For those of you hellbent on getting rid of the EPA:

[StuckInReverse]

This is mid-day in Beijing, China:

http://imgur.com/a/CnXGL

This is what the majority of our cities would look like with no emission or pollution regulations on industry.

I'll keep my EPA, thank you very much!

[Bubstr]

This is mid-day in Beijing, China:

http://imgur.com/a/CnXGL

This is what the majority of our cities would look like with no emission or pollution regulations on industry.

I'll keep my EPA, thank you very much!

We need EPA. We just need one with some common sense and one that isn't a tool to protect good old boy business.

By the Way, that could be mistaken for LA. California has the strictest clean air laws in the country. If the laws aren't based in facts or unenforceable or not enforced equally, they aren't worth much.

[Clayton_Wetter]

We need an EPA, but not one that has been co-opted by a pack of socialists that harms the econocy with strick over the top regulations that put industries, farmers, coal, and the ability to become energy independent as a nation. An EPA that stands politically with aiding a leftist ran government that is turning the nation into a welfare and dependance of government nation, by design. Why do you think Obummer makes Czars out of people like Cass Sunstein?

This EPA we have now is corrupt as it is politically ran. Just like your healthcare is becoming along with what your schools are turning into also. Industries are under assault, as are farms.

Conspriracy theories is your easy answer? I feel sorry for the blind.

[skids]

We need an EPA, but NOT one that wants to regulate carbon dioxide (that constitutes about .03% of our atmosphere) and acts as if it's the cause of "global warming" or "climate change" or whatever they are calling it these days.

[mudslinger47]

EPA is just like every other government organization, continually overstepping its authority. This is my problem with the government agency, it never knows when to back off until it hurts someone, then its to late...clean air laws will be the final nail in California's coffin.

[RACEMAN]

We need an EPA, but NOT one that wants to regulate carbon dioxide (that constitutes about .03% of our atmosphere) and acts as if it's the cause of "global warming" or "climate change" or whatever they are calling it these days.

I don't know YOUR source of information but here is Wikipedia's take. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_...9;s_atmosphere Pay particular attention to the opening paragraph as it details the amount in the atmosphere and how fast it's rising.

[skids]

I don't know YOUR source of information but here is Wikipedia's take. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_...9;s_atmosphere Pay particular attention to the opening paragraph as it details the amount in the atmosphere and how fast it's rising.

I saw nothing in your link that disputes the percentage that I cited. Heck even triple what I cited and it's still less than 1% of the atmosphere. Your link deals with ppm. If I missed a reference to percentage, I apologize.

To add to the debate I will provide this link

http://principia-scientific.org/supp...tudy-proves-ca

that tells how NASA is in a quandary because their own research has disputed their previous theory that CO2 causes warming. They now find that it actually COOLS!

How about that "scientific consensus" now?????

[racin6mod]

Bush stripped away and deregulated a lot but no jobs or anything good came from all that.just google or bing bush and the epa you'll find a long list.the epa has to keep on top of big business or the gready bastards will fill our river and lake with slug and the air with smog.

[Clayton_Wetter]

The CORRUPTED EPA, has one half of it's budget for the use of giving grants, and enviromental activists (colleges and science centers included) are rewarded with the cash and those that don't believe the lies get no money or even shut down. It's a government run creation designed to promote energy dependence, and eventual carbon taxes as well as other global taxes.

They are not doing their job in any resemblence of honesty and the good of the nation.

[LITE-INN]

its all Al Gores fault

[Clayton_Wetter]

its all Al Gores fault

And the "O" Show too!! But this "O" show gets away with massive cheating every day!

[RACEMAN]

I saw nothing in your link that disputes the percentage that I cited. Heck even triple what I cited and it's still less than 1% of the atmosphere. Your link deals with ppm. If I missed a reference to percentage, I apologize.

To add to the debate I will provide this link

http://principia-scientific.org/supp...tudy-proves-ca

that tells how NASA is in a quandary because their own research has disputed their previous theory that CO2 causes warming. They now find that it actually COOLS!

How about that "scientific consensus" now?????

Wasn't disputing. Just making sure we're on the same page.

[skids]

Wasn't disputing. Just making sure we're on the same page.

It's all good.

[LITE-INN]

And the "O" Show too!! But this "O" show gets away with massive cheating every day!

oh a bloomer lover

[mudslinger47]

Bush stripped away and deregulated a lot but no jobs or anything good came from all that.just google or bing bush and the epa you'll find a long list.the epa has to keep on top of big business or the gready bastards will fill our river and lake with slug and the air with smog.

Are you ever going to pull your head out of your butt?

[LITE-INN]

you know that will never happen

[t.nie]

This is mid-day in Beijing, China:

http://imgur.com/a/CnXGL

This is what the majority of our cities would look like with no emission or pollution regulations on industry.

I'll keep my EPA, thank you very much!

Given free reign, it is corporate America's responsibility to their shareholders to do anything, fair of foul, to make money for their shareholders. Profit for them is all that they are accountable for.

That's why we need the EPA and other regulatory bodies. To balance their profit driven greed against the common good.

Although what corporate America has become very adept at is selling their agenda to make money for themselves as being for the common good.

Like I said before, you can't sell greed and selfishness to the American people as being in the American people's best interest. However you can sell them fear of losing their jobs, fear of taxation, fear of loss of their homes to get them to vote against any increase in regulation and for deregulation. Even if deregulation leads to lower wages, loss of income, loss of home and loss of jobs, if you sell it with the right spin, the simple minded will buy it and not see the consequences of the bigger picture.

Bottom line, we have lived through years of deregulation and lowering of taxes all sold to us by Big Business on the premise that it will lead to prosperity and jobs for all, a chicken in every pot! But look at where we are now: Wall St/Big Business making record amounts of profits, and an economy in crisis for the average American.

[Clayton_Wetter]

Without further adieu, an educational article will now shine a light on reality.

The EPA and Ms. Lisa Jackson, its chief, have committed extensive violations of law that should receive in-depth scrutiny from Congress, law enforcement and the American people. Yes the Obama administration has yet another serious scandal on their hands. The scandal features a fantasy administrator, 'Richard Windsor', and 'his' email account. The account was established and used by Ms. Jackson to camouflage controversial EPA processes, discussions, decisions and accountability. To date the known evidence suggests violations of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), mail and wire fraud laws. Additionally it surfaces another example of the Obama administration's epidemic chicanery with the law, Congress and the Constitution and another failure to keep faith with the American people.

Upon closer inspection the EPA like the GSA and other Obama administration agencies, demonstrates a lack of managerial/administrative control. It also exhibited a culture of obfuscation, malfeasance and corruption that did not blossom overnight. And like other Obama scandals, the mainstream media has again decided to cover it with their much practiced three monkey act.

For perspective a little recent history is in order. Lisa Jackson, who is departing the EPA, stated in November of 2011 that,


"...What EPA's role is to do is to level the playing field so that pollution costs are not exported to the population but rather companies have to look at pollution potential of any fuel or any process or any plant or utility when their making investment decisions."

Simply translated Ms. Jackson makes clear that her job and the EPA's are to hurt companies/industries that produce energy counter to the wishes of the Obama administration (and the left's agenda). Ms. Jackson also demonstrates a very low economic IQ, since higher costs incurred by energy companies will be passed to end users/consumers.

Coupling her statement with President Obama's pronouncement of a year ago, i.e. "Where Congress is not willing to act, we're going to go ahead and do it ourselves"... exposes his strategy to "legislate" by regulation and executive order (with Jackson and the heads of other agencies helping). Although Obama indicated it would be "nice" to work with Congress, his intentions are to evade the two centuries-old legislative process of the Constitution and impose his will on all Americans. The EPA under Jackson has become a key bludgeon in this political and ideological power grab and has used illegal methods in the effort.

President Obama's inaugural speech noted the environment may receive emphasis during his second term. Obama opined that Americans have an obligation to posterity to "respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations". Obama immediately followed with a pitch for sustainable energy, e.g. wind, solar and bio (and more crony capitalism?). Remember this is the man that promoted cap and trade legislation early in his initial term when the economy was "nearing a depression."

An administration's ability to regulate in the extreme and by executive action has evolved slowly over the past 70 years, gaining momentum after the Reagan years. The Congress and our courts have ceded appreciable power to the Executive branch and government agencies by enacting laws with little oversight and that rely heavily on internal agency inspectors such as the EPA's Inspector General. Further the courts have exhibited discomfort in reining in other government branches unless egregious actions are uncovered. The Supreme Court's twisted logic/argument to find ObamaCare constitutional demonstrates the discomfort.

Now due to a whistleblower and the Competitive Enterprise Institute and Christopher Horner's investigative work a federal court (U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit) has ruled that the EPA must turn over 12,000 "Richard Windsor" emails in four 3,000 email batches. The first group of emails released totaled a mere 2,100 and not one was from "Richard Windsor." In a cover letter Ms. Jackson insisted that she only used one government account for EPA business even though this directly contradicted her earlier admission that she used "Richard Windsor" for internal EPA discussions. The release makes clear that the EPA and Jackson have taken to the foxholes and a full denial/stonewalling mode is now in effect. Thus the Competitive Enterprise Institute has brought another action against the EPA in the Appeals Court to force immediate release.

Remember, the EPA has an impact on every American with a tsunami of regulation that is both costly and arguably infringing on our constitutional rights. Moreover the agency has presided over an attempt to bankrupt the coal industry, close coal burning plants, and drive up to cost of motor fuels -- negatively impacting job creation, the economic recovery and America's energy security. The estimated costs of EPA regulations range from $353 billion (Competitive Enterprise Institute) to $460 billion (The American Action Forum) and are growing like a malignant cancer. These costs represent from 20% to 26% of the total cost of US regulations, estimated at $1.75 trillion, and are cited in a World Economic Forum report as a key reason for a sluggish recovery and daunting unemployment. For comparison, these costs are appreciably higher than Health and Human Services regulatory costs estimated at $184.8 billion (the 2nd highest).

The EPA under Jackson's ideological direction has taken a leadership position in exploding these costs. EPA costs have essentially four components; direct, myriad enforcement costs, permit action reviews and other non-rule making costs. Yet the EPA in its cost-benefit analyses insists that the benefits of its actions are at worst three dollars in benefits to one in costs. President Obama has stated on the stump that some regulations show returns of benefits to costs at a ratio of 25 to 1. The EPA's analyses essentially only deal with direct costs; not the others noted. Moreover many of the assumptions used in the analyses are ludicrous and defy common sense (see). Credible sources outside of government emphatically disagree and posit that the EPA almost always under estimates costs and dramatically over estimates benefits...with the true net seldom being a positive.

Recently the EPA has ruled -- without that power being granted by Congress -- that automobile maker fleet mileage standards must rise to 54 miles per gallon (adding costs per vehicle of $2,100 to $3,000)...that run-off rain water is a pollutant (vacated by the D.C. Federal Appeals Court)...that lands could not be sold if certain wastes were present theoretically to prevent 0.59 cancer cases per year (about 3 cases every 5 years)costing $194 to $219 million annually.

Further "sue and settle", a scam, has become a common tool of the EPA's to impose oppressive mandates on targeted businesses with incalculable costs. To implement the scam, the EPA has an environmental or advocacy group file a suit claiming the federal government has failed to satisfy some EPA regulatory requirement. The EPA can choose to defend itself or settle the suit. The "solution" is to put in place a "court ordered regulation" requested by the advocacy group...neat, relatively fast and illegal.

But more shockingly the EPA doles out hundreds of millions of dollars every year to certain organizations. The funds are awarded with no notice, accountability or competition according to the Government Accountability Office. The monies almost always go to favored entities that in some instances have used the funds for non-environmental purposes.

In sum the EPA, in particular, has severely reduced our nation's competitiveness as measured by the 2013 Index of Economic Freedom. The index places the U.S. behind nations like Chile and Denmark and in tenth place worldwide.

The EPA's record of sleaziness, its disregard for transparency, its lack of basic integrity, its fraudulent estimation of costs/benefits and now its attempt to defy and evade a Federal Court order (and by extension FOIA, mail and wire fraud laws) combines both inbred corruption and serious scandal. Together these faults suggest that it may be time to dismantle the agency.

Other federal agencies, not just the EPA, have exhibited this general penchant for ignoring Congress, the courts, the law and the American people. This systemic and widespread disregard suggests the approval of a higher governmental authority...the office of the President.


Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/...#ixzz2SYEGGYKj
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