 14 October 17
Reader Supported News is surviving and maintaining services in the worst economic environment our organization has ever seen. But just barely. Today we ask for the support of all RSN readers who can afford to give. This will be a good fund-raiser.
Thanks to all in advance.
Marc Ash
Founder, Reader Supported News
If you would prefer to send a check:
Reader Supported News PO Box 2043 Citrus Hts, CA 95611 |
WHOOPS
Federal officials accidentally emailed a reporter their plans to spin Puerto Rico.
In late September, the Pentagon included Bloomberg News climate reporter Christopher Flavelle on a series of emails meant for Pentagon employees.
The emails detail talking points for convincing the public that the White House’s response to Puerto Rico was going well. Just one minor problem: It so wasn’t. Many Puerto Ricans have gone without power, clean water, and adequate food ever since Hurricane Maria hit last month.
Flavelle pointed out some highlights from the messages, which he received between Sept. 28 and Oct. 2.
When San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz criticized the White House’s self-congratulatory statements about its Puerto Rico relief — which Cruz called a “people-are-dying story” — officials from the Defense Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency were instructed to ignore Cruz and say that “the federal government’s full attention is on Hurricane Maria response.”
In response to news of these emails, Mayor Cruz wrote on Twitter:
Pentagon emails make it clear that US reponse to PR has been inadequate. thehill.com/homenews/media…
So much for the White House’s attempts to turn the corner on their PR problem. As Department of Defense staff admitted in a later email, the public perception of the government’s response “continues to be negative.” Sometimes, perception is reality.
HURRICANE MARIA
Donald Trump is threatening to end federal relief to Puerto Rico — on Twitter, of course.
In a memo leaked last week, Department of Homeland Security adviser Tom Bossert recommended White House staff pivot to a “theme of stabilizing” with regard to messaging around the humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico.
President Trump, however, appears to have missed that particular update. On Thursday morning, he threatened to pull federal relief workers from the devastated island just three weeks after Maria made landfall.
Meanwhile, most of Puerto Rico is still without power, hospitals are running out of medical supplies, and clean water remains scarce.
Trump isn’t the only prominent Republican refusing to recognize the severity of the crisis. In an interview with CNN on Thursday morning, Representative Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican, accused host Chris Cuomo of fabricating reports of the severity of the disaster.
“Mr. Cuomo, you’re simply just making this stuff up,” Perry said. “If half the country didn’t have food or water, those people would be dying, and they’re not.”
45 Puerto Rican deaths have been officially confirmed so far, and reports from the ground indicate the unofficial number of deaths due to the storm is higher.
HURRICANE MARIA
Puerto Ricans might be drinking Superfund-polluted water, the EPA says.
Three weeks after Hurricane Maria struck, 36 percent of Puerto Ricans — more than a million people — still lack access to clean water. That’s a slight improvement from 1.5 million two weeks ago, but still.
In desperation, people are getting their water from contaminated creeks, sewers, and maybe wells at Superfund sites, those polluted areas often contaminated with cancer-causing chemicals. Quietly tucked away in an EPA news release from Tuesday:
There are reports of residents obtaining, or trying to obtain, drinking water from wells at hazardous waste “Superfund” sites in Puerto Rico. EPA advises against tampering with sealed and locked wells or drinking from these wells, as it may be dangerous to people’s health.
Puerto Rico has more than its share of Superfund sites, a legacy of industrial pollution, toxic landfills, and bomb testing by the U.S. military. Eighteen such sites, to be precise.
These toxic sites aren’t the only danger. There’s also risk in getting water from rivers and streams. People are already dying from diseases caused by contaminated water, and health experts warn that Puerto Rico could see “significant epidemics.”
Keep that in mind next time you hear someone from the White House say the relief effort is going well.
HURRICANE MARIA
Donald Trump is threatening to end federal relief to Puerto Rico — on Twitter, of course.
In a memo leaked last week, Department of Homeland Security adviser Tom Bossert recommended White House staff pivot to a “theme of stabilizing” with regard to messaging around the humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico.
President Trump, however, appears to have missed that particular update. On Thursday morning, he threatened to pull federal relief workers from the devastated island just three weeks after Maria made landfall.
Meanwhile, most of Puerto Rico is still without power, hospitals are running out of medical supplies, and clean water remains scarce.
Trump isn’t the only prominent Republican refusing to recognize the severity of the crisis. In an interview with CNN on Thursday morning, Representative Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican, accused host Chris Cuomo of fabricating reports of the severity of the disaster.
“Mr. Cuomo, you’re simply just making this stuff up,” Perry said. “If half the country didn’t have food or water, those people would be dying, and they’re not.”
45 Puerto Rican deaths have been officially confirmed so far, and reports from the ground indicate the unofficial number of deaths due to the storm is higher.
HURRICANE MARIA
Puerto Ricans might be drinking Superfund-polluted water, the EPA says.
Three weeks after Hurricane Maria struck, 36 percent of Puerto Ricans — more than a million people — still lack access to clean water. That’s a slight improvement from 1.5 million two weeks ago, but still.
In desperation, people are getting their water from contaminated creeks, sewers, and maybe wells at Superfund sites, those polluted areas often contaminated with cancer-causing chemicals. Quietly tucked away in an EPA news release from Tuesday:
There are reports of residents obtaining, or trying to obtain, drinking water from wells at hazardous waste “Superfund” sites in Puerto Rico. EPA advises against tampering with sealed and locked wells or drinking from these wells, as it may be dangerous to people’s health.
Puerto Rico has more than its share of Superfund sites, a legacy of industrial pollution, toxic landfills, and bomb testing by the U.S. military. Eighteen such sites, to be precise.
These toxic sites aren’t the only danger. There’s also risk in getting water from rivers and streams. People are already dying from diseases caused by contaminated water, and health experts warn that Puerto Rico could see “significant epidemics.”
Keep that in mind next time you hear someone from the White House say the relief effort is going well.
No comments:
Post a Comment