BPA: Canada knows, is the U.S. catching on?

The plastic additive bisphenol-A-- BPA--  has been banned from children's products in Canada, but it's gotten a pass in the U.S.-- until Friday, January 16, when the Food and Drug Administration said Friday that it had “some concern about the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children,” and would join other federal health agencies in studying the chemical in both animals and humans. New York Times.

BPA can be found in hard plastic bottles, babies' sipping cups, dental fillings and sealants, and as coatings on the inside of virtually all soda and food cans.

BPA is also considered an endocrine disruptor, which means it could affect our health in many different ways.  Recently it's been implicated in making us fat!  See Newsweek.

So what can you do to avoid BPA given its ubiquitous nature?

• Know what PBA products look like-- usually hard and clear.
• Avoid No.7 plastic containers.
• Give up plastic containers entirely and use glass covered bowls or Chinese take-out food  containers.
• Use aluminum foil instead of plastic wrap (you can often clean and re-use aluminum foil).
• Avoid canned foods, especially canned soup and pasta.  Rinsing canned vegetables and fruit may help.
  
• Give up plastic water bottles and use stainless steel containers instead (some metal containers are lined with PBA).
  
• Use powdered baby formula instead of canned.
• Be careful microwaving  in plastic!  Pyrex containers are PBA-free; know what you're getting.
  

Photo from poolie's photostream at Flickr.

Take political action for working people!

Now that my inbox has been emptied of all those "Last chance to give" messages, I'm able to pick out some opportunities to make a difference for working people. Join me!

Under Bush, OSHA Mired in Inaction ~ http://www.truthout.org/122908HA ~ R. Jeffrey Smith in The Washington Post:

"Current and former career officials at OSHA say that [deregulation was] a recurrent feature during the Bush administration, as political appointees ordered the withdrawal of dozens of workplace health regulations, slow-rolled others, and altered the reach of its warnings and rules in response to industry pressure. The result is a legacy of unregulation common to several health-protection agencies under Bush: From 2001 to the end of 2007, OSHA officials issued 86 percent fewer rules or regulations termed economically significant by the Office of Management and Budget than their counterparts did during a similar period in President Bill Clinton's tenure, according to White House lists."

To get involved in the workplace safety & health movement, contact Western Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety & Health, 731-0760, nancywrites@verizon.net, 640 Page Blvd #104, Springfield 01104, http://www.westernmasscosh.org. WMassCOSH brings together workers, unions, community groups, and health, safety and environmental activists to organize and advocate, provide training and technical assistance, for safe, secure jobs and healthy communities throughout Western Massachusetts. Its Alliance for Injured Workers provides support, assistance and advocacy to persons with work-related injuries and illnesses; to help injured workers navigate the existing workers compensation system and to change that system.

And save the date: Thursday January 15

DEPRAVED INDIFFERENCE: THE WORKER’S COMPENSATION SYSTEM

7pm, Odyssey Bookshop, 9 College St (Routes 116 at 47), in the Village Commons, S Hadley, 534-7307 or 800-540-7307; odysseybks@aol.com; www.odysseybks.com (www.odysseybks.com/directions.html). Patrice Woeppel will read from and sign her new book, Depraved Indifference: the Worker’s Compensation System.

Every eight minutes in America, someone dies from a work injury or illness - more deaths than from most diseases. Depraved Indifference: the Workers’ Compensation System dissects a system that destroys the health and life of workers without fear of prosecution, or even public outcry, while throwing the preponderance of costs onto families and taxpayers. The stories in Depraved Indifference are the stories of ordinary people. Discarded and forgotten by their employers, denied medical coverage by the workers’ compensation insurer; many have been left to die, slowly and agonizingly, unnoticed by all but their grieving families. Depraved Indifference represents over five years of research and interviews. The final chapter lays out recommendations and strategies for action to bring justice and fairness, corporate accountability, and public disclosure to this system. Info: www.patricewoeppel.us. (Thanks, WMJWJ!)

Tell Congress: HUNGER HURTS Hard-Working Families!

Target: U.S. House of Representatives
Sponsored by: Feeding America (formerly known as Second Harvest)

In today's troubled economic climate, it isn't surprising that many Americans are struggling with hunger. What may be a surprise is exactly who is suffering. Many believe hunger is a problem only for the homeless. Unfortunately, statistics prove that 40 percent of those seeking food assistance are employed. More and more it is America's working poor who are at risk of hunger.

Please let your representative know that you want a comprehensive strategy to fight hunger written into law today. Together, we can work to eliminate hunger in America.
SIGN THIS PETITION!

Good report from The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget):
The State of Working Massachusetts 2008

Entering a Recession After a Recovery That Missed Many

See the report at: MassBudget.

Best of my inbox

Back from vacation, seems like all I've been doing is reading emails and washing clothes. Above is from Cute Overload.

STUDY OF THE WEEK: FOOD GIANTS BRAINWASHING KIDS A new study in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine indicates that the annual $10 billion the food and beverage industry is spending on advertising foods to kids is working alarmingly well. The study found that four out of five kids preferred the flavor of foods served in McDonalds packaging as compared to the exact same foods served in packaging without the McDonalds brand. By the time they are two years old, children may already have beliefs about certain brands, and by the age of six they can recognize brands and specific brand products. Not surprisingly, the study found that kids with more televisions in the home had stronger preferences for brands. The authors suggested this study strengthened the justification for tighter regulation or banning of advertising and marketing of high calorie, low nutrient food and drink, and perhaps a ban on all marketing that is aimed at young children. Learn more and take action in OCA's "Appetite for a Change" campaign: http://www.organicconsumers.org/afc.cfm

Cooling Tower Collapse Raises Concerns about a New License for the Aging Vermont Yankee Reactor*

After key components of a Vermont Yankee cooling tower fell to the ground Tuesday, members of Safe Power Vermont are saying "no" to renewing Entergy's license to operate for another 20 years.

Safe Power Vermont - a coalition of experienced citizen, environmental, legal, and anti-nuclear organizations committed to closing the nuclear power plant - said that while alarming, the collapse of the cooling tower is not surprising.

"Vermont Yankee is running at 120% of its designed capacity. This surge in power combined with its already ailing infrastructure leaves Vermont Yankee incredibly vulnerable to dangerous accidents just like this one," said Deb Katz, Executive Director of Citizens Awareness Network.

Advocates questioned the clean bill of health that the cooling tower recently received from Entergy's experts. They called into question Vermont Yankee's claims that the 35 five year old reactor is not experiencing serious aging strain that jeopardizes the plant's future. "Vermont Yankee telling us that the plant is running like new is like a hair dresser telling you that you look twenty years younger, its nice to hear but far from the truth," said James Moore, Clean Energy Advocate for VPIRG.

The plant's history of defects and accidents is not insignificant. Just in the past decade, Vermont Yankee has documented 76 cracks in its steam dryer, three fires in its transformer station, a dangerously overcrowded spent fuel pool for radioactive waste and now a cooling tower collapse. Despite this, Entergy is aggressively looking to extend the plant's license to operate for an additional 20 years.

Advocates also noted that Vermont Yankee benefited from the recent expiration of a rate payer protection plan. This fact will leave Green Mountain Power, Central Vermont Public Service, and Vermont rate payers with higher bills in the future.
"Any further reliance on Vermont Yankee will pass on to future generations both financial as well as safety risks. Vermont Yankee was built to run 40 years and at 35 it is already testing "father time", the plant must close in 2012," said Ed Anthes of Nuclear Free Vermont.

In accordance with Act 160, the Vermont legislature has the power to prevent Vermont Yankee from running past its 2012 lifespan. Safe Power Vermont says the coalition will continue to work for the facility's closure to prevent a seemingly inevitable accident of catastrophic proportions.

*For More Information: * James Moore, VPIRG, 802-223-5221
Chris Williams, VT CAN, 802-767-4276
Deb Katz, MA CAN 413- 339- 5781

Two years after Katrina, the Gulf Coast is still recovering, and thousands of personal stories remain unheard. Experience them here. Tell us yours. VOICES FROM THE GULF.

Pioneer Valley

Latin Jazz Festival

Saturday, September 1^st, 2007

La Finca,
24 Jones Ferry Road , Holyoke 01040,
l ocated alongside the Connecticut River in Western Massachusetts

12:00 to 7:00

Featuring:
Curtis Brothers' Insight
Victor "Papo" Sterling's Sabor a Timba
Art (Jayko) Clinton's KomboJaZZ
Angels Rodriguez' "Mundo Nuevo Latin Jazz Ensemble"
Faith Conant's "Mi la Woe" (We will do it!)

$10 adults, $5 for College students/seniors, Children free

The donations will provide funding to support other cultural activities at El Mercado including poetry readings, art shows by local artists. For further information call 413-687-0399 or cena.elmercado@gmail.com

CENA Centro de Artes

@ El Mercado, 413 Main Street, Holyoke 01040 * cena.elmercado@gmail.com * 413-335-6224

CENA is where the community can create, see, support, and learn about different artistic disciplines and promises to enhance the South Holyoke neighborhood, assist in the revitalization of Main Street Holyoke, and bring resources to the area. This space serves as an anchor to a network of programming and educational opportunities related to cooperative economic development in conjunction with other community institutions, programs and institutions of higher learning.

Sponsors: Centro de Artes @ El Mercado, Nuestras Raíces, Massachusetts Cultural Council, Mass Latino Chamber of Commerce, Massachusetts Fair Housing Center (MFHC), Massachusetts Public Health Association (MPHA), NetValley Networks, COOP Power, New England Cooperative Fund…

ONE MORE TIME! READY TO GO TO WASHINGTON, D.C. AND SAY NO MORE WAR?
*September 29: March Against the War at Home & Abroad

FOR INFORMATION on BUS TRANSPORTATION FROM WESTERN MASS. for the Sept. 29 "Healthcare Not Warfare DC Mobilization," phone us at 413-896-5219 (Springfield) or 413-587-0059 (Northampton), or email wmassiac@hotmail.com please type "S29 DC BUS" in your email's subject line.Troops Out Now.