Let’s start off with Beijing.
U.S. Cyclists Wear Pollution Masks in Airport, Then Apologize
This is a ridiculous story. Not because the athletes wore the masks in the airport, where the air is filtered and the move therefore struck some as unnecessary and even inflammatory, and not because the thick, thick tension surrounding Beijing’s air problem prompted the athletes to apologize when China’s own citizens have been known to wear pollution masks on high smog days.
No, it’s ridiculous the issue exists in the first place, that the most famous athletic events in the world are taking place in a city with one of the worst air quality problems on the planet, putting all those athletes and spectators at risk. And that’s all the athletes, not just the ones with asthma. IOC President Jacques Rogge can’t say enough good things about the clean-up efforts, and China has absolutely spent enormous amounts of money to clear the pollution in time for the Games, but when clean air is a question of praying for rain and postponing or moving endurance events, I think I’d start to worry if I were competing.
Furthering the absurdity–all the attention on the billions and billions of dollars the Chinese government has spent for the Games when its own citizens still have to live and breathe there after the Olympics, putting them most in danger of permanent lung damage from long-term pollution exposure.
Not that my own government has a stellar record of protecting its citizens from environmental damage, considering the EPA’s dubious record of allowing politicians, not scientists, to drive the agency. (Check out yet another article on political manipulation of the EPA, this time by former EPA analyst E.G. Vallianatos.)
Here’s what the Beijing Olympics media director says,
“We have all along said that it is not necessary for the athletes to wear masks because the air quality in Beijing has improved,” Sun said. “We have to explain that looks can be deceiving, and that it looks like fog, but actually the air quality is good.”
Would you be reassured?
How about now?
On a Positive Note, Opening Ceremonies!
They’ll air in the U.S. tonight, but you can catch photos and live coverage at this CBC link.
AAAAI Talking About Climate Change Worsening Ragweed Allergies
I’ve written about the link between climate change and higher asthma death rates before, but the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology will devote its September issue to climate change and allergic disease, including ragweed.
Asthma Moms and Dads, Don’t Forget Back-to-School Steps
Plus, the American Lung Association has seven tips if you’re sending an asthma kid back to school.
Gorillas Found: Over Twice as Many as Thought
In case you missed it, the Wildlife Conservation Society discovered 125,000 western lowland gorillas in the Congo, and only 50,000 were believed to still exist worldwide. Pretty much every environmental group around hails the find as a second chance for this species and a wake-up call for other endangered wildlife around the world.
Healthcare System Needs Work, According to Most Americans
In other news, the sun will set in the west this evening.
The numbers in this survey are rather high, though. Nine out of 10 Americans think we need to change the entire health system, and–supporting the notion that people are basically decent at heart despite their political differences–that both presidential candidates must take steps to make insurance available and affordable for all citizens, even if they differ on how to accomplish that.
Harvard Scientists Make Stem Cells for 10 Genetic Diseases
This is a huge step forward for disorders like Parkinson’s, for example, because scientists can watch how the disease progresses over time, knowledge that can open new doors for treatments.
