House Approves Domestic Security Bill
There's evidentally quite a few riders on this bill, including such wonderful things as liability exemption for anti-terrorism & smallpox vaccine manufacturers and that wonderful Cyberterrorism bill. But most ironically...
In one last-minute addition, Representative Dick Armey, Republican of Texas, inserted a provision that was apparently intended to protect Eli Lilly, the pharmaceutical giant, from lawsuits over thimerosal, a mercury-based vaccine preservative that some parents contend has caused autism in their children.
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But Republicans, like Representative William M. Thornberry of Texas, said the additions were minor and paled next to the importance of creating a department to protect the nation's safety.
Wait a second: if the provisions pass, we're not safe from Eli Lilly -- or for that matter, a *lot* of companies -- producing unsafe products. Dead from something other than terrorism is still dead.
Posted by Ted Stevko at November 14, 2002 12:45 PM