Tuesday, December 08, 2009

The coming Crisis in the wings?

My spidey sense went off this morning... may be a false alarm, but I couldn't help thinking that as one cycle comes to a close, another is usually being prepped in the wings. Just as (going on memory here) Pollution took over from DDT, new ice age from that, recycling from that, Ozone hole from that, Glowbull warming from that, now with Climate-gate threatening the cause, the latest enviro scare (which just happens to be useful for saving Govt from angry villagers):

ElectroSmog!

Not showing up much in the news yet, but it just had it's test flight on Fox, & Martha MacCallum was all a-flutter over it. It's been getting worked up to for some time, though some scientists not clued in have persisted in finding no basis for the fears, still it has strong birdbrain netting potential, as this from the Guardian shows,
""Four years ago, I was fab, fit and in my 40s with a dynamic marketing and media business, exciting social life and active sporting schedule. My lifestyle was exciting and affluent."

But devastating symptoms forced Sarah Dacre, now 50, to transform her life. She rarely leaves her house in north London, which she has screened from electromagnetic radiation with foil-lined wallpaper and Nasa-designed silvered cloth over the windows. She limits her computer use and makes telephone calls only on a landline. "If we go out for a quick meal we have to be out at seven and leave by eight because that's when everyone arrives with all their phones and their BlackBerrys," she adds.

Why? Because she is convinced that the cause of her symptoms is the electromagnetic fields (EMFs) emitted by computers, mobile phone handsets, cordless telephones, phone masts and the rest."
Why would it gain credibility, buzz and backing now? The metro-asexual they had on from Prevention magazine, warned that wifi-hotspots needed to be shut down!, wireless appliances!, people shouldn't operate them around unsuspecting passersby!... hmmm... how might policies like that affect, oh, I don't know, say amorphous groups of citizens who rely upon things like Twitter, Camera Phones, like Tea Party protestors maybe?

I could be wrong, but my bet is we'll be hearing more from this... hold on to your handhelds!

8 comments:

julie said...

I've been hearing occasional news stories about wifi sensitivity over the past couple of years. I think there are some people who just need a scapegoat for feeling crappy that also happens to get them lots of attention. If there's really something to this, it should be quite easy to test for it: have the subject sit in a room with a hidden wireless device that is otherwise adequately shielded. If they can tell when it's on, clearly there's something real happening.

But regardless, you're probably correct - this will be the new hysteria. Even if such testing is developed and demonstrates that most people are completely unaffected, there will be proponents who disregard hard evidence for anecdotal tales, books will be written, laws will be lobbied for, and the money will continue to flow.

Depressing, that. Especially given that, in all likelihood, the various forms of electromagnetic radiation the sun throws at us daily probably vastly outweighs any amount we could possibly produce en masse. Just as the sun probably has more to do with the earth's temperature than any single other factor, including the laughably small impact made by man.

*sigh*
There's always something.

Unknown said...

I think if there is a move to generate hysteria or crisis about this issue it is going to affect younger people more so then the typical "tea party" goer. I could be wrong but it seems like the majority of the "Tea Par-tiers" in my area are older.

Ex-Dissident said...

Disagree with you on the chosen hysteria, but agree on the idea of another fake crisis. The crazies will not abandon their toys; they are more likely to pick something used by those they don't approve of. The particular behavior is less important than the person they hate to be reminded exists. They didn't like trucks, guns, farms, rural America. What other behavior or necessity will they crusade against next?

Van Harvey said...

Julie, Lance & Ex-D, oh I know it's a stretch, but consider, they've been fine tuning this one since the scare's about Electrical towers. There's always been a luddite wind of the leftists, by virtue of Rousseauian naturalism, keeping house like two mother in laws, right along with the 'all progress and things scientistic are GOOD' crowd.

Right off the bat, you can see a huge push back from the Hollywood set who are sooo enamored of their blackberries, etc. But then you can also see it being super primo look-at-me martyr material for some of them to publicly sacrifice their gadgets, like the biking actor guy.

Most of the young would hate it, just as they've got no love for Social Security & coming healthcontrol mandates, but some will find it as a thrill to throw in the face of the preppie set, just as eco-terrorists and anti-suv sorts do.

But really, the prime piece of evidence, the vital factor without which no leftist project can be contemplated or pulled off, other than as trial balloon's... is... a super slick and catchy title!

ElectroSmog!!!

Unfreakingbeatable!

I don't know if they'll succeed in pushing it up to the #1 rotation spot on the moonbat playlist, but I'm telling ya, it's got a beat and they'll dance to it!

;-)

Rick said...

Van,
What happened to you I’ve coined the “Snidley Effect”.
'cause it happened to me too..

RR

Rick said...

Actually, though, it’s the same old play book and they’re just recycling it over and over. You can only do that so many times, you know.
Scroll down or search for “The Body Electric” in that Crichton link...

RR

Yabu (EOTIS) said...

If you gauged the electromagnetic fields in the Juju Crib...I would be Borg.

Bwahahahah!!!

Great post.

Unknown said...

I gave to admit that "ElectroSmog!!!"

is a catchy title. I am thinking about making a shirt.