NYT Editorial: Mucho Mistakes At Ground Zero ("Giuliani administration's failure")

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/opinion/22tue1.html

Editorial
Macho Mistakes at Ground Zero

Published: May 22, 2007
As more and more workers who inhaled the dust at ground zero fall ill, it has become increasingly clear that much of the problem can be traced to the Giuliani administration’s failure to insist that all emergency personnel and construction workers at the site wear respirators.

The then-mayor and his agency heads put their emphasis on a speedy cleanup and return to normalcy. In that, they were remarkably successful, clearing the site in less than 10 months. Unfortunately, the price is now being paid by thousands of workers who have developed lung and other ailments.

- snip -

By late October, only 29 percent of workers at ground zero were wearing the respirators, and even Mayor Giuliani visited without wearing one, setting a terrible example. This was a case where workers should have been protected against their own destructive instincts.

Critics often blame the federal government — particularly the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency. But a federal district judge, in allowing a suit against the city and other defendants to go forward, noted that city agencies had explicitly assumed responsibility for developing and enforcing health and safety standards, including the use of respirators. The suit may shed more light on who, if anyone, can be held liable. But the clear lesson is that Mr. Giuliani’s administration failed in its duty to protect the workers at ground zero.

MORE

You have so much baggage to hide or explain.

You've had it as a politician. You are toast.

For him to think he could even think of being President is a bit much. I mean, come on! :eyes: