Blonde on Blonde: 9/11 First Responders; Taxes on Bad Foods; and Turning 40
Following a brief discussion on the demise of Jesse James and Kat Von D’s relationship, during which Deirdre and Lis decided that Kat tattooing Jesse’s face on her boob is a sign of true love (or the only inkless spot on her body), talk turned to news that cancer-stricken first responders would not be covered by the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.
The reason, as Imus explained during Blonde on Blonde, is that advocates failed to prove a medical link between the exposure to toxins at Ground Zero and the cancers that many first responders subsequently developed.
“They should have to prove that it’s not linked to the exposures at 9/11,” Deirdre said, then noted that many of the exceedingly rare cancers, like multiple myeloma, have already been shown to be related to high levels of heavy metals and others toxins. “One gentleman said he went to 53 funerals of 9/11 victims, and 51 of them died of cancer. What more do they really need?”
Unfortunately, as Lis the lawyer observed, a lot. “If you’re a lawyer on this and you’re a lawmaker, you’re looking at—okay, what’s the evidence that I can show beyond a reasonable doubt that these are the links?” she said, adding that if millions of dollars are allocated to cancer patients with no proof of a link, “then the next group is going to come in and say, ‘Okay, we have this effect, we have that effect, we have emotional distress,’ and poof—the $2.7 billion is gone.”
It remains unclear why doctors did not submit proof of a link for the study, which was conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, but one thing remains clear: there are a lot of fat people out there, and the government winds up paying their health costs most of the time.
As such, Imus believes that unhealthy foods, such as sugary sodas and unprocessed snacks, should be taxed because of their negative health effects. Naturally, his wife agreed, saying, “People don’t have enough discipline.” Moreover, people are too trusting of the government, expecting agencies like the Food and Drug Administration to keep them safe and healthy, “when they’re doing the exact opposite.”
In Lis’s opinion, a tax on certain foods is indicative of a “big brother” government that punishes its citizens when they make poor choices. “There’s always going to be something,” Lis said. “You’re always going to tax people into making the decisions you want them to make.”
Imus, for one, was outraged. “If you want to eat bad foods that make you sick, and you get fat and you have health-related problems, then pay for it yourself,” he said. “Don’t make the government pay for it.”
In other news, Deirdre and Lis agreed that age 40 is younger today than it was a generation ago, with many women waiting until later in life to get married and have babies. Though Imus thinks the “old bags” throwing themselves Sweet 16-like 40th birthday parties need to “get real,” his almost 47-year-old wife took a shot at Lis, who opted not to state her exact age.
“Leave Lis alone,” Imus instructed Deirdre, who insisted, “Women aren’t liberated if they can’t just say their age.”
Some people would argue that women, particularly the two blondes who appear on this program each week, are a bit too liberated. But, you know, details.
-Julie Kanfer
Reader Comments (1)
Wow, I didn't realize Dierdre was that old. She looks much younger than 46.
DP