It's a wonder we're still alive. I remember restoring an old house in the 1980s. Covered wall cracks with tape, spackled then power sanded smooth. Later I found out the spackle contained asbestos.
I was 13 with Carson’s “Silent Spring” came out. (1962) I was read it and immediately awakened to what was going on. She spelled it out simply: Birds of prey eat critters that ingested DDT. Sadly it took another 10 years for DDT to be banned.
Great piece George and sadly even today we read of similar more recent stories - PFAS for example the ‘forever chemicals’ used in a whole host of things from Teflon pans to cosmetics. I think 3M has recently paid billions because of pollution to the water supply in the USA and of course there’s been the ‘Dark Waters’ film.
The wallpaper in my room growing up smelled funny. This explains a lot.
You've paid a high price to be bug-free.
I worked for a major international airline in 1972. The crew was responsible for spraying the inside cabins with DDT after the pax left.
We did that in many countries and on our return to the United States.
We started to hear how bad it was for us so some started spraying the bottle into the toilets.
We also smoked cigarettes entire flights as the pax were allowed. I never smoked but I inhaled thousands of cigs without a choice.
It's a wonder we're still alive. I remember restoring an old house in the 1980s. Covered wall cracks with tape, spackled then power sanded smooth. Later I found out the spackle contained asbestos.
Likely my memory is a bit faulty, but I recollect the effect on bird eggs, especially the Bald Eagle, as being the tipping point on use of DDT.
Can’t kill America’s bird!
I was 13 with Carson’s “Silent Spring” came out. (1962) I was read it and immediately awakened to what was going on. She spelled it out simply: Birds of prey eat critters that ingested DDT. Sadly it took another 10 years for DDT to be banned.
The worst thing about DDT poisoning is the memory loss. Worse yet, the memory loss
Great piece George and sadly even today we read of similar more recent stories - PFAS for example the ‘forever chemicals’ used in a whole host of things from Teflon pans to cosmetics. I think 3M has recently paid billions because of pollution to the water supply in the USA and of course there’s been the ‘Dark Waters’ film.
Those old ads are worth the price of admission!
But my Forgotten Files are free. Grin
Mmmm... That's good DDT!