Tuesday, May 06, 2014

Dallas Dumps Fluoride

Another large city, has discontinued fluoridation of its water supply. It seems the main reason Dallas is stopping the practice wasn't any real or imagined effect on health, but economics. The city will save a million dollars a year by not fluoridating.

That's a good point, but not the one I've been arguing. It should be matter of personal choice, especially when there's any number of ways to ingest fluoride if someone wants to do so.

I've wrote before that fluoride wasn't even on my radar two or three years ago. I'm still not all that concerned about its supposed health effects. Eureka's water has been fluoridated since long before I moved here.

I first got interested in fluoridation reading of Sonoma County's plans to fluoridate their water. I was appalled at how many seemed determined to force it on those who didn't want what is essentially industrial waste put in the entire water supply.

The individual choice argument doesn't go over well in California, especially in the Bay Area. Maybe economic considerations will sway more minds?

3 Comments:

At 5:43 PM, Anonymous liberal jon said...

Awesome. Epidemiological study starting now. Teeth health and even heart disease rates Austin vs Dallas.

Libertarian Dallasites make sure to do you homework and use floride toothpaste. -or- ...

 
At 6:58 PM, Blogger Fred Mangels said...

I'm guessing you have no concern for individual choice?

 
At 9:05 PM, Anonymous Liberal jon said...

Individual choice is awesome. Also awesome is a public sector informed by epidemiology. To protect consumers from the real threat of snake oil salesmen.

I don't know the epidemiology myself, but there is a reason the dental an medical fields support floridation or municiple water, and it isn't for mind control or whatever George Noory guest will go on about tonite.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation

But to answer your question, individual choice is not the be-all-end-all, but it is important.

For example, I'd love it if there was more individual choice in the housing market. With more push from forward thinking Supervisors, butters would have a choice of new homes in the suburbs, and new homes within walking distance of town centers.

You'd be surprise of the homogeneity and oppression of the libertarian free market without government to help maintain a "free market" where, for example monopolies do not rule the day. I know, I know, heresy. But I don't think evidence backs up the libertarians ownership of the "individual choice" meme. In my lifetime, I've been incredibly disappointed in the market's tendency to stifle choice.

 

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