Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power

by Mark Schapiro

Book Overview

From tainted pet food to toxic toys, Americans can thank the successful lobbying efforts of the U.S. chemical industry for the secret ingredients in everyday products that have been linked to rising... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1603580581
• ISBN13: 9781603580588
• Release Date: February 2009
• Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Company
• Length: 216 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.4" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Michael Moore, MAKE THIS INTO A MOVIE!

Recommended reading for every human on the planet who can read. (Perhaps Mr. Bush can have someone read this to him from the cliff notes version since by his own admission, he does not read.) Having heard the author on Terri Gross and NPR, I sought out and read this book with alarming interest. I am now horrified and disgusted at our pathetic governing organizations. I knew our environment was bad, but I had no idea that it was nearly THIS bad. I've always been curious if every product we touch, eat, watch and drive in has something toxic in it and the author has confirmed my fears and more. Personally, I don't care if the U.S. is not the number one economy in the world OR a world leader in product safety. Economics and leadership are not important if your brain is rotting away or your kidneys decide to quit working or the air you breathe and the water you drink is filled with enough toxins to slowly kill you. And, thanks to every U.S. administration from Nixon on, that's what kind of toxic world we've left our children. Carcinogens, Mutagens and Toxins... we're bathed in them daily at our own expense and risk. Thanks for a great book and opening my eyes. Now, if only you could collaborate with Mr. Moore and get this on the big screen!

A Hidden Cost of Privatized Health Insurance

There probably isn't a single person in the United States whose health hasn't been affected by phthalates (pronounced tha-lates). These guys are plastic softeners. You'll find them in shower curtains, shampoo bottles, raincoats, perfumes, rubber duckies, teething rings, car dashboards--you name it. They're linked with endocrine ailments. They make your hormones crazy. They lower sperm counts, may be linked to prostate and breast cancers, and sexual disfunction. They can cause genetic mutations. And they're entirely unnecessary. There are other nontoxic additives to make plastic pliable. Oh, and one more thing: while perfectly legal in the U.S., phthalates are illegal in the European Union. In fact, as author Schapiro points out, a whole cesspool of toxic additives that are perfectly acceptable in the U.S. have been outlawed in the EU for a long time now. Chinese factories that try to sell phthalate-riddled plastic toys in Europe get their commodities rejected at the borders. Guess where they eventually wind up? Under your kid's Christmas tree. As Schapiro says (p. 189), the U.S. is becoming "a dumping ground or goods not wanted elsewhere in the world." That the FDA and other governmental agencies are doing a crappy job protecting us from harmful and unnecessary toxins in everyday commodities probably doesn't come as much of a shock to anyone. But Schapiro's speculation about why the EU does such a better job watchdogging its citizens is worth heeding. Health care in the EU is nationalized. The government, using in part taxpayer monies, picks up the tab for taking care of sick and dying people. In this kind of health care environment, you better believe that preventive medicine is a high governmental priority, because neglect today costs more tomorrow. So it's in the interest of the individual EU states, as well as their tax-paying citizens, to make sure that toxins stay out of their countries. Something to think long and hard about if you live in a country like the U.S. big on deregulation, privatized health care, and plastic stuff.

Sheds Light on Bad Policy Undermining US Economy

I bought and read this book together with How Everyday Products Make People Sick: Toxins at Home and in the Workplace where my review has ten links to other books that I will not duplicate here. I found the book sensible and compelling on three points: 1) Weak US environmental law are turning the US into a dumping ground for unhealthy products that Europe and Asia will not accept 2) The European Union is a bigger client of China's than the US 3) The European Union is not just making very strong and sensible regulation about public safety, it is carrying those requirements all the way to the Chinese factory floor, and in the process, making both China and Europe superior to the US on the manufacturing and sustainability fronts. I was especially concerned to read about toys made of plastic whos vapor emissions harm children over time. The author tells us that the US is suffering from "analysis paralysis" and that Europe is at least a decade ahead of us. The "dirty dozon" (sic--I count eleven) of the Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are: · Aldrin · Chlordane · DDT · Dieldin · Dioxins · Furans · Heptachlor · Hexachlorobenzine · Mirex · Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) · Toxaphene Digital component waste is mentioned throughout the book. The book concludes with a look at genetically modified crops, and a French court finding that farmers were acting in self-defense when they destroyed such grops at research farms. REACH is the EU's Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of Chemicals program and it is becoming a global standard (except in the US). Good notes and index. See also: Normal Accidents: Living with High-Risk Technologies The Soul of Capitalism: Opening Paths to a Moral Economy The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get Ahead The Global Class War: How America's Bipartisan Elite Lost Our Future - and What It Will Take to Win It Back Confessions of an Economic Hit Man Vice: Dick Cheney and the Hijacking of the American Presidency Running on Empty: How the Democratic and Republican Parties Are Bankrupting Our Future and What Americans Can Do About It

Everyone should know about this.

This was a great book, and everyone should know about the toxics that we deal with in everyday life. The book is very well referenced, which was great considering the magnitude of the toxic impact that this book points out in our everyday life. I wish every politician in the U.S. would read this book, as it reavals a very subtle, yet very powerful tide-change, that is occurring in the world today, leaving the U.S. behind because we refuse to acknowledge the truth right in front of us. This book is perfect for everyone interested in the environment, health, and politics.

Not so proud of the US/FDA/EPA now!

I pulled this book out of the library in Urbana, Illinois while visiting a friend and didn't put it down until I was done. Now I find myself ordering my own copy so my daughter can read it as well. Bottom line: this book reveals how the people of the USA are not as well protected by our government as we might think we are. The recent lead-paint-in-toys recall and this year's pet-food-debacle, while not addressed, become more understandable for those of us who might have thought, "now how could *that* happen?" It happens because the US standards are not as tight as they should be! The book addresses the thousands of chemicals all around us -- those in our appliances, our cosmetics and toiletries, even our food, and shows how very little testing is done on these chemicals before we are subjected to them. It also covers the political and economic aspects of the topic, including how there is contamination of "normal" crops due to cross pollination with Genetically Modified crops, and how the US crops could be losing their global appeal. Forget about going to see a thriller at the Cinema 13 tonight -- just read this book to get yourself good and frightened!