2000-05-26 - 00:33:53

May 26, 2000

Roll Of The Dice

I am still musing on this, probably will wander in a straggly fashion, stream of consciousness thingy.

How fortunate many of us are still alive at an old age. So many, many things have been proven to be carcinogenus now. We had no knowledge then of the dangers of many things. When one of the high schoolers would sneak some mercury out of the lab and let us little folk have some, first we would rub pennies in it until they were silver colored and into our pockets they would go. The rest of the mercury would be thrown on the tile floor at school, drop by drop, just to see the silver flash when it hit the floor. Now we know where it goes.

Asbestos, was every where, Raybestos brand brake shoe liners would be fitted to the shoes and then ground into the proper shape, with asbestos flying in the air. Many hot pads were asbestos and the big fireproof pads under the pot bellied stoves were asbestos pads too. In later life when I was in the power plant, on the yearly shutdown, whatever insulated piping or equipment needed work, first the asbestos lagging would be ripped off. Work on the boiler was always needed and the lagging was all asbestos. During that time accumulated asbestos and other dust would be periodically spit out, what went into the lungs with luck sometimes was coughed up. My brother in-law who was in the boiler room on a battleship was under the same conditions.

Silicosis from the mines and the foundries finally forced owners to take precautions. The potions given out by the druggist to help, who really knows what was in them? Many of the medications prescribed had the direct opposite effect than desired. Bad side effects weren't as known then as now.

I could probably add more to the list, but I think the general idea has been given.

The diversity of the human body's tolerlance for various substances, liquids and gasses is a source of wonderment to me. I remember the commander of a group of aviators who flew the Agent Orange Defoliation air craft who stood up in front of his group and poohed and scoffed and said, this stuff isn't harmful and drank a glass full down in front of them. Wonder where he is today ? When the birds returned there was always that stuff dripping from the nozzles as the flew over to make a landing

The use of solvents for various purposes before the harmful damage had been done for many years. Carbon tetra chloride used in cleaners and dyers shops for many years laid out groups of people.

And yet there were some of us whose bodies were less affected who managed to live to a decent old age in spite of all the bad stuff around. I guess the Mercedes bodies are prone to suffer bad effects, while the huge earth moving machines don't. I have not a huge earth mover body, but have shoveled my share of B.S.

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