Remember Those Kids On the Playground?

In my job, I  have to read Congressional updates, Federal Regulations, and Trade Journals to inform my clients and my staff of any change in regulation that effects our business.  What was at one point a rather mundane task has become increasingly disconcerting.  I feel as if I have a window seat into the regulatory workings of our behemoth government and it is truly depressing. 

No where is the Government increasing activity like it is within the regulatory mechanism of the EPA. 
With Climategate accelerating faster than a gas guzzling SUV driven by a frazzled mother of three who is late to soccer practice, the EPA and the administration are moving full steam ahead on passing regulations that will effect that exhale you just took.  The regulatory cancer has invaded all aspects of our economic and personal freedoms.  It hinders our prosperity, our innovation, our security, and our future. 

These busy body bureaucrats where the hall monitors and the name takers in school.  They were the children that memorized the student handbook and would report on you if you had a Tylenol in your purse.  They were the kids on the play ground who didn't dress out because of their "conditions" or they would become the coach's assistant, taking attendance and doing his paperwork.  You know the type, not the geeks, who were generally just odd, needed a bath and a hair cut and pants that weren't high waters - no these kids were the ones just above the geeks on the pecking order, they are the smarmy little rats.  They are doing exactly what they have always done - getting back at the achievers.  Reporting the risk takers and innovators; bringing everyone down to their level of beige. 


Here is the latest example, and one that was just too outrageous not to report.


California - Bankrupt, mass exodus of people and business, industries going broke, farm lands lying fallow, high unemployment, homelessness, crime, gangs, medical marijuana, illegal immigrants, failing schools - you know the drill.  All liberal governance becomes a gigantic failure!


Throw into the mix, California's environmental laws that have crippled their weak economy further and bankrupted hundreds of small companies who can no longer afford to produce or ship cargo to California. 


This was released today, it is from the Feb 12, 2010 edition of Broker Power:  The California EPA states Unilever/Conopco was fined $1.3 million in January 2010 by the CA Air Resources Board for illegal consumer products sales between 2006 and 2008.


Fines are Due to Sale, Supply of Body Spray with Excessive VOC Emissions


A press release states that Conopco, Unilever's parent company, sold, supplied and offered for sale in CA more than 2.6 million units of deodorant body spray that failed to meet clean air standards for aerosol deodorants.  The violations resulted in significant excess emissions from volatile organic compounds (VOC's).  (Sources note that the emissions would occur when the product is used by consumers, not from the manufacturing process.)


California Law Requires Reduction in VOC Emissions from Consumer Products


The California Clean Air Act requires CARB to reduce VOC emissions from consumer products as a means to reach health-based state and federal ambient air quality standards.  Deodorants, hair spray, cleaning products, spray paint, and insecticides are examples of common consumer products that are made with VOC's.


Press Release


Does anyone else think that the Environment is improved by folks NOT using deodorant?  How stupid is this?