Submission + - NYC seeks to ban Geiger counters and Air monitors (villagevoice.com)
Ellis D. Tripp writes: "The city of New York is pushing legislation that would ban private ownership of certain scientific instruments that could give warning of excessive pollution or radioactive contamination. The proposed law would specifically target Geiger counters and air particulate sampling equipment. The alleged rationale behind the law is to prevent false alarms that might panio the public, but after the coverup surrounding the air quality in lower Manhattan immediately after the (/11 attacks, perhaps the REAL goal is to prevent independent scientific study that might contradict the official party line?
From the article:
[quote]"There are currently no guidelines regulating the private acquisition of biological, chemical, and radiological detectors," warned Falkenrath, adding that this law was suggested by officials within the Department of Homeland Security. "There are no consistent standards for the type of detectors used, no requirement that they be reported to the police department — or anyone else, for that matter — and no mechanism for coordinating these devices. . . . Our mutual goal is to prevent false alarms . . . by making sure we know where these detectors are located, and that they conform to standards of quality and reliability."[/quote]
This is not the first law that would restrict the sales of scientific apparatus to the general public. The state of Texas already bans a large list of glassware and laboratory equipment without a permit from (and periodic inspections by) law enforcement."
From the article:
[quote]"There are currently no guidelines regulating the private acquisition of biological, chemical, and radiological detectors," warned Falkenrath, adding that this law was suggested by officials within the Department of Homeland Security. "There are no consistent standards for the type of detectors used, no requirement that they be reported to the police department — or anyone else, for that matter — and no mechanism for coordinating these devices. . . . Our mutual goal is to prevent false alarms . . . by making sure we know where these detectors are located, and that they conform to standards of quality and reliability."[/quote]
This is not the first law that would restrict the sales of scientific apparatus to the general public. The state of Texas already bans a large list of glassware and laboratory equipment without a permit from (and periodic inspections by) law enforcement."
