Thursday, February 07, 2008

Pacific Shift

Tests on 500 trailers, finally begun last month, are being performed by CDC, the lawmakers noted. "The Committee is concerned about the independence and scientific integrity of any indoor air testing for formaldehyde levels in these trailers done under the auspices of FEMA," Miller and Samson wrote.

"For those who are too poor to live elsewhere, FEMA's position remains as it was in 2006: there are no possible adverse health effects that can't be cured by opening the windows," they added.

[Lawmakers Fault FEMA on Trailers, Washington Post, January 29, 2008; Page A03]

Perhaps the silver lining to this story is it has become obvious to even casual observers that Washington DC is paralyzed when it comes to taking meaningful action in the face of emergencies, either domestically or overseas.

DC is no more than a sandbox for puffed up bureaucrats, powerless and ineffective, playing blame games with Congress. Brain dead self-described "strategists" manage a killing machine in Iraq, with no clue as to why they're there or what their real mission is (big ideas anyone?).

This is all very helpful to our economy out west, when it comes to attracting investment and new talent, as it reinforces what we've been saying all along: the east coast is for losers (an exaggeration of course, but then advertising is supposed to be pithy).