#920 -- Dialog on Risk and Precaution, August 16, 2007

RACHEL'S DEMOCRACY & HEALTH NEWS #920 -- Dialog on Risk and Precaution "Environment, health, jobs and justice -- Who gets to decide?"

Thursday, August 16, 2007

View the HTML edition here:

http://www.precaution.org/lib/07/ht070816.htm

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Featured stories in this issue...

Two Friends Debate Risk Assessment and Precaution

In this issue of Rachel's News, the first four stories are a dialog about risk and precaution between Adam Finkel, a risk assessor, and Peter Montague, an advocate for precaution. Readers are invited to respond.

Adam Finkel Reviews Cass Sunstein's Book, Risk and Reason

Our dialog on risk and precaution started with this book review by Adam Finkel: "I believe that at its best, QRA [quantitative risk assessment] can serve us better than a 'precautionary principle' that eschews analysis in favor of crusades against particular hazards that we somehow know are needlessly harmful and can be eliminated at little or no economic or human cost."

A Letter To My Friend Who Is a Risk Assessor

In response to Adam Finkel's review of Cass Sunstein's book, Peter Montague wrote this letter explaining why President Bush's invasion of Iraq, and the nation's asbestos-removal program for schools, are not examples of precaution -- and pointing out some major problems with decisions based narrowly on quantitative risk assessment.

Risk Assessment and Precaution: Common Strengths and Flaws

Adam Finkel Responds to Peter Montague: "The biggest challenge I have for you is a simple one: explain to me why 'bad precaution' doesn't invalidate the precautionary principle, but why for 25 years you've been trashing risk assessment based on bad risk assessments!"

Childhood Exposure To DDT Increases Chance of Breast Cancer Later

A breakthrough study suggests that exposure to DDT early in life significantly increases a woman's chances of developing breast cancer decades later.

If Flame Retardants Are Making Cats Sick, What About Children?

In recent years, house cats in the U.S. have been experiencing an epidemic of thyroid disease. Now it seems that exposure to certain flame-retarding chemicals (PBDEs) may be the culprit. Scientists say cats provide early warnings of chronic exposure of both children and adults.

The Big Melt

"If we learned that Al Qaeda was secretly developing a new terrorist technique that could disrupt water supplies around the globe, force tens of millions from their homes and potentially endanger our entire planet, we would be aroused into a frenzy and deploy every possible asset to neutralize the threat. Yet that is precisely the threat that we're creating ourselves, with our greenhouse gases."

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