen at August 25, 2011 08:56 AM (6rX0K)
Yeah, I know I'm going off the rails...
In a touching show of solidarity, lefties band together to help Michelle battle her addiction.
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 25, 2011 08:57 AM (jx2j9)
Posted by: Jean at August 25, 2011 08:57 AM (WkuV6)
You should have said, "But I need the plastic bags, it would be awfully hard to suffocate you out in the parking lot with a paper bag, wouldn't you agree?
Ah, you got to be more subtle about it.
Look puzzled and say "but my victims can breathe through paper bags".
Posted by: Mama AJ, not clear on the meaning of "subtle" at August 25, 2011 08:57 AM (XdlcF)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at August 25, 2011 08:57 AM (cbyrC)
We should all just STFU. After all, she's "an expert".
Posted by: OCBill at August 25, 2011 08:57 AM (Mj+FA)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 08:58 AM (AZGON)
because I am not a light bulb.
Then they came for the phosphates in my dishwasher detergent, and I said nothing-
because I am not phosphate.
Then they came for my dryer sheets...
Posted by: Johnny (John E.)
Wait! What sheets are they going after? Oh, never mind.
Posted by: zombie Sen Robert Byrd (D-Hell) at August 25, 2011 08:58 AM (326rv)
BAN Oxygen!!!!
Despite the known harmful affects, professional athletes and mountain climbers have been using it as a performance enhancing substance.
Where is the GOVERNMENT to protect us from this BLIGHT?!
Posted by: MikeTheMoose Camellia Sinensis Operative at August 25, 2011 08:58 AM (0q2P7)
"As a bonus there are no more cats in the neighborhood."
Maybe that's why this cat is so angry.
And regarding a previous day's discussion about cats versus dogs. This cat will not hesitate to eat you.
OMG. I played this video and suddenly, my rather shy and quiet cat appeared in my office (where she never ventures) with her tail all fluffed up. Freaked her out completely!!
Posted by: shibumi at August 25, 2011 08:58 AM (z63Tr)
Posted by: Sort-of-Mad Max at August 25, 2011 08:59 AM (2PTT7)
Posted by: Jean at August 25, 2011 08:59 AM (WkuV6)
From the article: "‘In addition, I have been contacted by a number of people in Britain who say they suffer sickness or headaches when they are standing close to tumble dryer vents.’
Seriously. Who does this?
Just don't stand next to the dryer vent, ok??
Posted by: April at August 25, 2011 08:59 AM (b0THY)
Where is the GOVERNMENT to protect us from this BLIGHT?!
Posted by: MikeTheMoose Camellia Sinensis Operative at August 25, 2011 12:58 PM (0q2P7)
Even more frightening is how quickly it gets transferred from the lungs directly into the bloodstream, and from there to the brain! That's right, you're putting this chemical IN YOUR BRAIN!!!
Posted by: Insomniac at August 25, 2011 09:00 AM (v+QvA)
holy shit, no one better tell her about the toxic fumes and particles that come from each application of a car's brakes
Posted by: Soothsayer, the Moonbat Profiler at August 25, 2011 09:01 AM (G/zuv)
Posted by: wooga at August 25, 2011 09:02 AM (2p0e3)
Posted by: formerly known as cherry pi
The Gladys Kravitz of the scientific world.
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 09:02 AM (iYbLN)
The title of the article is
Chemical Emissions from Residential Dryer Vents During Use of Fragranced Laundry Products
During Use of Fragranced Laundry Products. Got it.
Benzene is mentioned in the abstract and it's stated there that it has no safe level.
But if you look at table 2, low levels of benzene were found in one dryer when used with or without the products in question, and not found in the other dryer even when the products were used. Obviously the benzene came from the dryer itself. Maybe one dryer has a poorly-performing natural gas burner that makes small amounts of benzene during combusiton Interestingly, the make and model of the dryers are not described at all. The conclusion says nothing about this. If you looked at the abstract in an electronic search you would be left with the fraudulent impression that softener sheets were found to emit benzene.
Posted by: Wm T Sherman at August 25, 2011 09:02 AM (C0Z3w)
Posted by: Osama bin Truck Monkey, TEArrorist at August 25, 2011 09:03 AM (jucos)
From the article: "‘In addition, I have been contacted by a number of people in Britain who say they suffer sickness or headaches when they are standing close to tumble dryer vents.’
Seriously. Who does this?
Just don't stand next to the dryer vent, ok??
Posted by: April
Researchers learned that these people in Britain who were standing close to the dryer vent were simultaneously standing close to the washing machines and watched it cycle. Therefore, other factors may be involved.
Posted by: you don't want to know how much grant money I got for this at August 25, 2011 09:03 AM (326rv)
Posted by: Blacksheep at August 25, 2011 09:03 AM (8/DeP)
'Ere now, it's true! Maybe I shouldn't have left out the part about the rioting yobs beating on my poor 'ead while I was standing by the laundry waiting for my 'ouse to stop bloody burning, but it's science now, innit?
Posted by: Osgood Thraitwaite-Pusleton at August 25, 2011 09:04 AM (2PTT7)
SALT!!1111!!!!!!!! And it's corrosive!!!1111!!!!!
*waiting for the envirotards to wrap their tiny minds around that one*
Posted by: Jane D'oh at August 25, 2011 09:05 AM (UOM48)
Posted by: Sub-Tard at August 25, 2011 09:05 AM (0M3AQ)
Posted by: Sub-Tard at August 25, 2011 01:05 PM (0M3AQ)
Dear Gaia, the carbon, the CARBON!!
Posted by: Al Gore at August 25, 2011 09:06 AM (v+QvA)
Um, could be the NOISE, ya know.
Posted by: Mama AJ at August 25, 2011 09:07 AM (XdlcF)
Posted by: Gore88 at August 25, 2011 09:07 AM (j1vHl)
The fact that taxpayer dollars pay the salaries and benefits of these left-wing idiots on public university campuses is the largest and most pernicious ongoing scandal in American history.
Posted by: Tsar Nicholas II at August 25, 2011 09:07 AM (r7v8t)
Posted by: Soothsayer
///
Like pussy?
Posted by: SFGoth at August 25, 2011 09:07 AM (dZ756)
Oy vey.
Posted by: SFGoth at August 25, 2011 01:07 PM (dZ756)
Yeah, we want those beverages to stay nice and loose.
Posted by: Insomniac at August 25, 2011 09:08 AM (v+QvA)
Um, could be the NOISE, ya know. Curious, is there some other form of dryer that does not tumble? Maybe its the tumbling that distresses her?
Posted by: Sub-Tard at August 25, 2011 09:08 AM (0M3AQ)
Got to monitor when and how long and with what those dryers are used. But wait! Let's catch those nasty things in the dryer by regulating the washer, and what gets washed and for how long and with what. But wait! Let's regulate....
Viva la clothesline!
Posted by: HappyGoLucky at August 25, 2011 09:08 AM (be5IN)
Posted by: HappyGoLucky at August 25, 2011 09:09 AM (be5IN)
Posted by: SFGoth at August 25, 2011 09:09 AM (dZ756)
Posted by: Formerly known as Skeptic at August 25, 2011 09:09 AM (91XRk)
Posted by: Osama bin Truck Monkey, TEArrorist at August 25, 2011 09:09 AM (jucos)
Posted by: Stateless Infidel at August 25, 2011 09:10 AM (GKQDR)
Anyway, sure, huffing dryer vents while listening to a banging spin cycle will give you a headache. Oh no. Oh no.
Next they will ban firearms because of lead poisoning.
Next they will ban bathrooms for having bacteria.
Next they will ban food.
The world is full of stuff that you need to manage as an adult without your nanny banning it. Dryer sheets are one of a million things that in proper hands make the world a little better. I'm sure if you replace your tortillas with dryer sheets the results will not be so great, but I don't need Michelle Obama banning that too.
Posted by: Dustin at August 25, 2011 09:10 AM (519+h)
Um, could be the NOISE, ya know. Curious, is there some other form of dryer that does not tumble? Maybe its the tumbling that distresses her?
-------------
I'll tumble 4 ya.
Posted by: Boy George....if I'm still alive....don't really know at August 25, 2011 09:10 AM (be5IN)
Britain....a living, breathing idiocracy .
Posted by: Tami at August 25, 2011 09:10 AM (X6akg)
Posted by: TANSTAAFL at August 25, 2011 09:11 AM (KVi4X)
Posted by: George O'Dowd at August 25, 2011 09:12 AM (jucos)
Of course you're still alive ... do you have any idea how many drug and alcohol binges it takes to kill off a gaywad British musician?
Posted by: George Michael & Elton John at August 25, 2011 09:13 AM (8/DeP)
Got to monitor when and how long and with what those dryers are used.
Actually, they've been pushing big-time for this with their "Electric Grid Neutrality" crap. They wanted to measure every bit of electricity use in your home (down to the individual appliances) and decide how much bandwidth you would be allowed to buy and use.
--Viva la clothesline!
Posted by: HappyGoLucky at August 25, 2011 01:08 PM (be5IN)
Heh ... as if such a dangerous weapon (people can be strangled with clotheslines) could escape leftist regulation when the time called ...
Posted by: progressoverpeace at August 25, 2011 09:13 AM (F5tJy)
Posted by: formerly known as cherry pi at August 25, 2011 09:13 AM (OhYCU)
We have a built-in desk in the laundry room. Good thing I use Downey while sitting there.
Posted by: Mama AJ at August 25, 2011 09:13 AM (XdlcF)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at August 25, 2011 09:13 AM (AZGON)
Then go regulate shit in Britain and leave us alone.
Posted by: soulpile is... expendable, gop b., s.a. at August 25, 2011 09:13 AM (afWhQ)
Posted by: SFGoth
Is this a good time or a bad time for another 'did you plug the hole yet?' gag?
Posted by: you don't want to know how much grant money I got for this at August 25, 2011 09:14 AM (326rv)
Dr. McCampbell's latest contribution to the cause of the chemically sensitive is an article titled "Multiple Chemical Sensitivities Under Siege," which was the lead article in the Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients in January 2001. In this article, she describes how pesticide companies are often subsidiaries or parent companies of pharmaceutical firms, a linkage that is particularly disturbing because of the enormous influence that pharmaceutical companies have through their advertising in medical journals and their funding of academic research.
The Sheet stops with blessed by Obama:
Reporting from Washington— As a candidate for president, Barack Obama lambasted drug companies and the influence they wielded in Washington. He even ran a television ad targeting the industry's chief lobbyist, former Louisiana congressman Billy Tauzin, and the role Tauzin played in preventing Medicare from negotiating for lower drug prices.
Since the election, Tauzin has morphed into the president's partner. He has been invited to the White House half a dozen times in recent months. There, he says, he eventually secured an agreement that the administration wouldn't try to overturn the very Medicare drug policy that Obama had criticized on the campaign trail.
"The White House blessed it," Tauzin said.
Posted by: LC LaWedgie at August 25, 2011 09:16 AM (PcoXF)
We have a built-in desk in the laundry room. Good thing I use Downey while sitting there.
Posted by: Mama AJ
Siiting at the desk eh? You're sitting on the dryer when there's sneakers in there. Admit it.
Posted by: you don't want to know how much grant money I got for this at August 25, 2011 09:16 AM (326rv)
But people actually do die from dryer vents.
Dryer vent fires.
But it's not so easy to regulate and steal money from individuals who don't regularly clean the lint from their dryer vents. Much easier to go steal money from the household products company that makes softener sheets.
Posted by: IllTemperedCur at August 25, 2011 09:18 AM (3AuGS)
Posted by: Veronica at August 25, 2011 09:18 AM (ofpTz)
Interestingly, the make and model of the dryers are not described at all. The conclusion says nothing about this. If you looked at the abstract in an electronic search you would be left with the fraudulent impression that softener sheets were found to emit benzene.
Posted by: Wm T Sherman at August 25, 2011 01:02 PM (C0Z3w)
The make/model is prolly left unmentioned because the dryers are GE products. That'd be my guess. Can't have B.O.'s favorite company be seen to produce benzene.
Posted by: Reactionary at August 25, 2011 09:19 AM (xUM1Q)
I was listening to Michael Medved on Tuesday afternoon right after it happened and he said it would be blamed on fracking as well. Might have even said the blame already took place.
Don't remember. It's Medved. I don't really listen to him that closely.
Posted by: shibumi at August 25, 2011 09:19 AM (z63Tr)
Posted by: hadsil at August 25, 2011 09:19 AM (HYDTz)
Posted by: Tami at August 25, 2011 09:19 AM (X6akg)
Hmm. I remember a recent President who was pummeled mercilessly, day after day because of his weak, unacceptable and horrible >6% unemployment.
Good news, Comrades!! The unemployment rate has been lowered from 5% to 8%!! Rejoice in the glory of our Dear Leader!
Posted by: Jimmuy at August 25, 2011 09:20 AM (JRjWw)
Wonder what this hypochondriac Stalinist would do when she found out that I was not only using dryer sheets on my laundry, but "recycling" their used, lifeless husks for use in keeping the dust down in my brass tumbler? When I reload deadly ammunition - the kind that shoots through schools and orphanages - I like my cartridge brass to be extra shiny.
Posted by: EarthFucker at August 25, 2011 09:20 AM (tRb7k)
Posted by: Gore88 at August 25, 2011 09:20 AM (j1vHl)
Scientivism practiced by scientinists.
Scientific Socialists.
Marxist Materialists.
The World Scieviet.
The Sovience Union.
The Union of Scieviet Socientist Republics
Posted by: P at August 25, 2011 09:20 AM (xdG5r)
Since liberals have taken over most Universities and ALL Institutions of Higher Learning are "Libeal Arts Colleges" the scientific method of research has been refined and perfected a la Michael Mann:
1) Identify public danger.
2) Create bogus test for danger with preselected outcome to support agenda.
3) Create bogus data for test to provide preselected outcome.
4) Scream Shrilly about "surprizing" results of un-reproducable bogus tests/bogus outcomes and public dangers.
5) Discredit anyone with opposing viewpoints/alternate agendas
6) Apply for grants.
7) Repeat steps 4,5,&6 until --> JACKPOT FUNDING!!!
Posted by: MrObvious at August 25, 2011 09:22 AM (qwhLZ)
Posted by: Veronica
Now that's some funny and epically stupid shit right there.
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 09:23 AM (iYbLN)
This is the tried-and-true method for hack scientists to gain traction. They must compensate for a lack of evidence by simply screaming louder, claiming epic-levels of danger, and crying "It's for the CHILDREN!" while hoping that their shrillness will cause risk-averse government authorities to give in to their silly theories.
This is know as EnviroGorealism.
Posted by: harleycowboy at August 25, 2011 09:24 AM (wSTfB)
7) Repeat steps 4,5,&6 until --> JACKPOT FUNDING!!!
Posted by: MrObvious at August 25, 2011 01:22 PM (qwhLZ)
*squirt*
Posted by: Anthony Weiner at August 25, 2011 09:24 AM (C0Z3w)
Posted by: mpfs, TPT at August 25, 2011 09:26 AM (iYbLN)
Posted by: Ellen at August 25, 2011 09:29 AM (B1FXc)
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 25, 2011 09:30 AM (jx2j9)
No, man... LSD on those little breath mint tabs. It's plastic, man.
Posted by: Tim Leary at August 25, 2011 09:31 AM (PcoXF)
You do need to clean those out. I am surprised some don't know that, but if you don't make sure you clean that thing out.
It's really easy to maintain an American home, but google how to handle a water heater and an AC filter and read the manual to your appliances and you're probably good to go.
I do blame the nanny state for some of the problem. People think the government should swoop in and automate everything.
Posted by: Dustin at August 25, 2011 09:32 AM (519+h)
215180OT but that didn't take long - "Experts" blame East Coast Earthquake on Fracking.
---------
WTF! Oh wait, you said FRACKING. Nevermind.
Also, I need to market me some wax embeded summer rain scented thingys on the internet. Definitely NOT to be used in home dryers. So don't even think about it.
Posted by: Jimmah at August 25, 2011 09:33 AM (NIjD4)
Posted by: jeannebodine at August 25, 2011 09:35 AM (nvlAW)
Posted by: steevy at August 25, 2011 09:44 AM (pV6cO)
Posted by: 1idvet at August 25, 2011 09:51 AM (xUxh3)
Posted by: Bomber at August 25, 2011 01:06 PM (qzoN5)
In the idiots' forum, aka, comments' section, did you see that Arkansas, that regulatory powerhouse, secured a ban on fracking inside a 1500 mile radius of East and West Bumfuck, AR?
Posted by: No Whining at August 25, 2011 09:52 AM (HmCnI)
Dihydrogen monoxide has made most of the earth uninhabitable to humans.
Posted by: formerly known as cherry pi at August 25, 2011 01:13 PM (OhYCU)
Vast and violent gatherings of dihydrogen monoxide want to suffocate our children! Is there no one who will rise up to fight the good fight against the fascist overlords of dihydrogen monooxide?
Posted by: No Whining at August 25, 2011 09:57 AM (HmCnI)
Those old hippies sure are laundrophobic.
BTW - Didn't this woman used to date Mary Clogginstein? - or maybe they were just "roommates".
Posted by: Roy at August 25, 2011 10:04 AM (VndSC)
Posted by: dananjcon wallace at August 25, 2011 10:09 AM (8ieXv)
Posted by: jeannebodine at August 25, 2011 01:35 PM (nvlAW)
Oh, keep going--this stuff makes me laugh until I cry!
Posted by: April at August 25, 2011 10:39 AM (b0THY)
Psst. Lowe's and Home Depot sell TSP. 1/4 teaspoon in the washer/diswasher takes the place of the evil phosphates the nannies took out of our detergents. But you never heard it from me.
Posted by: Sarah at August 25, 2011 11:23 AM (lT+S8)
Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at August 25, 2011 11:25 AM (bxiXv)
Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at August 25, 2011 11:26 AM (bxiXv)
JPS--"Seriously, we're pikers at chemical warfare compared to Mother Nature." You owe me a new keyboard.
They regulate our toilets, our detergents, where we can smoke, and what kind of light bulbs we can buy. They want to regulate our thermostats and what kind of cars we can buy with mileage restrictions. Slow Joe thinks government should regulate our childbearing (or at least the Chinese are good at it). If we promise to line-dry in the summer (where HOAs don't ban clotheslines, that is) will they leave our dryers the hell alone?
Posted by: Steve the Pirate's Wife at August 25, 2011 11:41 AM (B0893)
Posted by: MarkD at August 25, 2011 01:38 PM (iYBP2)
Psst. Lowe's and Home Depot sell TSP. 1/4 teaspoon in the washer/diswasher takes the place of the evil phosphates the nannies took out of our detergents. But you never heard it from me.
Not in New York they don't. Amazon won't ship here either. However, if one happened to stop by a Lowes in Kentucky, nobody checks your driver's license to see where you are from. Nor does NY strip search you when you enter the state. Or so I've heard.
Posted by: MarkD at August 25, 2011 01:41 PM (iYBP2)
Posted by: Blacque Jacques Shellacque at August 25, 2011 01:55 PM (1rHeD)
Of course, since I fix dryers for a living, I should say "please keep using drier sheets!!!!"
Posted by: Who Is Good Will? at August 25, 2011 02:36 PM (k2Mei)
I'm having difficulty believing that acetone and simple alcohols are in dryer sheets. Those are simple low-boilers that won't stay around, and even if they're used in the manufacturing process, I don't see them staying around in any appreciable quantity in a packaged product.
Especially when you consider that whatever amount of acetone is there, it's diluted by the thousands of liters of hot dryer air coming out, and then they only capture 400 mL in their containers. It's like trying to detect a fart in a tornado.
Some others compounds they found, like o-xylene, may be in the detergent, but I highly doubt it. And again, even if it were, the amount would be probably in the parts per million range in the detergent, of which you use a few ounces, which is washed away (!), leaving scant trace for the wet load going in the dryer. And then again, you have thousands of liters of hot air that further dilutes the o-xylene, and then somehow it shows up in detectable quantities in her 400 mL sample container. Preposterous.
A validated analytical method will have a limit of detection, and I'm pretty certain that for the experimental design she described she is below that limit of detection by a few factors of ten.
I'm more likely to believe that what they're picking up on is environmental contamination from their own laboratory as many of the compounds she lists are commonly found in a laboratory but wouldn't show up in a dryer sheet or detergent. If she's looking at little more than baseline noise, picking up a few ions, and matching them to her spectral database, it's again, total horseshit. I noticed in the article they don't talk about ion counts or anything, just the mere presence. I'd bet a dollar that she's just looking at her instrument noise and cherry-picking ion groups to support her theory. Pathological science at its best.
Thing is, there are established methodologies to test the detergent itself by headspace GC and see what volatile compounds are there (USP <467> is ancient, well-validated, and would be highly effective with an mass selective detector like hers). I imagine the same techniques can be used on a dryer sheet (or a portion of one).
So, unless she thinks the dryer is a magical molecular transmogrifier, what goes in is what comes out. Just test the detergent and dryer sheets directly.
Oh, and one other thing. The dryer doesn't create air from nothing. The air that is blowing out of the dryer is the same air that is inside the house. Seems wise for them to take air samples inside the house and compare that as a "blank" to what is coming out in the dryer vent. For all we know the reason that acetone showed up was because the lady of the house was doing her nails in the bathroom next to the dryer.
Lame ass study on the part of the professor. I give it a D-.
Posted by: jeff at August 25, 2011 02:36 PM (X/XsN)
Another chemist here, and Jeff's absolutely right. Anyone who thinks acetone (which is produced in the breath of some dieters, for cryin' out loud) would stick around on sheets packed in a cardboard box is nuts. Acetone is more volatile than nail polish remover (ethyl acetate) or gasoline.
Young Steinemann would seem to be validating the etymology of "hysteria."
Posted by: Jay Guevara at August 25, 2011 03:09 PM (YKK68)
Posted by: Watership Down AudioBook at August 25, 2011 05:05 PM (z3/Dt)
Posted by: Running Hobo at August 25, 2011 07:50 PM (l1oyw)
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Posted by: Clutch Cargo at August 25, 2011 08:15 AM (p+mzQ)