[ RadSafe ] Risk in general - not radiation-specific

[BLHamrick at aol.com]

This just in:
 
SAN FRANCISCO, California (Reuters) -- California Attorney General  Bill 
Lockyer has filed a lawsuit to force top makers of potato chips and french  fries 
to warn consumers about a potential cancer-causing chemical found in the  
popular snacks.SAN FRANCISCO, California (Reuters) -- California Attorney  General 
Bill Lockyer has filed a lawsuit to force top makers of potato chips and  
french fries to warn consumers about a potential cancer-causing chemical found  
in the popular snacks.
 
A quick search for "acrylamide" and "cancer" and "risk" on Google  reveals 
that this is another fear extrapolated from high-dose studies on  animals, and 
makes me think this is some last ditch effort on California's part  to try and 
balance our monstrous budget on the backs of the fast-food and potato  chip 
industries.
 
If one really thinks a warning is necessary for these foods, then  let's 
address the REAL problem:  "WARNING, THESE FOODS MAY MAKE YOU  EXTREMELY FAT, 
THEREFORE MORE PRONE TO HYPERTENSION, DIABETES AND HEART  ATTACK.  But, since 
we're all going to die one of these days anyway, you  should assess the pleasure 
these foods provide against the risks on an  individual basis."
 
Frankly, I am embarrassed by this suit, brought ostensibly on "my  behalf," 
and to bring this back around to radiation specifically, this once  again 
demonstrates a gross misuse and abuse of the LNT for carcinogens.   It's a bad 
model, not necessarily because it's wrong (although I think it is),  but because 
it focuses attention on negligible risk in a vacuum, rather than in  the 
context of all risks.
 
Barbara L. Hamrick