Should Minnesota ban new car sales?

In a comment to my post here, Bob Moffitt communications director for the Minnesota Chapter of the American Lung Association and smoking ban champion invited me to apply for his position if I felt more qualified for his job. Well, because I would find it difficult to suspend my integrity to the degree necessary to support bad science and disregard individual property rights, I readily admit I do not feel as qualified for his position as Bob is. Nonetheless, this article in today’s Star Tribune has me hankering to try my hand at writing an ALA press release.

For Immediate Release:

American Lung Association Moves to Ban New Car Sales
“New car smell” is a toxic chemical brew lethal to thousands

[September 30, 2005] -- Citing an Australian study that found new cars emit six times the amount of volatile organic compounds necessary to induce headaches and nausea, the Minnesota Chapter of the American Lung Association (ALAMN) today throws its support behind a statewide ban on all new car sales in Minnesota.

Commonly referred to as “new car smell” (NCS), the toxic chemical brew that gives new cars their distinctive odor possibly accounts for up to in the neighborhood of 38,123 cardio vascular deaths (CVD) in people that have ridden in new cars according to ALAMN’s Bob Moffitt. He also associated NCS with lung cancer, colon cancer, brain tumors, sudden infant death syndrome, explosive flatulence and tooth decay.

“NCS causes untold tragedy for thousands of families and costs all Minnesotans millions of dollars in medical expenses and lost productivity,” said Moffitt.

Moffitt noted that it is not just those that purchase new cars that are affected by NCS.

“Employees that detail new cars are most at risk,” says Moffitt. “They might not be able to afford new cars, but they spend many hours preparing new cars for delivery -- hours inhaling the up to possibly 61,237 lethal chemicals present in NCS. A car jockey should not have to choose between his profession and a safe working environment,” said Moffitt.

The ALA disputes the “pro-stink” position of “Big Auto” that banning new car sales will cause a downturn of business for auto dealerships in Minnesota.

“People want healthy cars,” says Moffitt. “That’s why we support using government to force people to purchase ethanol and biodiesel products subsidized by their tax dollars,” he said. “Once the ban on new car sales is in effect, more people will be shopping for used cars -- people that should not have to choose between owning a car and dying a lingering and horrible death. There will be no overall loss in business.”

The Australian study may be the final link in establishing the cause of death in the few thousand annual deaths that in some way cannot be linked to smoking, secondhand smoke, or SUV exhaust.

“It’s time for Minnesota to be a leader again in protecting the health and welfare of its citizens by banning the sale of new cars in Minnesota” declares Moffitt. “Can we afford to let children ride in these rolling gas chambers?”

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