• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

“Perhaps I should have considered other options.” (head-desk)

… pundit janitors mopping up after the gop

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

She burned that motherfucker down, and I am so here for it. Thank you, Caroline Kennedy.

rich, arrogant assholes who equate luck with genius

If you’re gonna whine, it’s time to resign!

President Musk and Trump are both poorly raised, coddled 8 year old boys.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

I really should read my own blog.

the 10% who apparently lack object permanence

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Humiliatingly small and eclipsed by the derision of millions.

Republican also-rans: four mules fighting over a turnip.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

This has so much WTF written all over it that it is hard to comprehend.

The revolution will be supervised.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

Sadly, media malpractice has become standard practice.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

“Just close your eyes and kiss the girl and go where the tilt-a-whirl takes you.” ~OzarkHillbilly

Fight them, without becoming them!

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re gonna use it.”

Mobile Menu

  • Seattle Meet-up Post
  • 2025 Activism
  • Targeted Political Fundraising
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • COVID-19
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • 2025 Activism
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • Targeted Fundraising!
You are here: Home / What The EPA Just Did

What The EPA Just Did

by John Cole|  December 22, 20111:55 pm| 53 Comments

This post is in: The Failed Obama Administration (Only Took Two Weeks)

FacebookTweetEmail

This seems to have flown under the radar for many of us:

Resisting strenuous last-minute lobbying by some of the nation’s biggest utilities, the Obama administration announced on Wednesday a final rule requiring power plants to reduce emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants by roughly 90 percent within the next five years.

This is a big victory for environmentalists and scientists who have worked for 20 years to regulate these pollutants — and an even bigger one for the public. When fully effective, the rule could save as many as 11,000 premature deaths a year and avoid countless unnecessary illnesses.

Kthug puts this in perspective:

Let me repeat part of that: it will save tens of thousands of lives every year and prevent birth defects, learning disabilities, and respiratory diseases. This is actually a much bigger issue, when it comes to saving American lives, than terrorism.

This is a nice Christmas present to America.

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Iconic Moments in History: Lesbian Couple Shares Navy’s Traditional First Kiss
Next Post: Too easy »

Reader Interactions

53Comments

  1. 1.

    Ron

    December 22, 2011 at 1:57 pm

    But Obama is just a tool of the corporate thugs! also! too!

  2. 2.

    RinaX

    December 22, 2011 at 1:59 pm

    Well, there’s been awareness of this on certain other blogs that actually discuss the good things the Administration does on a regular basis for a few weeks now, but glad to see the bigger blogs start to pick up on this.

  3. 3.

    Roger Moore

    December 22, 2011 at 2:01 pm

    But the lives and money it saves are mostly little people. Who cares if they die! What really matters is putting more money into the pockets of our Galtian Genius Job Creators(TM). It’s just more proof that Obama hates America.

  4. 4.

    Villago Delenda Est

    December 22, 2011 at 2:02 pm

    Oh, so utilities won’t be able to cost shift their negligence onto the health care system any longer? Man, that’s brutal. How oppressive. (cue Michael Palin protesting that he’s being oppressed)

  5. 5.

    taylormattd

    December 22, 2011 at 2:02 pm

    HES A REPUBLICAN. NOT GONNA VOTE FOR HIM. SHOULD HAVE DONE IT BY EXECUTIVE ORDER THREE YEARS AGO. HILLARY WOULD HAVE DONE IT SOONER. HE ONLY DID THIS BECAUSE OF OUR PRESSURE. AND BESIDES THERE IS A CLAUSE IN IT THAT LETS HIM POLLUTE STILL.

  6. 6.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    December 22, 2011 at 2:03 pm

    This is good news for Mitt Romney. Are you aware Mr Romney was a successful businessman?

  7. 7.

    Baud

    December 22, 2011 at 2:05 pm

    Unfortunately, a lot of good things seem to fly under the radar when it comes to Obama. If there is a silver lining, it’s that a lot of people will hopefully be pleasantly surprised to learn about these good things during the campaign next year.

  8. 8.

    hildebrand

    December 22, 2011 at 2:10 pm

    But but but – Matt Damon haz a sad and says the President still doesn’t have big enough balls for the job – and clearly Mr. Damon is the be all and end all of Democratic party operatives – so shut up with this kind of ‘getting stuff done’ nonsense, ’cause clearly the Preznit is not all that. So there. Also,too.

  9. 9.

    Cronin

    December 22, 2011 at 2:11 pm

    Another in a long and growing line of things certain parties would like to ignore. The Obama administration may not be perfect, but can we all pause a second and reflect on the fact that this would never, ever have happened under a McCain administration? Pretty please?

  10. 10.

    noabsolutes

    December 22, 2011 at 2:11 pm

    Silly rabbit. Obama is worse than Bush. He sold us out.

  11. 11.

    FormerSwingVoter

    December 22, 2011 at 2:12 pm

    Wait, no.

    Y’see, a Republican somewhere said a thing. That means we have to talk about what he said instead of what this administration has accomplished.

    Didn’t you get the memo?

  12. 12.

    Roger Moore

    December 22, 2011 at 2:13 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    Are you aware Mr Romney was a successful businessman?

    Romney may have been a successful businessman, but apparently he doesn’t want to talk too much about it. He’s refusing to release his tax returns. Now the question is whether it’s because he doesn’t want to admit how much money he’s making, where it’s coming from, how he’s dodging taxes, or just doesn’t realize how much of a tin ear his refusal shows. Of course it could be more than one of the above.

  13. 13.

    Anya

    December 22, 2011 at 2:15 pm

    Accomplishments like these show how absurd “not a dime’s worth of difference between Obama and (insert name of Republican de jour)) crowd are. The regular freakouts about anonymous sources and Politico and HuffPo bait takes attention away from the actual accomplishments of the administration. I hope people who care about health care and envirnment would start being vocal about all things that the adminstration does that make a difference.

  14. 14.

    Kerry Reid

    December 22, 2011 at 2:15 pm

    NEEDS MOAR “OBAMA SUXXOR!!!!”

  15. 15.

    MikeJ

    December 22, 2011 at 2:16 pm

    I saw Republicans today loudly proclaiming that a little mercury never hurt anybody, but didn’t know what triggered it.

  16. 16.

    Villago Delenda Est

    December 22, 2011 at 2:16 pm

    @Roger Moore:

    just doesn’t realize how much of a tin ear his refusal shows. Of course it could be more than one of the above.

    I’m going with this one first and foremost, because his tin ear is remarkably wide ranging, covering a great many things.

  17. 17.

    Kerry Reid

    December 22, 2011 at 2:19 pm

    I will say that a lot of the Usual Suspects in my environmental email list were all over this yesterday and unabashedly gleeful about this victory, so it’s not like nobody was paying attention. Just (mostly) nobody in Our Very Serious Media. And there is a part of me thinking “Wouldn’t this have been done ten years ago if Gore had been president?” But yeah — it’s a nice kick-off to the holiday weekend.

  18. 18.

    Satanicpanic

    December 22, 2011 at 2:21 pm

    Somedays it’s good to be an OBot

  19. 19.

    AxelFoley

    December 22, 2011 at 2:22 pm

    That darn Obama. Keeps selling us out.

  20. 20.

    Comrade Dread

    December 22, 2011 at 2:28 pm

    This is a nice Christmas present to America.

    Unless you happen to be living in Republican-land, in which case, this is the worst form of Marxism ever, and the EPA should be abolished for daring to infringe upon the rights of energy companies to spew toxic metals across the land, and anyway, mercury isn’t toxic, and even if it were, it should be remedied in the courts with one state suing another for letting its pollution get out of control because that’s the way a minority of the Founders would have wanted it.

  21. 21.

    El Cid

    December 22, 2011 at 2:32 pm

    OMG Michelle Obama’s going to take all our mercury thermometers away so the white kids will die from fever!

  22. 22.

    Roger Moore

    December 22, 2011 at 2:32 pm

    @AxelFoley:

    That darn Obama. Keeps selling us out.

    More sell-outs like this one, plz. Kthxbai.

  23. 23.

    Perfect Tommy

    December 22, 2011 at 2:34 pm

    within the next five years.

    So they have two chances at getting a R president (who will reverse this edict) in office before the deadline. They’ll wait it out, much as they did before GWB saved them…

  24. 24.

    General Stuck

    December 22, 2011 at 2:41 pm

    Good works from a good president this stupid country doesn’t deserve. And a jolly xmas for all my obot friends on this psychotic blog. The rest can have an eggnog enema for what i care.

  25. 25.

    Hill Dweller

    December 22, 2011 at 2:43 pm

    @hildebrand: Matt Damon popped off again? The President certainly has plenty of material from Damon’s most recent movie to use at the correspondents dinner.

  26. 26.

    gogol's wife

    December 22, 2011 at 2:50 pm

    I’m a total obot and I loved the Christmas card. And I’m glad Bo is getting a $25 chew toy.

  27. 27.

    Calouste

    December 22, 2011 at 2:51 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    No, I didn’t know that, and frankly, I don’t believe it. What I do know is that Romney was a business and job destroying corporate raider.

    Just as I never knew that John McCain was a PoW. I did know that he was a self-promoting sack of shit though.

  28. 28.

    hildebrand

    December 22, 2011 at 2:52 pm

    @Hill Dweller: Yep – his latest bit of ‘wisdom’ is to be found in an interview in Elle magazine.

    “I’ve talked to a lot of people who worked for Obama at the grassroots level. One of them said to me, ‘Never again. I will never be fooled again by a politician,’ ” Damon says, his disappointment ringing with a now-familiar tone of wounded idealism. “You know, a one-term president with some balls who actually got stuff done would have been, in the long run of the country, much better.”

  29. 29.

    Baud

    December 22, 2011 at 2:53 pm

    @General Stuck: Merry Christmas, Stuck.

  30. 30.

    Mino

    December 22, 2011 at 2:56 pm

    @Perfect Tommy: I can’t decide which is worse/better–rolling the same stone up the hill or being repeatedly de-livered. But that seems to be the destiny of progressives.

  31. 31.

    kindness

    December 22, 2011 at 2:58 pm

    Where were you yesterday?

    Even ‘the liberal NPR’ covered it.

  32. 32.

    The Moar You Know

    December 22, 2011 at 3:00 pm

    Matt Damon haz a sad and says the President still doesn’t have big enough balls for the job

    @hildebrand: Matt Damon was busted for playing the bongos while smoking pot – naked.

    I don’t know if that’s gemane or not, but I never get tired of reminding people about it.

  33. 33.

    Mnemosyne

    December 22, 2011 at 3:04 pm

    @The Moar You Know:

    Wrong Matt — it was Matthew McConaughey who did that.

  34. 34.

    Shawn in ShowMe

    December 22, 2011 at 3:10 pm

    @General Stuck:

    Zuzu’s petals … Zuzu… There they are! Stuck, what do you know about that!!

    Merry X-Mas Obot Falls!

  35. 35.

    Hill Dweller

    December 22, 2011 at 3:11 pm

    @hildebrand: The most frustrating part is no one talks about Republicans using the filibuster to turn the Senate into a minority-ruled legislative body. McConnell has engaged in an unprecedented level of obstructionism, but hasn’t had to pay a price for it. Hell, he openly talks about wanting to destroy Obama without anyone in the press batting an eye.

    If a Democrat engaged in the exact same behavior, he/she and the party would be destroyed in the press.

  36. 36.

    different-church-lady

    December 22, 2011 at 3:16 pm

    @taylormattd: Needs more CAVE-bell.

  37. 37.

    Comrade Mary

    December 22, 2011 at 3:23 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Can I still fantasi — err, imagine that it was Matt Damon? Puerile opinions aside, he’s more my type than that hank of hemp rope McConaughey.

  38. 38.

    boss bitch

    December 22, 2011 at 3:24 pm

    This seems to have flown under the radar for many of us:

    Like almost every BFD that the administration passes. We’ll see if this thread gets past 60 comments.

  39. 39.

    hildebrand

    December 22, 2011 at 3:27 pm

    @Hill Dweller: I was thinking about that the other day – remembering the days of watching John Chancellor or David Brinkley (or hell, even any vote before 2009, so therefore any particular news-type talking-head even on the scrubby cable news channels) detailing any number of 50-50 votes when the Vice President needed to vote, or somesuch other exceptionally close vote wherein something would pass or fail. The winning party would gloat (or try to look like they weren’t gloating), the losing party would kvetch – but then they all went about their business, as they knew that this was just the way the legislative process was supposed to work.

    So I continue to be absolutely gobsmacked that the Republicans are not paying a vicious price for completely upending the way business gets done in Washington. Why is it that some schmuck like Brian Williams (and others of his ilk) can’t ask, night after night after night about the Republicans destruction of the legislative process? Mr. Williams – stick this particular shiv in every single night. Make the American public wake up to the fact that the Republicans are busily destroying that precious little document called the Constitution, especially the god-damned First Article of said Constitution.

    And while I am ranting – why is it that certain fucking Democratic wankers can’t see that it is the Republican destruction of the legislative process that has absolutely hamstrung the President. Christ on a cracker, if the bloody Senate actually worked, Obama would be one of the most productive Presidents in the last 50 years. Bah.

  40. 40.

    The Moar You Know

    December 22, 2011 at 3:34 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Oh hell. My bad.

  41. 41.

    trollhattan

    December 22, 2011 at 3:43 pm

    Now watch House Republicans try to defund the EPA.

    After the prior administration screwed the nation on new source review, this move is well, well overdue.

  42. 42.

    burnspbesq

    December 22, 2011 at 3:47 pm

    @Kerry Reid:

    I will say that a lot of the Usual Suspects in my environmental email list were all over this yesterday and unabashedly gleeful about this victory, so it’s not like nobody was paying attention. Just (mostly) nobody in Our Very Serious Media. And there is a part of me thinking “Wouldn’t this have been done ten years ago if Gore had been president?” But yeah—it’s a nice kick-off to the holiday weekend.

    Sorry to harsh your buzz, but it’s not over. I’ll bet you a bottle of your favorite adult beverage that by the end of January there will be legislation introduced in the House that will bar the EPA and DOJ from spending any appropriated funds to enforce these regulations.

    That said, this is 31 flavors of awesome. Thank you, Santa.

  43. 43.

    S. cerevisiae

    December 22, 2011 at 3:52 pm

    I worked for three years in air quality and this is a big deal that was a long time in the making. About time, EPA! To the wingnuts who don’t like it they can go drink a cup of mercury.

    Yay Obama!

  44. 44.

    Perfect Tommy

    December 22, 2011 at 4:00 pm

    I was at an environmental conference at Pew in DC a few years back and they were touting the benefits of the mercury scrubbers. I raised my hand and asked how they sequester the scrubbed Hg to keep it out of the environment. The panel members exchanged uncomfortable glances and then talked about how it was mixed with Gypsum and incorporated into drywall …

  45. 45.

    Bill Arnold

    December 22, 2011 at 4:03 pm

    @<a href="#co@MikeJ: mment-2948384″>MikeJ:

    I saw Republicans today loudly proclaiming that a little mercury never hurt anybody, but didnt know what triggered it.

    The same party that has made it part of the party canon to refuse to use CFLs because, among other reasons, they contain a few (like 4) milligrams of mercury that could escape if the bulb was broken.

  46. 46.

    Bill Arnold

    December 22, 2011 at 4:11 pm

    @Hill Dweller:

    Hell, he openly talks about wanting to destroy Obama without anyone in the press batting an eye.

    This was part of the secret Republican oath of office, something like the little-known Sumerian Oath (Philip Jose Farmer). It supersedes the regular oath of office. Just FYI.

  47. 47.

    Perfect Tommy

    December 22, 2011 at 4:12 pm

    @Bill Arnold: I had one of my friends breathlessly warn me about the hazards of mercury in CFLs, after watching a Fox News exposé. When I explained to him that every fluorescent bulb he had ever had in his home and garage contained the same mercury and had the same disposal requirements, he was dumbfounded.

  48. 48.

    Captain C

    December 22, 2011 at 4:57 pm

    @Roger Moore: In this case, I think it’s e) All of the above.

  49. 49.

    Tom Hilton

    December 22, 2011 at 5:09 pm

    @The Moar You Know: Nothing wrong with smoking pot naked, but anyone who plays the bongos should do hard time.

  50. 50.

    Roger Moore

    December 22, 2011 at 5:33 pm

    @Bill Arnold:

    The same party that has made it part of the party canon to refuse to use CFLs because, among other reasons, they contain a few (like 4) milligrams of mercury that could escape if the bulb was broken.

    Hey, you can’t expect Republicans to be intellectually consistent. Cognitive dissonance is a way of life for them, and you wouldn’t want to make them give up their way of life.

  51. 51.

    SectarianSofa

    December 22, 2011 at 6:24 pm

    Boring. This will disproportionately save the lives of poor people, and also, gay marriage. Stupid liberals. IT SAYS RIGHT HERE IN GENESIS THAT ADAM BLEW STACKS AND THAT GOES FOR MERCURY ONEs 2, GENIUSSES!!

    Unsnarkedly, I had 6 or 7 different enviro or liberal or reality-based orgs send me emails on this subject in the last 2 or 3 days. Maybe some of them were as pleasantly surprised as I was?

  52. 52.

    LongHairedWeirdo

    December 22, 2011 at 6:45 pm

    Clear Skies at last!

    Bush tried to get mercury regs and failed; Obama did the job right and succeeded.

  53. 53.

    Lex

    December 23, 2011 at 8:38 pm

    It’ll be interesting to see whether this ban has any long-term benefits of the caliber that the ban on lead in gasoline and paint had. Because that would be another OBAMA FAIL.

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

On The Road - beckya57 - Copper Canyon, Mexico, April 2025
Image by beckya57 (7/31/25)

World Central Kitchen

Donate

Recent Comments

  • Omnes Omnibus on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 5:33pm)
  • rikyrah on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 5:31pm)
  • Martin on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 5:31pm)
  • Scout211 on Goebbels In, Goebbels Out (Open Thread) (Jul 9, 2025 @ 5:30pm)
  • Archon on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 5:30pm)

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
No Kings Protests June 14 2025

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)
Fix Nyms with Apostrophes

Social Media

Balloon Juice
WaterGirl
TaMara
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
DougJ NYT Pitchbot
mistermix

Keeping Track

Legal Challenges (Lawfare)
Republicans Fleeing Town Halls (TPM)
21 Letters (to Borrow or Steal)
Search Donations from a Brand

Feeling Defeated?  If We Give Up, It's Game Over

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!