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| Water almost banned! |
| 2004-03-15 |
| City officials were so concerned about the potentially dangerous properties of dihydrogen monoxide that they considered banning foam cups after they learned the chemical was used in their production. HAHAHAHAHAHA! Then they learned that dihydrogen monoxide - H2O for short - is the scientific term for water. "It’s embarrassing," said City Manager David J. Norman. "We had a paralegal who did bad research." IIRC, the joke petition was a science project. The paralegal apparently fell victim to one of the many official looking Web sites that have been put up by pranksters to describe dihydrogen monoxide as "an odorless, tasteless chemical" that can be deadly if accidentally inhaled. Technically true. Just ask the crew of many a ship. As a result, the City Council of this Orange County suburb had been scheduled to vote next week on a proposed law that would have banned the use of foam containers at city-sponsored events. Among the reasons given for the ban were that they were made with a substance that could "threaten human health and safety." Also, people dependent on it die if deprived of it. The measure has been pulled from the agenda, although Norman said the city may still eventually ban foam cups. "Our main concern is with the Aliso Creek watershed," Norman said. "If you get Styrofoam into the water and it breaks apart, it’s virtually impossible to clean up." That’s a workable reason. |
| Posted by:Korora |
| #14 AC gebus... you don't sound like any fun atall. Wait a second.... you said heavy drinking..... now there's a little Chiracian motion.... |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-3-15 7:43:42 PM |
| #13 AtomCon-- I'll have your spam, er, hookers! I love it! (tip: Monty Python) |
| Posted by: JDB 2004-3-15 7:32:44 PM |
| #12 On a serious note, it is unfortunate but scarcely a surprise that the paralegal is so ignorant. It is much worse that nobody bothered to run the paralegal's "discovery" past someone who had, say, passed freshman chemistry. It is possible that there is no such person in Aliseo Viejo, but they could surely have sent for an outside consultant. Citiot bureaucrats love that, so it wouldn't have interfered with the real objective here, a tiny little power grab for officious officials and imperious lackeys. My fee is $1150 a day, plus expenses (minimum one day). Unlike the usual run of high-priced California eco-consultants, I don't go in for hookers or heavy drinking, so the expenses would be modest compared to what they are used to. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2004-3-15 5:26:17 PM |
| #11 It's natural that two horny Hydrogen Molecules should attracted to something as common and low born as O! Teachin science everywhere. Along with Higene. |
| Posted by: Dr. Science 2004-3-15 5:10:03 PM |
| #10 I hate the shit, I just can't heard saying it. And yes... what is it? |
| Posted by: Hillary 2004-3-15 5:07:00 PM |
| #9 But, as the FAQ points out, it aids athletic performance and sex. Its use in all beers is especially telling. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-3-15 4:44:42 PM |
| #8 Consider this, gang: Somewhere out there, in the depths of space, hyper-advanced ET's are listening in to the Today Show and PBS and the breathless bleating of yokel-news career-builders. If so, liberal science legislation is the laughingstock of the universe. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2004-3-15 4:42:49 PM |
| #7 The real story is that the city was prepared to enact binding legislation on the basis of something a paralegal dug up on the internet. The DHMO hoax is an old one and very widely known. How many less obvious hoaxes and fictitious, unverified claims have gotten by us and into the law books? |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2004-3-15 4:23:57 PM |
| #6 Its about time they banned this dangerous substance. From the FAQ on DHMO.... Each year, Dihydrogen Monoxide is a known causative component in many thousands of deaths and is a major contributor to millions upon millions of dollars in damage to property and the environment. Some of the known perils of Dihydrogen Monoxide are: * Death due to accidental inhalation of DHMO, even in small quantities. * Prolonged exposure to solid DHMO causes severe tissue damage. * Excessive ingestion produces a number of unpleasant though not typically life-threatening side-effects. * DHMO is a major component of acid rain. * Gaseous DHMO can cause severe burns. * Contributes to soil erosion. * Leads to corrosion and oxidation of many metals. * Contamination of electrical systems often causes short-circuits. * Exposure decreases effectiveness of automobile brakes. * Found in biopsies of pre-cancerous tumors and lesions. * Often associated with killer cyclones in the U.S. Midwest and elsewhere. * Thermal variations in DHMO are a suspected contributor to the El Nino weather effect. :) |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2004-3-15 4:13:33 PM |
| #5 All this damn science and math crap should be banned anyway. It is so bad for the children's self-esteem to be told there is only one right answer out of all the possible answers they can come up with! Is being "right", which is really an old throwback to that repressive Puritan belief system, really more important than feeling good about yourself? Like my finite math prof Dr. Corwin used to say, 2 + 2 = 5, when 2 is very large. |
| Posted by: Dar 2004-3-15 4:00:27 PM |
| #4 Here's a link to the material safety data sheet for water: http://ptcl.chem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/WA/water.html |
| Posted by: Spot 2004-3-15 3:56:43 PM |
| #3 You're right Frank. This reminds me of the Mississippi state legislator who several years ago introduced a bill to round Pi off to 3.0. |
| Posted by: GK 2004-3-15 3:46:32 PM |
| #2 Science by politicians....bad for your health? It should be banned |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-3-15 3:37:46 PM |
| #1 Sounds to me like they're determined to ban styrofoam cups and they need an excuse. The excuse they happened to hit upon just made them look stoopid, but that's not deterrence if you actually are stoopid. |
| Posted by: Fred 2004-3-15 3:29:15 PM |