Author Yi Gongzi, WeChat public account: Gongzi's wine
01
Wilbur Tennant was abandoned by his father when he was very young, leaving him only: 4 younger siblings, 1 broken farm, 7 cows.
After decades of hard work, Tennant has had a good life. The farm has grown to 600 acres (about 3,600 acres), and the number of dairy cows has increased to 200.
It was the quintessential American dream of that era.
Unfortunately, it came quietly.
Younger brother Jim joins the chemical company Dupont, and then contracts a mysterious disease that leaves him in poor health and desperate for money. Jim sold his 66 acres of land to his old owner. DuPont used the land as a landfill for chemical waste and assured the Tennant family that everything was safe.
Although, 66 acres is only 1/10 of all Tennant farms. But horrible things happened one after another.
Newborn calves turn their hooves inwards, and adult cows go mad one after another. The cow, which was originally docile as a pet, rushed to the top of its owner like a madman, and then died in pain, blood flowing from the nose and mouth of the cow. Wilbur Tennant dissected the corpse and found horrific lesions: the tumor was disgustingly swollen, and the cow's organs were some black and some green.
Wilbur Tennant seriously suspects it's all because of DuPont. After several rounds of complaints, reports and petitions, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finally came to the investigation team.
However, the conclusion of the investigation almost made Tennant pissed off. The investigation report blamed poor management , nutritional deficiencies , inadequate veterinary investment and lack of fly control for the cow deaths .
what? ! Wilbur Tennant was almost mad. "I've raised cows all my life, do you want to teach me how to raise cows?" The huge tumor, the deformed calf, the green organs, the blood from the nose and eyes, how could it be just because of feed and flies?
This investigative report is a complete nonsense with open eyes.
02
Rob Bilott doesn't seem like the right lawyer to help Wilbur Tennant.
The law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister he works for has a long history, founded in 1885. One of the founders is a relative of the 27th President of the United States, William Howard Taft. The young man has just been promoted to partner, and he is proud of his horseshoes. He can see all the Chang'an flowers in one day. Bilott is indeed an environmental lawyer, but his clients are large corporations, or more precisely, chemical giants, including DuPont.
The office of the law firm is often filled with successful people in suits and leather shoes, and Rob Bilott is a typical spokesperson for capitalists. When Wilbur Tennant showed up at the law firm in jeans, a plaid flannel shirt, and a baseball cap, he looked so out of place.
However, the world is complicated and the world is full of things. What you see is your life . Bilott decided to take the case after reading the information.
Because he thought it was the right thing to do.
Unexpectedly, as Bilott's investigation deepened. He found that this was not the misfortune of the Tennant family, but a 40-year disaster for all mankind, full of lies and cover-ups.
03
Who is DuPont? Chemical industry giant, Fortune 500. He has a long history and has done business with the Qing government of China; he has made outstanding achievements and participated in the "Manhattan Project" of the US atomic bomb.
How powerful is DuPont? Let's put it this way, the US Environmental Protection Agency EPA issued a huge historical fine for DuPont, but the so-called historical fine is less than 2% of the annual profit of DuPont's single product . As an absolute leader in the field of composite materials, DuPont has accumulated more than 25 times the process data that China has mastered.
There is no doubt that Bilott is hitting the pebble. DuPont's advantages have at least the following three aspects.
First, the monopoly standard . When you ask, are XX chemicals toxic? Government standards should be authoritative enough. However, the US Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, has only started to regulate chemical substances in 1976. In front of the century-old DuPont, he is like a student. When encountering problems, he often asks DuPont to make up his mind.
Second, national glory . Leading in the chemical industry is an important symbol of the national strength of the United States. To this day, U.S. chemical industry is one of the hardest areas for China to catch up. DuPont not only contributed to the victory of World War II, but also provided a large number of jobs in reality. Obviously, to expose DuPont is to oppose the United States, and you are greeted with labels such as "unpatriotic" and "angry youth".
Third, practical interests . As the largest and best employer in the area, DuPont employees can take out home loans with just a work permit. The generous salary offered by DuPont is the guarantee that people can pay their mortgages, send their children to college, and live a middle-class life. A farmer who has nothing to do with us is anti-DuPont? ! This affects the career and income of every town person! nononono! The locals began to actively reject the Wilbur Tennant.
When an elephant faces the challenge of an ant, there are 10,000 ways to kill you. Elephants can't handle the shit and ants. Didn't Bilott apply to the court for DuPont's disclosure of information? All right, I'll take it all to you. DuPont sent an entire roomful of cardboard boxes. Documents spanning half a century, open the cardboard box to eat the ashes; 110,000 pages of information are all technical terms + industry slang. Bilott, who was not good at chemistry since childhood, was hit with precision, and his body and mind were destroyed.
It was the discrimination of the whole town that greeted Tennant. The restaurant that he had patronized for many years no longer accepted him, and his friends who met on the street for many years were regarded as not knowing each other. He changed the church four times for worship. Subsequently, the cow's diseased organ samples hidden at home as evidence disappeared. The helicopter hovered over his home. Tennant held the shotgun, panicked all day long.
It's a battle of eggs and rocks, hitting rocks with pebbles. But don't forget, no matter how hard the rock is, it's dead. No matter how fragile an egg is, it is still alive. The rock will eventually weather into fine sand, and the eggs will hatch life over the rock.
04
After searching for a needle in a haystack and stripping the cocoon, Bilott found the source of evil: PFOA.
PFOA, perfluorooctanoic acid, the full name is Perfluorooctanoic Acid. Because there are 8 carbon atoms in a chain, it is also called C8 internally in DuPont. PFOA was first invented by another chemical giant, 3M, and its most famous use is Teflon produced by DuPont.
Because of the waterproof and oil-proof properties of Teflon, it was used in tank coatings in the early days. Then the military turned to civilian use and gradually entered the lives of residents all over the world. The most typical product is the frying pan.
In 1962, Teflon was launched, and DuPont became famous. In the ad, the beautiful girl is cooking, and because the pan is non-stick, it is extra relaxed and happy. But behind the ad, is another story of the exact opposite tone.
Workers on the Teflon production line experienced a large number of symptoms such as fever , nausea , diarrhea , and vomiting , which employees privately referred to as "Teflon Flu". In order to confirm his conjecture, DuPont rolled a small amount of Teflon into cigarettes for workers to smoke. Sure enough, the workers who smoked were sick.
3M clearly told DuPont that PFOA is very difficult to degrade, and once it enters the human body, it will reach every organ through the blood circulation. PFOA in the blood of DuPont-related production line workers was significantly elevated.
Does DuPont know this? DuPont knows. For 40 years, DuPont knew it.
DuPont experimented with monkeys. The monkey's organs gradually swelled and eventually died of cancer. The experiment was done with mice, and the mice gave birth to a litter of mice with deformed eyes.
DuPont also tracked seven pregnant female workers and found that two of the female workers gave birth to children with deformed eyes.
So what did DuPont do? DuPont did nothing. Except cover up.
All young female employees on the Teflon production line were asked to go home, but were not told why. A female worker cleaning equipment gave birth to a baby boy with a deformed eye and only one nostril.
She asked DuPont why I was transferred from this job, because Teflon caused my child to be deformed? DuPont said, No don't think about it. Her profile was subsequently erased.
Combustion dust is directly discharged from the chimney, industrial water is not specially treated, and industrial waste is only conventionally buried.
So, we go back to the beginning of the story. Jim Tennant first became a DuPont laborer, burying Teflon waste.
Then Jim has a strange illness and needs money.
DuPont took the opportunity to buy Jim's land and continue to bury the Teflon waste. Pollution entered the water cycle, driving the Tennant family's cows crazy.
In the end, it was Wilbur Tennant who insisted on finding Bilott. The moment the truth was revealed, it was heartbreaking.
05
Tennant chose to settle with DuPont. He needs money. Need money to move out of that death farm. Money was needed because he and his wife had been diagnosed with cancer, and in fact he and his wife were buried in the ground after only 7 years. He still needs money. Although his life is over, he needs money to give his two children a future.
The choice was on Bilott alone.
This is no longer a tragedy for the Tennant family.
PFOA and Teflon have gone all over the world, from frying pans, to fabrics, umbrellas, and boots, to bicycle lubricants, tennis rackets, communication cables, stain-resistant sofas and cabinets, and paper bags for popcorn in movie theaters, in restaurants Carton for pizza.
How much does DuPont earn on a Teflon product? $1 billion in profits a year .
Bilott compiled the information and sent it to all relevant agencies, including the Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Attorney General, to inform public safety of an immediate and substantial threat. He also went to Washington to testify in person.
Bilott's revelations led the EPA to hand DuPont the largest fine in its history, $16.5 million. This figure is less than 2% of the annual profit of Teflon, which is equivalent to 6 days of profit and 1.5 days of income.
Meanwhile, residents across the city are dying one by one as DuPont waste finds its way into the groundwater.
So, the peak battle is here. On that battlefield, fairness, justice, truth, these words that you and I are accustomed to, were examined with their true weight.
06
In 2004, Bilott sued DuPont in a class action lawsuit on behalf of 70,000 residents affected by water pollution.
This should have been a simple lawsuit. What should be the safe concentration of PFOA in drinking water? EPA does not have regulations, but DuPont, an authority in the industry, has internal regulations: 1 part per billion. The content of PFOA in the drinking water of these residents was more than 6 times higher than the standard. Lord Judge, please see, DuPont has not even implemented its own regulations, so hurry up and lose money.
Before the expedition, the managing partner of the law firm gave a passionate speech, and the morale was high. They are not going to fight a lawsuit, they are going to save American business civilization!
Actor Tim Robbins (remember The Shawshank Redemption? He escaped prison for 26 years)
However, the ace lawyers that DuPont hired at sky-high prices are not vegetarians. An unexpected sap for Bilott in court. DuPont asked senior officials from the state's environmental protection department to testify. Officials said that the standard was not specified before, it was negligent, and with the attitude of being responsible to the people, the standard is now temporarily specified: 150 part per billion (150 part per billion).
On the eve of the lawsuit, the state government suddenly raised the industry standard by 150 times, so that DuPont, which originally violated the regulations, was completely compliant overnight.
It seems that no matter where you are, if you have power, you can cover the sky with one hand.
Bilott's burden of proof increases exponentially in an instant. It turned out that he only needed to prove that DuPont "doesn't meet the regulations", but now he has to prove that "this regulation is unreasonable", or to put it another way, to prove that "without the TMD regulations, PFOA in existing drinking water will cause disease." The former is a legal question, the latter a scientific one. Halo, how does this prove that scientists are working for you DuPont!
After a battle of wits, the plaintiff and the defendant reached an agreement: DuPont installed a water purification system for the residents and paid an additional $70 million (the income from the Teflon production line for 3 days). These are all minor issues. The most salient issue: the creation of an independent science panel to assess whether current measures of PFOA increase the risk of disease in residents.
If the conclusion is positive, DuPont will provide medical monitoring (medical monitoring), that is, from now on, as long as these residents suffer from related diseases, they can get compensation and treatment, and DuPont will be responsible. The measure would cost DuPont $235 million in real money.
Of course, if the conclusion is negative. Then, there is no compensation, and they go home.
A condition was attached that no one could sue DuPont alone until the results were in.
07
In the movie "Darkwater", Mark Ruffalo played the main character Rob Bilott. He is better known as the Hulk in the Marvel movies.
Once a hero in comics, a hero in reality today. The biggest difference between the two is probably that the latter has to bear the suffering of real waiting .
Most people think that war is composed of hard work, but it is not, war is composed of waiting and suffering.
The conclusions of the scientific assessment panel have been delayed for a year. two years. three years. four years. five years. six years.
Bilott's accusation of the truth did not offend DuPont, but offends the entire chemical industry. The former star environmental lawyer at a top law firm never received a corporate client after suing DuPont. At one point, for three full years, Bilott didn't generate a single cent of revenue for the company. As the lawsuit with DuPont continues to cost him, his own salary has been cut again and again.
In order to provide data to the scientific assessment team, the blood of the residents of these areas needs to be collected. DuPont said that every resident who comes to have blood drawn will pay $400 and I will pay for it! Soon, the middle-aged couple brought three children and a family of five to draw blood. A $2,000 subsidy will give them a nice Christmas. They said to Bilott, DuPont is a good guy, you don't get what you want, just wait and see.
Public opinion also turned against him, with voices questioning Bilott one after another. Lawyers are always doing things, staring at the big companies that make contributions to the United States all day long. Who doesn't know that your lawyer's fees are linked to compensation. With huge compensation, you can make millions a year. This is blood-eating buns! You see, ulterior motives, these law students, they are not patriotic at all, they are always staring at the dark side of society.
Due to the lawsuit, DuPont scaled back its investments in the area. As the largest and most influential employer, the town's unemployment rate has skyrocketed. The will of the people needs sinners and needs someone to bear their wrath. The plaintiffs and witnesses on Bilott's side are often harassed and humiliated when they go out to the streets.
In addition, the affected residents died one after another, kidney cancer, testicular cancer... When Bilott was dining with his family at the restaurant, someone suddenly came over and pointed at him and asked, what about the compensation you said? What about the money you promised to help us fight for? My brother is dead and his children are younger than yours. What did you promise us about?
So, Bilott fell heavily. He suffered transient ischemic attack (TIA), each attack resembling a stroke, a neurological disease caused by stress overload.
08
Actually, in my opinion, Bilott is very much like a hero.
First, he's not handsome enough. He is neither majestic nor tall, nor has his eyes wide open, nor can he speak in a vertical and horizontal manner.
Second, he had no chance. Dr. Banner became the Hulk because of exposure to gamma radiation, and Tony became Iron Man because of his IQ and wealth since he was a child. In contrast, Bilott's life was pretty dull, he went to a similar college (not an Ivy League), and did the same thing (no clients for many years, no money, can't blame the lawsuit, he must have his own problems) . It's hard to gain fans with such a character.
Again, he was often cowardly and timid. I went to DuPont to give the CEO a videotaped confession. I was afraid of being silenced. When I started the car, my hands were shaking. The burden of the family's livelihood rests on his wife's shoulders, and he neither shares the responsibility nor coaxes the woman. (It was the goddess Anne Hathaway who played his wife!) Eventually, he was overwhelmed by the pressure and fell to the ground with epilepsy. (Hey, those who got cancer from DuPont haven't fallen yet.)
All of this makes me think that Bilott is not a hero, he is more of a crowd. Just like you and me.
So, it reminded me of another person, the ophthalmologist who wore a mask and whose life was frozen at the age of 35. In front of him, he likes to watch football, like stars, like to follow dramas, and often forwards the link of the lottery on Weibo.
Except for those special moments, except for those courageous decisions, they are all masses, as ordinary as you and me.
However, as Maupassant said, people's fragility and strength are beyond their imagination. Sometimes, you may be so fragile that you burst into tears; sometimes, you find yourself gritted your teeth and walked a long way.
So, in the end, it is not your skills but your mission that enables you to shake the world.
In the movie "Blackwater", when Bilott was confronted by DuPont in court, everyone knew that it was a protracted battle. In an interview with reporters, Bilott's teammates said that the standards they set are lies, and we will definitely win this lawsuit, yes! We will! If the West Virginia government can't stop DuPont from poisoning the residents here, then we , the residents , will stop them ourselves .
This passage is very good, but there is one thing I want to add.
The state government is indeed derelict for two main reasons. First, under the 1976 Act, EPA can only conduct monitoring when there is clear evidence that a substance is harmful. (Under the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act, the EPA can test chemicals only when it has been provided evidence of harm.)
Second, whether it is the United States or China, because innovation always occurs first in enterprises, the professionalism of the government would have lagged slightly. In "Black Water", the lag of the state environmental protection agency EPA is reflected in the PFOA. In real life, the lag of the regulatory authorities may be reflected in big data, online loans, private information on smartphones, or some kind of emerging virus.
Heaven and earth conscience, Yi Gongzi is not trying to wash the ground for the US state government. Rather, I want to say that the system behind the movie "Black Water" is worthy of our thinking and reference. what system? It is a system that allows the masses to care for the masses and allow the masses to protect the masses when regulation lags behind.
More realistically, despite the absence of EPA oversight, lawyers are free to conduct investigations and courts are able to hear trials independently. Although DuPont controls and maintains most scholars, independent and professional scholars can be found throughout the United States. Although the emerging material risks have not been fully assessed, once doctors have reached a conclusion based on their professional judgment, they can say it with confidence. Medical care and the public should now pay attention and start protection.
The 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, said a sentence in his inaugural address that has been repeatedly quoted. "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."
In fact, Americans have always disagreed with this sentence. Regarding the relationship between the state and the individual, Friedman has added: neither ask what the state can do for you, nor what you can do for the state, but think more about what the individual can do through the state .
09
The end of the movie.
Justice has finally come. Seven years after its establishment, the scientific assessment panel concluded that PFOA in drinking water increases the risk of disease. PFOA induces at least six lesions, including kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid disease, preeclampsia, high cholesterol, and ulcerative colitis. (there was a probable link between PFOA and kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid disease, high cholesterol, pre-eclampsia and ulcerative colitis.)
Already, 3,635 people in the Bilott class-action lawsuit have suffered from the above-mentioned diseases, and there will be more cases in the future.
The news came, apparently as the whistle announcing Bilott's victory. It's time to celebrate, right? Unfortunately still not.
DuPont refused to acknowledge the account, tore up its previous commitments, resisted the evaluation panel's conclusions, and rejected the class-action compensation. They want to tell the world that there is no use fighting, that resistance is useless, that this system is controlled by me.
Because of the class action suspension, to get justice from DuPont, victims can only sue on their own behalf. At the end of the film, Bilott struggles to file individual lawsuits for families. There are still 3,535 cases waiting for him to complete.
At this point, 20 years have passed since Tennant walked into his office.
Outside of the film, in 2013, six companies stopped producing PFOA, including DuPont.
However, due to the unrestricted wide application of PFOA for more than 50 years, it has now entered the human body all over the world. PFOA is present in U.S. blood banks. According to a 2007 survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 99.7% of Americans have PFOA. This synthetic substance is only 50 years away from its invention, and it will be passed on to human bodies all over the world through breast milk and umbilical cord blood.
In addition to PFOA, there are currently 60,000 chemicals in the U.S. alone that are not regulated.
The movie is over. Actor Mark Ruffalo on Trevor Noah's talk show the Daily Show.
Cui Wa asked him, how did you give such an ending? Instead of a happy ending, where superheroes defeat bad guys, the kind where princes and princesses live happily ever after.
Because that's life, says Mark Ruffalo. In life, many problems remain unsolved.
So, how to solve the problem?
we. Mark Ruffalo said.
Author Yi Gongzi, WeChat public account: Gongzi's wine
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