Synopses & Reviews
Asbestos remains America's most deadly secret, and this devastating expose reveals why, unraveling the complex web of corporate, political, and legal forces that have resulted in the exposure of 100,000,000 Americans to this potent but silent killer. "Hundreds of thousands of people are dying of asbestos-related diseases across this country, " says Chris Weis, an asbestos coordinator for the Environmental Protection Agency. Banned briefly by the EPA in 1989, today asbestos can be found in everything from your car to baby powder to clothing. In Fatal Deception, Michael Bowker details the gritty struggle for justice in Libby, Montana, the site of the most lethal environmental disaster in U.S. history that has left one third of the town's residents with asbestos poisoning or cancer. He makes the compelling case that the owners of the vermiculite mine in Libby, and the asbestos industry in general, took unscrupulous advantage of employees who were rarely told of the perils of the job. While revealing the moving personal stories of Libby residents, Bowker paints the larger picture of deceit and duplicity that have kept asbestos a dark secret, from industry coverups and regulatory agency failures to the untold story of the asbestos released during the Twin Towers collapse at Ground Zero. A gripping story that is all the more terrifying because it is not only real, it is taking place in our own backyard, Fatal Deception is an urgent wake-up call that will put asbestos back at the forefront of the battle for human health and safety.
Synopsis
andlt;Bandgt;STILL LEGAL, STILL LETHALandlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; Most Americans mistakenly believe asbestos was banned long ago. In fact, it is still legal and can still kill you. Its microscopic fibers cause painful and incurable diseases. andlt;BRandgt; Despite being outlawed in nearly every other industrialized country, asbestos remains a legal component of more than three thousand common products in the United States. These include toasters, washers/dryers, ovens, building supplies, and automobile brakes. Our confusion about asbestos is no accident. andlt;BRandgt; andlt;Iandgt;Fatal Deceptionandlt;/Iandgt; is a chilling exposand#233; of the asbestos industry's successful seventy-year campaign to hide the deadly effects of its products from the American people. The stakes are high -- tens of thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars. Michael Bowker rips the cover off the decades of deceit, including the treachery in Libby, Montana, site of the most deadly environmental disaster in U.S. history. He also unveils a startling and ongoing cover-up at Ground Zero -- where thousands of New Yorkers may still be suffering from exposure to dangerous levels of asbestos fibers. andlt;BRandgt; Compelling, enraging, and very timely, andlt;Iandgt;Fatal Deceptionandlt;/Iandgt; is not just a fascinating story, it is a plea to the government and to the American people to help sponsor research into asbestos-related diseases -- and a call to arms to ban asbestos now.
Synopsis
STILL LEGAL, STILL LETHAL Most Americans mistakenly believe asbestos was banned long ago. In fact, it is still legal and can still kill you. Its microscopic fibers cause painful and incurable diseases.
Despite being outlawed in nearly every other industrialized country, asbestos remains a legal component of more than three thousand common products in the United States. These include toasters, washers/dryers, ovens, building supplies, and automobile brakes. Our confusion about asbestos is no accident.
Fatal Deception is a chilling exposé of the asbestos industry's successful seventy-year campaign to hide the deadly effects of its products from the American people. The stakes are high -- tens of thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars. Michael Bowker rips the cover off the decades of deceit, including the treachery in Libby, Montana, site of the most deadly environmental disaster in U.S. history. He also unveils a startling and ongoing cover-up at Ground Zero -- where thousands of New Yorkers may still be suffering from exposure to dangerous levels of asbestos fibers.
Compelling, enraging, and very timely, Fatal Deception is not just a fascinating story, it is a plea to the government and to the American people to help sponsor research into asbestos-related diseases -- and a call to arms to ban asbestos now.
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;Michael Bowkerandlt;/Bandgt; is an investigative journalist specializing in telling the human stories behind today?s health, science, and environmental issues. A former contributor to the andlt;Iandgt;Los Angeles Times,andlt;/Iandgt; he has written four books and more than one thousand articles for a variety of publications. He lives in Placerville, California.