[ RadSafe ] Re: First Ever Intentional Hormetic X-Ray

[BLHamrick at aol.com]

In a message dated 4/20/2005 1:03:53 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,  
AnaLog at logwell.com writes:

You just  don't understand...they just want to make the world safer for us  
all.  The regulators truly believe that crap shoot can be eliminated  if they 
can just promulgate one more regulation or lower that allowed  exposure just 
a little more, or ban that one particularly bad habit, etc.,  etc.



Just to clarify, the "regulators" are subject to the political whims of  
non-experts in many cases.  In California, for example, the chain of  command is 
the Governor to the Secretary of the Agency of Health and Human  Services (HHS) 
to the Director of the Department of Health Services  (DHS) to the Deputy 
Director over Prevention Services to the Director of  the Division of Food, Drug 
and Radiation Safety - all appointed, and not a one  of them health 
physicists.  It is only at the next level down, the  Radiologic Health Branch, that 
civil service begins, and expertise in  radiation safety and regulation also 
begins.  You may speculate on your own  how much weight those voices near the 
bottom carry.
 
To further put this in perspective, the Governor oversees 300,000 state  
employees (enough to keep the working population of Wyoming fully employed if  
California out-sourced state services to them).  HHS employs about  35,000 
people, DHS about 5,000.  On the bottom rung, the Radiologic Health  Branch employs 
around 150.
 
This is some pretty heavy political baggage to tote around.
 
Just wanted to put things in perspective here.
 
Barbara L. Hamrick, speaking solely on behalf of herself, as a private  
citizen, and sharing only publicly available  knowledge