THE DAILY BLADE: WA Housewives Join Eco-Nazi Resistance
In an attempt to reduce water pollution, in July 2008 Spokane County adopted the nation's strictest ban on phosphate-containing dishwasher detergent. As with many ill-conceived “green” laws, there have been unintended consequences arising from unanticipated problems, reports The Associated Press:
The quest for squeaky-clean dishes has turned some law-abiding people in Spokane into dishwater-detergent smugglers. They are bringing Cascade or Electrasol in from out of state because the eco-friendly varieties required under Washington state law don't work as well.
But it's not easy to get sparkling dishes when you go green.
Many people were shocked to find that products like Seventh Generation, Ecover and Trader Joe's left their dishes encrusted with food, smeared with grease and too gross to use without rewashing them by hand. The culprit was hard water, which is mineral-rich and resistant to soap.
As a result, there has been a quiet rush of Spokane-area shoppers heading east on Interstate 90 into Idaho in search of old-school suds. …
Phosphates - the main cleaning agent in many detergents and household cleaners - break down grease and remove stains. However, the chemicals are difficult to remove in wastewater treatment plants and often wind up in rivers and lakes, where they promote the growth of algae. And algae gobble up oxygen in the water that fish need to survive.
While traditional detergents are up to 9 percent phosphate, those sold in Spokane County can contain no more than 0.5 percent.
This ill-considered law is contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and increased fossil fuel consumption by forcing people to drive long distances to reassert their free market right to spend their money on (formerly) legal products they wish to buy. In addition, people are using more water to get their dishes clean, because they are either using the pot-scrubbing cycle on their dishwashers or washing them a second time by hand.
Union Picketed By Its Own Employees
Dozens of Service Employees International Union staffers picketed their own union to protest the firing of 75 workers, and the Union of Union Representatives has filed unfair labor practice charges and age and race discrimination claims against the union, reports The Associated Press:
SEIU spokeswoman Michelle Ringuette called the complaints meritless and said layoffs are needed because the union is shifting organizing work away from its national office to local unions. …
She also said SEIU is trying to help those laid off find other jobs and has identified 80 open positions at local unions that they could apply for.
Life Imitates "Raising Arizona"
When a six-man prison work crew found a 2½-year old boy running along the center lines of a two-lane highway in MD, they gave him lunch, played with him and kept him out of harm’s way until his family was located by state troopers and Child Protective Services determined there were no obvious signs of abuse or neglect, reports The Associated Press.
"Me and my inmate crew, we just kind of baby-sat for the next three hours. They were as much entertained by the child as he was by them," Correctional Officer Gary Kershner tells AP.
The toddler’s 18-year old sister was supposed to be minding him, but left the house.
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