Open the window

  Benjamin Franklin famously said, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. You can't argue with that logic. It is far easier to prevent something from happening than it is to repair the damage afterwards. I do think that advice needs to be tempered with the realization that you can't prevent the future. What I'm saying is, things happen. We should learn from the past but not allow it to cripple your future. Attempting to prevent tomorrow and its' turmoil and troubles can consume whatever happiness you have gathered today. Some Biblical advice is all things in moderation. I'd argue that includes those things not necessarily beneficial to us but cause little harm. Or as I was often told, don't sweat the small stuff. It is the big picture that matters. Keep your eye on the prize. The difficulty is in defining just what that prize is. Something that is different for each of us. 

  Those thoughts came to mind as I read about a proposal to ban some more things because they are known to cause cancer. I'm not a scientist or a doctor but I think just being alive can cause cancer. It's my thinking people have been getting cancer since man was first on this earth. We may not have called it that, may not have had any inkling of what it was, but it was here. I read where there is an ancient Egyptian papyrus that describes cancer. What could have been causing it back then? Could it have been prevented. I doubt that. Yes, I agree that we can induce that response in our bodies by introducing certain substances, stick your hand in a fire and you will get burned, but that doesn't mean we should start banning everything. Just what is the threshold level? Remember when saccharin was found to induce cancer in lab rats. Yes, it took between 3.5% and 7% of their diet to get that reaction. That's a whole lot of saccharin. It was banned in 1977. The ban was lifted in 2000. The warning label was also removed from products containing saccharin and is being sold in at least 150 countries. Why, because it is alright in moderation.

  I began thinking about this when I learned that California and New York have banned gas stoves in new home construction. I haven't done an exhaustive research study on any of that. I'm not going to pretend that I have a PhD level understanding of the hazards causing this ban. I'm really not that interested or concerned about it. I don't live in New York or California. I did read a little about methane and nitrogen oxides being emitted by those nasty gas stoves and how they are contributing to global warming. I read where we need to support this new green initiative to save the plant. I read where wood stoves are just as bad! Only clean electrically produced heating and cooking devices are safe for the planet! I also read where methane and nitrogen oxides are only found in trace amounts in the atmosphere. 

  If larger amounts of these gases are being found in our homes is that the fault of the stoves and heaters? I can see where they would be identified as the source. Does that mean we should ban them? I'd suggest a better solution is to simply open a window and allow some fresh air into the room. It's my feeling we are living in isolated environments to put it in modern terminology. Back when I was a kid, we called it getting some fresh air. My home wasn't a climate-controlled environment. No sir, we were indeed subject to climate change. When it was cold outside it was colder inside and vice-versa. Couldn't wait for spring days to open the windows and get some fresh air, that air would get stale when we were all couped up. Could it be that is what is really the cause of all this poor air quality in our homes? Maybe if we weren't hermetically sealed from the atmosphere, it would be better. Ah, but that might cause some discomfort or inconvenience. Better to ban the stoves.

  Remember when we all had to wear our masks to save the world? There is a study that shows masks did little to prevent the spread of covid. Yes, this study is being disputed by the WHO and others because we aren't supposed to question them about anything. Other studies showed a rise in respiratory illnesses as a result of wearing those masks. Again, disputed and ignored by the WHO, for the same reason. For me just more evidence that all things in moderation is the only reasonable response. Wearing that mask twenty hours a day isn't good. Should we ban mask wearing? Look the bottom line for me is a simple one. We will get something, some illness, some disease, some infirmary at some point in our life. Fact is, we will all die. We aren't going to prevent that from happening. A little common sense and an ounce of prevention is as good as it is going get. Got methane gas (cow farts was the leading cause in California) and nitrogen oxide in the air because of your stove. Open a window! No need for government intervention.