AGNOTOLOGY & THE PURVEYORS OF DOUBT OVER THE MOLD ISSUE ~ Our New Friends From The Inspector Journal Forums Trying To Understand

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Sharon Kramer

Agnotology is “the study of culturally-induced ignorance or doubt, particularly the publication of inaccurate or misleading scientific data. Ignorance is often not merely the absence of knowledge but an outcome of cultural and political struggle.”

It never ceases to amaze us how deeply seeded bias can discolor one’s perception of science and objectivity; even among learned, good men and even when provided with direct evidence their beliefs are just that, only beliefs.

There is a current discussion going on, on the Inspector Journal Forums over what is and is not current accepted science over the mold issue. It is a particularly nasty one which appears to be the result of Home Inspectors having misinformation crammed down their throats for years. The thread is titled, Caoimhin P. Connell vs. Sharon Kramer Slugfest?

It actually began a couple of years ago. But Sharon did not comment until recently when she attempted to make the Home Inspectors aware of the new OSHA publication, “INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN COMMERCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS” Instead of accepting the information as the gesture of good will that it was meant to be, the thread continued on with the theme of its mean spirited title into a game of “Let’s trap Sharon on the science. She is just some ole woman with a degree in marketing – not science.”

When Sharon repeatedly told the forum members that she is not a scientist and does not write about science — she writes about marketing, they pulled out the old LAWeekly hit piece, “The Toxic Mold Rush: California Mom Helps Fuel an Obsession, Ed McMahon is among those caught in paranoia over fungus’ supposed perils” By Daniel Heimpel July 24, 2008. This was proof that their beliefs on science are correct and Sharon’s are wrong.

They then proceeded to write exactly what Sharon has been saying about the current state of science over the mold issue. The gist of the question on the forum is, “How much mold and its toxins does science hold that one must be exposed to before illness occurs.”

Inspector Kurt from Chicago writes, “There isn’t an answer to that question, which is why there’s such confusion, and why it opens the door to the scammers and loons.” Kurt is exactly right. There isn’t an answer to that question. It varies widely from situation to situation, person to person.

But, Kurt does not understand just how true his words really are of how the confusion has left the door open to scammers and loons. Since one cannot say how much mold and toxins must be present in a building before illness occurs, then logically, one can also not legitimately profess to have scientifically proven no amount of mold and its toxins could cause illness.

Yet, that is EXACTLY what scammers and loons have professed to be able to prove. These are well connected loons. They were able to get their scam marketed into US public health policy and various state workers comp policies in the early 2000’s. They did this with the help of an ethically challenged medical association and the US Chamber of Commerce.

SCIENTIFIC FRAUD IN POLICY BY ACOEM

In 2002, the workers comp physicians’ trade association, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) brought in two toxicologists with PhD’s to their organization. The two men applied extrapolations to data they took from a single rodent study and professed their calculations proved it was highly unlikely at best anyone could made ill from the toxins of mold found in water damaged buildings (WDB).

Their conclusions formed from their calculations have been discredited by the courts and in research papers many times over. The National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine published an extensive report on Damp Indoor Spaces in 2004, in which it directly stated,

“Toxicologic studies which examine such response in animal and cellular models cannot be used by themselves to draw conclusions about human health effects”.

Regardless, like the tale of the Emperor’s New Robe, ACOEM continues to market it as legitimate scientific, proof of the lack of causation of illness from water damaged buildings (WDB).

SCIENTIFIC FRAUD IN POLICY BY US CHAMBER

In 2003, the US Chamber of Commerce and the Manhattan Institute think-tank paid the two toxicologists to spin the deception in science and policy as first legitimized by ACOEM even further. This time, it was claimed their calculation proved people who claimed illness from WDB were only doing so because they had been subjected to media hype, unscrupulous trial lawyers and Junk Science.

FRAUD IN A STRATEGIC LEGAL ACTION

In March of 2005, Sharon was the first to publicly write of several of the entities who worked together to mass market the deception in policy, while she named the names of those involved:

“ He [Bruce Kelman] admitted the Manhattan Institute, a national political think-tank, paid GlobalTox $40,000 to write a position paper regarding the potential health risks of toxic mold exposure. Although much medical research finds otherwise, the controversial piece claims that it is not plausible the types of illnesses experienced by the Haynes family and reported by thousands from across the US, could be caused by “toxic mold” exposure in homes, schools or office buildings.

In 2003, with the involvement of the US Chamber of Commerce and ex-developer, US Congressman Gary Miller (R-CA), the GlobalTox paper was disseminated to the real estate, mortgage and building industries’ associations. A version of the Manhattan Institute commissioned piece may also be found as a position statement on the website of a United States medical policy-writing body, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.”

In May of 2005, Kelman and GlobalTox sued Sharon for libel, claiming the use of her phrase in the writing, “altered his under oath statements” was a maliciously false accusation of perjury. Kelman then proceeded to use perjury to establish needed reason for malice. They have attempted (to no avail) to use the litigation to coerce Sharon to endorse the fraud in science by ACOEM and the US Chamber.

In November of 2006, the Fourth District Division One Appellate Court, San Diego, wrote an anti-SLAPP Opinion of the case. Written by Justice Judith McConnell, Chair of the California Commission on Judicial Performance, the courts framed Sharon to make it look like she had accused Kelman of getting caught lying on the witness stand about being paid to author ACOEM’s Mold Statement. From the Appellate Opinion of November 2006:

“..This testimony supports a conclusion Kelman did not deny he had been paid by the Manhattan Institute to write a paper, but only denied being paid by the Manhattan Institute to make revisions in the paper issued by ACOEM. He admitted being paid by the Manhattan Institute to write a lay translation. The fact that Kelman did not clarify that he received payment from the Manhattan Institute until after being confronted with the Kilian deposition testimony could be viewed by a reasonable jury as resulting from the poor phrasing of the question rather from an attempt to deny payment. In sum, Kelman and GlobalTox presented sufficient evidence to satisfy a prima facie showing that the statement in the press release was false.”

But Sharon’s writing speaks for itself. It is 100% accurate and states the same as the Appellate Opinion. The money was for the US Chamber’s Mold Statement. ACOEM’s was just a version.

“He [Kelman] admitted the Manhattan Institute, a national political think-tank, paid GlobalTox $40,000 to write a position paper regarding the potential health risks of toxic mold exposure…..In 2003, with the involvement of the US Chamber of Commerce and ex-developer, US Congressman Gary Miller (R-CA), the GlobalTox paper was disseminated to the real estate, mortgage and building industries’ associations. A version of the Manhattan Institute commissioned piece may also be found as a position statement on the website of a United States medical policy-writing body, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.”

In July 2008, three weeks before trial, the LAWeekly ran the “Toxic Mold Queen” article by budding journalist Hempiel (now on the fast track of political yellow journalism) about the case that our new friends at the Inspector’s Forum have posted as proof that Sharon must be wrong on the science. Seven people who were quoted in the article stated they were not even interviewed or were misquoted in the article. Even the Manhattan Institute came to Sharon’s defense of the fraudulent piece by Heimpel. According to the MI’s Ted Frank,

“I wasn’t asked at all about Kelman and Kramer, but am portrayed as having an opinion about it. And my observations about Brockovich and vaccines were deleted.”

A particularly ugly piece of yellow journalism, even Sharon’s husband and children were attacked. Her eldest daughter, who is a reality television show editor in Los Angeles, was portrayed to be a sickly lost soul who Sharon holds out as her “starring victim” of the mold issue. Her younger daughter was portrayed to be embarrassed that Sharon has gone over the edge of this issue, when no such statements were ever made.

Heimpel and LAWeekly knew what they were doing would aid the fraud in policy to continue. (So do the justices of the Appellate court: McConnell, Huffman, Benke, Aaron, Irrion & McDonald.)

In trial, a piece of false hearsay evidence of an email by an ex-GlobalTox employee that was never discussed in trial, got into the jury room. According to one of the jurors, who is herself an attorney, this caused the verdict for Kelman. (Among many other funky aspects of the case!) And to this very day, the games play on in the courts.

Since the games play on, it is difficult for people like Inspector Kurt to understand he has had Agnotology crammed down his throat over the mold issue. Credentials inspectors like Kurt and others rely on to provide them accurate information have been bastardized to deceive them.

Its BILLIONS in insurer fraud, primarily workers’ comp, that two men with PhDs applied math to a single rodent study and professed to prove no one was sick from moldy buildings. ACOEM legitimized. The Chamber mass marketed it. And the courts have covered for the fraud.

Inspector Kurt has been fooled in more ways than one. When insurers are able to deny liability for causation of worker illness based on a scientific fraud remaining in policy, the cost burden shifts to the taxpayers via state and federal disability programs to take care of the sick and their families. This includes Inspector Kurt and every other US taxpayer.

Working with many others, Sharon has been able to help remove the fraud from Federal policy. (although NIOSH does not acknowledge its role in promoting the fraud in policy in the first place, and no one will make them ). So the games play on in the courts and workers comp claims handling practices, while the private sector lags behind current accepted science in federal policy.

This leaves Inspector Kurt (who appears to be an intelligent, honest and passionate man) and many other professionals in the issue with the correct understanding that with regard to how much mold must be proven present or not before one gets sick, “There isn’t an answer to that question, which is why there’s such confusion, and why it opens the door to the scammers and loons.” He and many others just do not understand that the science he has been fed as legitimate science, proof of lack of causation of illness, was in reality, written by scammers and loons.

Its BILLIONS in insurer fraud by the US Chamber, et. al., that remains in private sector US policy and in many courtrooms to this very day. And even though the Inspectors Forum found us to be completely the opposite of what they KNEW to be true on the science, we still think they are good guys. Its just human nature to resist when someone tells you that what you were sure you knew to be true is just intentional misinformation mass marketed to you by scammers and loons.

Posted in Temp | 1 Comment

Freedom of Speech For The Public Good At What Cost In America? Coming up~A series of posts detailing and evidencing invasive hacking through AT&T Wireless, UVerse, Comcast, Verizon and Blackberry (and more).

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Sharon Kramer

Cell phone hacking is only one small part of what can be a total loss of your legal right to privacy. The information posted on this blog, Katy’s Exposure, has help to expose billions in environmental health threats and those responsible. It has also been hijacked to proxy servers causing the posts to not go directly go to the World Wide Web.

Because I dared to write and evidence the truth to the point that my blog has been cited as reference for a Federal OSHA environmental safety publication; I have experienced industries’ invasive hacking and identity theft. I have been personally threatened not to write the truth anymore of those responsible for aiding environmental illness to flourish.

The hacking has affected all of my electronic accounts and services and made my life a living Hell. No one does anything to stop it. So I will expose that, too. Over the next coming weeks I will be sharing my evidence and complaints to the SCC, the US Postal Service Investigative Branch, the FBI and other government agencies.

Be aware that if you find something downloaded on your computer titled Motive/UVerse history/Mcci browser and a Java Script virus (more to come), that this can also affect the settings and programming on all of your IT linked equipment. Your right to gain and share information then becomes compromised and controlled by hackers. Your digital equipment and settings become corrupted and interfered with remotely.

Your right to speak the truth in America becomes severely impaired and cut off from those who could most use the information.

More to come. Katy

Posted in BP Oil Spill Info - TRUTH, Civil Justice, Environmental Health Threats, FEMA Trailers, Mold and Politics, Mold Litigation, National Apartment Association, Riverstone Residential, US Chamber of Commerce | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

California Judicial System Implodes Under Weight Of Inept Leadership ~ A Scathing Overview By Those In The Know

Posted on July 23, 2011 by Sharon Kramer

Obviously from prior blogs, we at Katy’s Exposure know the problem of politics and corruption in the California judicial system runs deep and has for quite some time. But we had no idea just how deep until we met those who actually work in the upper eschilon of the courts and can evidence even more than we can.

This blog is dedicated to the hundreds of California judges who are members of the Alliance of California Judges (AJC) and to all the brave Whistleblowers of rampant grift, fraud and abuse of authority & power among the leadership of the California judicial system. We thank Judicial Council Watcher and their contributors for the majority of information we share today; and for their dedication to enlighten the public and legislators as to the severity of the rampant corruption within the California judicial system from many aspects, on many levels. We feel fortunate to know and work with many to restore integrity in the courts and in public policies. And we are forever appreciative to All our like minded, fearless friends.

Ironically, it was one year ago today, July 22, 2010, Katy’s Exposure blogged about the nomination of a new Chief Justice for California, Tani Cantil-Sayauke, by then Governor Schwarzenegger. We had high hopes that a fresh face in the stewardship role of the California judicial system would undo years of conflicted interests, political jockeying and lack of oversight of the hand picked members of the Judicial Council (JC).

The JC sets policies and allocates funds for the judicial branch including all trial courts and the Administration of the Courts (AOC). The annual budget is in the billions. The AOC’s purpose is to support the needs of the courts with the use of funds allocated to them. The state’s 58 trial courts (counties) are allocated their own budgets at the beginning of each fiscal year. The JC has access to the trial courts’ monies should they desire to take them and give them to the AOC for statewide projects or administrative duties.

Under the leadership of Chief Justice Ronald George, massive amounts of tax dollars were allocated to the AOC and were wasted on a computer system that does not work, on overpaid and unlicensed contractors, on state pension funds given to non-state employees…the list is endless.

We had hoped that Cantil-Sayauke would reshape the judicial branch and mold justice for California’s families, workers and taxpayers by providing more than just lip service to the age old wisdom that justice delayed is justice denied. The top priority of judicial leadership should be to keep the trial courts functioning – not keep the administrators fat who are only there to support the courts.

One year later to the day, we sadly report that Cantil-Sayauke appears to have established herself as just another misplaced brick in the walls of the structually compromised House that Ronald George built. On this day, July 22, 2011, we came to a critical juncture in California where it was established that the California courts are now a fully owned subsidiary of Corporate America. Today it was decided by the new Chief Justice and JC that tax dollars would be diverted away from the trial courts to the dysfunctional AOC; causing many courts to close and leaving white collar crime to easily flourish – both within our judicial system and without.

The money will continue to be funneled to overpaid managers at the AOC, with track records of gross mismanagment and a long history of retaliation against employees and others who expose the mismanagement, fraud, waste, abuse, cronyism and corruption among the leadership of our judicial branch.

We at Katy’s have had personal experience with the corruption and cronyism of the California courts aiding Corporate America. We would like thank Federal OSHA for citing Katy’s Exposure as a reference for a new federal public health advisory (Reference #15). This helps us to deter the impact of the fraud and collusion of the US Chamber of Commerce and the House that George built. This is because it lends federally endorsed credibility that we have been telling the truth all along about a scientific fraud in public policy mass marketed by the US Chamber that George’s House has aided to continue by participating in malicious litigation, retaliation and attempted intimidation us into silence. It helps our friends who are Whistleblowers of other aspects of corruption in the courts who are stating and evidencing the same underlying problem that we are and involving many of the same people.

As of May 6, 2011, Katy’s Exposure has been threatened with legal action via the use of a fake legal document of an Amended Judgment never entered in a California case on December 18, 2008. Not in the Register of Action (ROA) that prints when the public reads the computer history of a case; it oddly shows in the computer “Case History”, which is what judges and court personnel see when they review the computer history of the case. Never found in the ROA, the fake judgement document just mailed to Katy’s originated from the North San Diego County Superior Court on January 9, 2009. It was originally mailed from the court to Sharon Kramer on this date and attached to a yellow Post-It with the message, “Ms. Kramer, this is the info you are seeking.”, after Ms. Kramer questioned the lack of any such document in the file or ever mailed to her. Ms. Kramer is the whistle blower of how it became a fraud in health policy that it was scientifically proven moldy buildings don’t harm and involiving the US Chamber. She first wrote of this in March of 2005, and the courts have been aiding to harass her ever since.

No kidding its the information we seek! And thanks for the direct evidence of the collusion and mail fraud to try to silence us. It is a Government Code 6200 violation punishable by prison time for court employees to falsify court documents. It’s a federal offense to then mail the fake legal document with the “12.18.08 MGarland” on it’s third page, interstate, to threaten a blog owner to stop writing of what the California courts have done to aid the US Chamber of Commerce. The yellow Post It is the direct evidence that the courts know they have woven a tangled web and tried to cover their tracks. On January 7, 2009, they denied to hear a Motion for Reconsideration based on a purported Entry of Amended Judgment, “12.18.08”, that never happened. The letter mailed to us is the evidence they want us silenced of just how bad corrupt the courts have been, while being fully aware they are aiding billions in fraud to continue.

They want us silenced of some of the most powerful judiciaries in the state of California, namely the Chair of the Executive Committee of the Judicial Council, the ex-Chair of the Commission on Judicial Performance and the ex-Chief Justice, rewarding the use of criminal perjury while strategically litigating to shut us up. This criminal perjury, used to establish a false yet libel law needed reason for malice while strategically litigating, was perpetrated by the authors of fraudulent medico-legal policy for the US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR), Bruce J. Kelman and Bryan D. Hardin of VeriTox Inc. Hardin is a retired Deputy Director of the CDC’s National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health.

Plainly stated, the courts have colluded to defraud the public, taxpayers and the California workers’ comp system of billions of dollars by being willing participants in a malicious, strategic litigating over a matter of public health while knowing they have aided false science to remain in policy, for now over six years.

Do we look like we are intimidated?

We have no intention of being bullied into silence by a threat that was mailed interstate to Katy’s via the US Postal Service with the enclosure of a fake California court document never found in any court record. Actions such as this, interstate mail fraud, tend to make us investigate deeper and speak louder about the corruption in the California judicial system and those who think themselves above the law – as they allocate themselves even more tax dollars while forcing courts to close.

Now let us show you what some of our friends know of the out of control judicial system of California.

July 17, 2011 Judicial Council Watcher Re: Today’s Judicial Council Meeting determining who gets the money. The dysfunctional AOC and Corporate America? Or the courts and the citizens of California?) “The Alliance of California Judges specifically proposes that on July 22, 2011, the Judicial Council direct staff to provide for $134 million in mitigation to the trial courts for 2011- 2012 beyond the proposed mitigation which emerged from the Trial Court Budget Working Group meeting on July 13, 2011. We call upon voting members of the Judicial Council to move, second, and support this option, or a similar option… We suggest that this additional mitigation be apportioned among (1) further AOC staff and operations reductions, (2) construction funds, and (3) maintenance and operation of CCMS V2, V3, and V4, and CCTC hosting of CCMS (including a complete cessation of CCMS activities, if necessary)… Continuing with an overstaffed central bureaucracy and continued funding of an improbable computer system is simply not an option…We also remind judges of the importance of enacting AB 1208. That law assures every trial court of a basic baseline level of funding without reduction for unapproved statewide initiatives that lack legislative approval or broad consensus within the branch. Had AB 1208 been the law, $600 million would not have been wasted on CCMS…The CCMS project cannot continue….Fund Condition Statements reveal that the State Court Facilities Construction Fund has a beginning balance of $382 million. There is $141 million of projected revenue, and a General Fund transfer of $350 million, leaving a total fund balance before expenditures of $173 million.”

February 8, 2011 Courthouse News, By MARIA DINZEO Scathing Audit Blasts $1.9 Billion Court Computer Project in California “A scathing audit of California’s court administration was released Tuesday by the Bureau of State Audits, blaming the administrators for a series of blunders in their 9-year effort to press a uniform computer system onto the state’s trial courts. The massive audit found that the bureaucrats had exercised “poor management” of the computer project, disguised its true $1.9 billion cost, and failed to analyze the needs of the trial courts. Despite the findings, those in charge of the project said they would press on. The head of the agency subjected to the auditor’s withering critique, William Vickrey, thanked the auditor and said the agency is pressing forward with deployment of the latest version of the IT system…. That statement brought an immediate and heated reaction from trial judges who have roundly lambasted the Administrative Office of the Courts and its IT project called Court Case Management System. “The AOC has mismanaged this project from the beginning, “ said Judge Maryanne Gilliard in Sacramento. “They have consistently hidden the true cost from legislative scrutiny.”… The Joint Legislative Audit Committee voted for its approval in February 2010, after hearing testimony from a group of trial judges and labor representatives who said the escalating cost of the computer system had contributed to the fiscal crisis in many courts, resulting in court closures and staff layoffs…. In her report, the auditor suggested the administrators had been hiding the ball of cost represented by the computer project for some time….”The AOC will need roughly 24 years to recover the investment in the project once CCMS is deployed to all 58 superior courts,” said the auditor. “The AOC is unable to demonstrate that the benefits of CCMS outweigh the nearly $1.9 billion cost.” …They failed to structure the contract with Deloitte Consulting to ensure “sufficient control over the cost and scope of the contract” which later ballooned to include 102 amendments, said auditor Howle…The system was loaded with defects, according to the audit, that caused individual trial courts to resist implementation… [S]aid Czuleger. “I was on the oversight committee and I wrote them on multiple occasions saying we should not be entering into another Deloitte contract until we had a business plan.” “They said they’d get one but it wasn’t a real business plan,” Czuleger added. “I was basically castigated by the AOC and accused of trying to kill CCMS. Bill Vickrey went all over the state and accused me of trying to kill CCMS when all I was trying to do is make sure they had a project that would succeed.” “This audit vindicates the position I took.”

July 18, 2011 Judicial Council Watcher~Breaking News – Another construction whistleblower! “Uzoma Okoro…was a Sacramento based facilities management administrator for the Office of Court Construction & Management’s Facilities Management Unit. This is the same AOC outfit that employed unlicensed contractors statewide from the Oregon border to the Mexican border. This is the same outfit that on December 9th 2009 had a unit-wide conference call in which they were instructed by Jerry Pfab and other FM managers to not use the name “Team Jacobs” anymore. “Just call them Jacobs.”…Bundling projects together to hide those costs does not help their case. If anything it makes the case against them more condemning”.

January 28, 2011 Judicial Council Watcher Re: Destruction of documents by Kim Turner of Marin County (now promoted to key AOC/JC position and key speaker at today’s meeting). The Marin County courts were under investigation for eggregious family court violations and involving the destroyed records. Cantil-Sayauke participated in this endeavor. “Here is the Center for Judicial Excellence’s response to Judge Boren and Ms. Kim Turner’s Op Ed about the recent Family Court Audit last Friday, which appears in today’s Marin Independent Journal. The IJ editors replaced my reference to Ms. Turner’s involvement in the document destruction with a more general reference to “the court,” though the Marin Court has posted the August AOC report acknowledging her pivotal role in the destruction on their website home page…THE California Bureau of State Audits last week released its 109-page report, detailing the results of its 17-month audit of the Marin and Sacramento Family Courts. Across the board and on nearly every measured aspect, the Sacramento and Marin family courts failed to meet the minimum standards required by law…So you may wonder what the latest audit of the Marin family court means, and how the same report described by state Sen. Mark Leno as “quite disturbing” could be hailed by local Marin court officials as “proving beyond any doubt” that “there’s no problem.”..Simple. The Marin Court has deliberately mischaracterized this audit as comprehensive and boasted that “the report does not contain a single finding of “… judges and mediators putting children at risk.”..Interestingly, the Center for Judicial Excellence and our allies drafted an earlier audit request focused on evaluating “increasing evidence that children in custody disputes are being removed from their primary, non-abusive caretakers and placed in the custody of parents who have been identified as the children’s physical or sexual abusers.”..In a considerable number of instances, the audit reported “limitations in their ability to determine the number of complaints received,” making their data unreliable…We must wonder whether the mass document destruction by the court and others during an eight-month standoff with the state auditor contributed to the significant gaps in recordkeeping….While the Marin Court seems unable or unwilling to accept auditor criticism and instead is attacking the center, we remain steadfast in our nearly five-year commitment to try to work collaboratively with the Marin Court to improve its service to our community’s children.

March 9, 2011, Judicial Council Watcher, Who Really Runs The Judicial Branch? A Parody of Sorts. Justice Richard Huffman – Appellate Justice, 4th district court of appeals, San Diego (Note: we at Katy’s can evidence this guy is as corrupt as they come. No one in the state of California with any decision making power seems to want to acknowledge our irrefutable evidence of his colluding on behalf of the US Chamber to defraud the public) “Recent controversies about policy making in the judicial branch have raised the question of whether trial and appellate judges have any voice in the process. The answer is – they have a voice as long as they stick to the agenda and speak only when it is their turn. It doesn’t necessarily mean the committee chair will listen but it gives them an opportunity to speak. It also permits us to use the committees members names to endorse JC position to give it an air of legitimacy, even if they disagree with it. Mr. Huffman has been a member of the Judicial Council of California since the dawn of time, taking a seat in the star chamber shortly after god created the heavens and the earth. He chairs the Council’s Executive and Planning Committee, which is charged with recruiting and nominating candidates for positions on the Council or its numerous advisory committees, pulling the strings of judicial council puppets and being the gateway between the public and the judicial council, between the AOC and the Judicial Council. E&P is the group that ultimately makes the executive decisions and does all planning on behalf of the branch. Mr. Vickrey and the Chief Justice are merely figureheads. All the real power is in Mr. Huffman’s E&P committee, making him the true unelected leader of the largest judiciary in the western world. And there his constituents, the public and legislators thought he was merely an appellate justice from San Diego.He has also chaired the Criminal Law Advisory Committee and a task force on cameras in the courtroom. He is currently a member of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Foster Care and a co-chair of the State Court/Tribal Court Forum. So, he has first hand experience with the decision making process of the judicial branch, primarily because it’s his E&P committee that makes all the decisions.” On average, the combination of task forces, advisory committees and working groups within the judicial branch includes over 400 judges, in addition to court executives involved in developing, recommending and implementing policy initiatives defined by the administrative office of the courts, rules of court and legislation to assist the California trial courts in delivering impartial justice to the citizens of this state, provided you have enough zeros in your bank account and as long as you’re not trying to take on his system…At any one time there may be a number of working groups of judges and court executives providing advice on important issues facing the branch. One example of such a group is the working group created after the case of Sturgeon v. Los Angeles County put supplemental judicial benefits,more commonly known as being paid by two masters, in the legislature, in the middle of the night without a hearing, public comment or a debate. The working group assisted the Chief Justice and the AOC in successfully advocating for legislation to preserve the existing supplemental judicial benefits for trial court judges because as you know, it was Huffman’s own court that called these extrajudicial benefits unlawful and George, who had accepted those benefits himself, declined to hear the case, choosing to write himself a retroactive amnesty bill instead…Justice Richard Huffman’s fourteen year reign over California’s Judicial Branch is yet another reason to pass the Calderon trial courts rights act of 2011.”

We could go on til the sacred cows come home of the fraud, waste, abuse of authority and all out corruption that is stealing California’s legal system from the citizens and giving it to the affiliates of the US Chamber, aided by holligans in Black Robes. There are many more Whistle blowers who have their evidence to share. But we will leave our readers with this fine overview of the problem as written by Jon Fleishman.

July 20, 2011, The Flash Report by Jon Fleischman The Chief Justice is Failing the Justice System, And Taxpayers “During the recent state budget debate California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye weighed in loudly about the dire, negative impacts of proposed funding cuts to California’s court system…But in the case of Cantil-Sakauye and the courts, it turns out that her loud complaints may have been more about protecting her bureaucratic fiefdom than anything else…California’s court system handles 9 million cases a year. You would think the most important stakeholders of the court system would be families, businesses, victims of crime and law enforcement all depending on the fast, fair and effective work of the courts in order to settle disputes, keep businesses moving, see justice served and protect the public.

The Chief Justice and her hand picked Judicial Council have allowed the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) , which controls the $3.2 billion budget for California’s county trial courts to be operated outside of public oversight – with predictable results… Running amok with the taxpayer’s dollars, court leaders have squandered hundreds of millions dollars on pet projects, perks, benefits for themselves and a colossal computer system priced at over $2 billion that may never see the light of day.
Consider these facts:

• In February of this year the Bureau of State Audits released a scathing report of the Court’s statewide computer system. To cost over $2 billion, the Bureau found a lack of oversight, cost controls, mismanagement and waste…

• While nearly every organization in the state has been forced to lay off and furlough employees, cut hours and reduce staffing levels to a bare minimum, the AOC continues to hire high-priced employees as they have grown by more than 70 percent since 2004 and continue to hire despite a hiring freeze…

• The AOC has bungled courthouse construction. Making the federal government seem efficient and streamline is hard to do but the AOC managed to build courthouses for $1,700 a square foot while comparable federal courts houses have cost less than $850 a square foot. Witness the latest construction debacle at the AOC…

In the face of dramatic budget cuts to the judicial branch a simple question must be asked of the Chief Justice and her Judicial Council; Would the citizens of California, the victims of crime, civil litigants, and all those who depend on our courts to resolve divorces and child custody, ever miss several hundred AOC lawyers, and a plethora of AOC bureaucrats making over $170 thousand a year, receiving taxpayer paid pensions and lifetime health care at 10 years of service? I doubt it. .. The AOC’s top administrators have grown accustomed to working in the dark. Unlike every other public agency in California, the AOC is not required to make its records, including its budgets, available to the public. Nor do the Judicial Council and the AOC provide the public with meaningful opportunities to hear and provide input on matters that affect us all.

In closing, Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye has been extraordinarily unimpressive in her relative new role to date. She should take the opportunity to do an about-face, and be an advocate for both taxpayers and an effective court system rather than defending the status-quo of the bureaucracy created in large part by her predecessor.”

Mr. Fleischman, we couldn’t agree more! So when are our state and federal legislators going to put an end to this? Or maybe its time for the FBI. Enough already! Will someone please do their job to stop this rampant corruption and mismanagment of the California judicial system?

Posted in Civil Justice, Temp | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

OSHA Issues Federal Advisory Regarding Poor Indoor Air Quality, Mold & Importance Of Building Maintenance

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Sharon Kramer

Spring 2011 ~ US Dept of Labor, Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) “INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN COMMERCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS” with original reference #15 being Katy’s Exposure Blog, see page 26.

When we updated the link on October 21, 2011 to show how the cases of Kelman & GlobalTox v. Kramer and Kelman v. Kramer in which the California courts framed environmental advocate, Sharon Kramer, for libel over a writing of how it became a scientific fraud in policy that it was proven mold toxins do not harm, ane the cases are aiding to defraud the public over the mold issue, OSHA quietly changed the link for reference #15 to a WHO publication. See page 26 in link below for the quiet change OSHA made.

“INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN COMMERCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS”

For anyone having difficulty obtaining proper medical care or coverage, workers’ compensation benefits, and/or property casualty claims adjustment involving illness potentially caused by a water damaged work environment, school or residence; this is an excellent US federal advisory to share with your physician, employer, landlord, property manager, real estate broker, builder, IAQ advisor, legal advisor, and/or insurer. We are extremely appreciative to the folks at OSHA who are working hard to relay accurate scientific information to the private sector regarding illnesses caused by poor IAQ, particularly those caused by Water Damaged Buildings (WDB).

Below is a brief summary of the OSHA advisory as it pertains to potential illnesses caused by excessive exposure to microbial contaminants (mold, bacteria, etc) that are often found in poorly maintained and/or poorly constructed WDB.

Below that, is a summary of industry’s assault on science and why this life saving information is not reaching private sector physicians. This is directly because of the undue political influence of the US Chamber of Commerce over science, medicine, the courts and policy. In conjunction with the American College of Occupational & Environmental Medicine (ACOEM), a fraudulent concept which downplays the potential for illness from poor IAQ and biological contaminants has been mass marketed into policy.

Why the need for this Federal advisory?:
“IAQ has been identified by the EPA as one of the top five most urgent environmental risks to public health (2). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the majority of Americans spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors (3). On average, office workers spend approximately 40 hours a week in office buildings. These workers also study, eat, drink, and, in certain work settings, sleep in enclosed environments where make-up air (i.e., fresh air added to recirculated air) may be compromised. For this reason, some experts believe that more people may suffer from the effects of indoor air pollution than from outdoor air pollution.”

Applicable standards and regulations:
“OSHA does not have a general IAQ standard, but does provide guidelines addressing the most common workplace complaints about IAQ, which are typically related to temperature, humidity, lack of outside air ventilation, or smoking. OSHA standards address potential hazardous conditions leading to serious physical harm or death. Such standards may include those for specific air contaminants, ventilation systems, or the General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act). All OSHA regulations, interpretations, and the OSH Act can be found on www.osha.gov.

Section 5(a)(1), often referred to as the General Duty Clause, requires employers to “furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harmto his employees.”

The stated purpose and audience for the advisory:
“This OSHA guidance document on IAQ provides practical recommendations that will help prevent or minimize IAQ problems in commercial and institutional buildings, and help resolve such problems quickly if they do arise. It provides flexible guidance to employers to help them keep their buildings free of pollutants or conditions that lead to poor IAQ. It also provides information on good IAQ management, including control of airborne pollutants, introduction and distribution of adequate make-up air, and maintenance of an acceptable temperature and relative humidity. Temperature and humidity are important because thermal comfort underlies many complaints about “poor air quality.”

“This document is directed primarily at employers, building owners and managers, and others responsible for building maintenance, but may also be used as a basic reference for all those involved in IAQ issues. Furthermore, information presented here can help with the decision of whether or not the services of an outside professional may be needed. The advice of a medical professional should always be sought if there are any immediate health issues. Contractors and other professionals (e.g., industrial hygienists or other environmental health and safety professionals) who respond to IAQ concerns, as well as members of the general public, may also find this information helpful.

Many IAQ complaints are associated with flaws in building design and by inadequate routine preventive maintenance of building enclosures (envelopes), plumbing, and HVAC systems (2, 4, 5). To resolve many IAQ problems, a preventive maintenance program should be established based on the system’s recommended maintenance schedule outlined by the architect or engineer, the manufacturer, or an HVAC professional. Regular preventive maintenance not only ensures that systems are operating properly, but also can result in cost savings, improved operating efficiency, and increased worker productivity (6).”

Known potential health effects of poor IAQ in general:
“Symptoms related to poor IAQ are varied depending on the type of contaminant. They can easily be mistaken for symptoms of other illnesses such as allergies, stress, colds, and influenza. The usual clue is that people feel ill while inside the building, and the symptoms go away shortly after leaving the building, or when away from the building for a period of time (such as on weekends or a vacation).

Health or symptom surveys, such as the one included in Appendix D, have been used to help ascertain the existence of IAQ problems. Failure of building owners and operators to respond quickly and effectively to IAQ problems can lead to numerous adverse health consequences. Health effects from indoor air pollutants may be experienced soon after exposure or, possibly, years later (8, 9, 10).

Symptoms may include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat; headaches; dizziness; rashes; and muscle pain and fatigue (11, 12, 13, 14). Diseases linked to poor IAQ include asthma and hypersensitivity pneumonitis (11, 13). The specific pollutant, the concentration of exposure, and the frequency and duration of exposure are all important factors in the type and severity of health effects resulting from poor IAQ.

Age and preexisting medical conditions such as asthma and allergies may also influence the severity of the effects. Long term effects due to indoor air pollutants may include respiratory diseases, heart disease, and cancer, all of which can be severely debilitating or fatal (8, 11, 13).”

Known causes of potential illness from excessive exposure to biological contaminants in WDB:
“Although there are numerous indoor air pollutants that can be spread through a building, they typically fall into three basic categories: biological, chemical, and particle (1).

Biological: Excessive concentrations of bacteria, viruses, fungi, dust mites, animal dander, and pollen may result from inadequate maintenance and housekeeping, water spills, inadequate humidity control, condensation, or water intrusion through leaks in the building envelope or flooding.”

“Building Design: Design and construction flaws may contribute to indoor air pollution. Poor foundations, roofs, facades, and window and door openings may allow pollutant or water intrusion.”

“Building Systems Design and Maintenance: When the HVAC system is not functioning properly for any reason, the building is often placed under negative pressure. In such cases, there may be infiltration of outdoor pollutants such as particulates,..humid air,…contaminants, etc. Also, when spaces are redesigned or renovated, the HVAC system may not be updated to accommodate the changes. For example, one floor of a building that housed computer services may be renovated for offices. The HVAC system would need to be modified for office employee occupancy (i.e., modifying temperature, relative humidity, and air flow).”

“Animals, plants, and microbes are sources of air pollutants. Dander from animals, pollens from plants, and microbes, may act as allergens when they are inhaled. These biological contaminants are usually attached to dust particles of various sizes. Small dust particles may remain airborne for long periods, while large particles settle more quickly. However, particles that have settled may be easily resuspended in the ambient air by currents of air or other disturbances.

Drapery, carpet and other places where dust collects can harbor these contaminants; dirty cooling coils, humidifiers, condensate drains, and ductwork can incubate bacteria and molds. Areas with high humidity can accelerate their growth. The most common sources of biological air contaminants are moisture-laden areas that support the growth of mold and bacteria present in the air (8, 16, 19, 44).

Also, wet surfaces can provide a breeding ground for insects such as dust mites. Moisture-induced microbial growth can result from water leaks and/or by condensation due to high humidity. Common sources of moisture in buildings include: plumbing; roof and window leaks; flooding; condensation on cold surfaces, e.g., pipe sweating; poorly maintained drain pans; and wet foundations caused by landscaping or gutters that direct water into or under the building.Water vapor from unvented or poorly vented kitchens, showers, combustion appliances,or steam pipes can also create conditions that promote microbial growth.

The most effective means to prevent or minimize adverse health effects is to determine the sources of persistent dampness in the workplace and eliminate them…Also, strict adherence to a housekeeping schedule and use of HEPA-filtered vacuum cleaners will help reduce ambient levels of allergens.”

Known potential symptoms of excessive exposure to biological contaminants in WDB:
“Persistent dampness and microbial growth on interior surfaces and in building structures should be avoided or minimized as they may lead to adverse health effects (15)”. “Numerous species of bacteria and fungi, in particular filamentous fungi (mold), can contribute significantly to indoor air pollution (4, 15-20).”

“Damp Indoor Environments have been associated with many serious health effects, including asthma, hypersensitivity, and sinusitis. Moisture incursion leading to dampness can result from water leaks and/or by condensation due to high humidity.”

Heath Effects From Biological Contaminants: via linked EPA document:
“Some biological contaminants trigger allergic reactions, including hypersensitivity pneumonitis, allergic rhinitis, and some types of asthma. Infectious illnesses, such as influenza, measles, and chicken pox are transmitted through the air.

Molds and mildews release disease-causing toxins. Symptoms of health problems caused by biological pollutants include sneezing, watery eyes, coughing, shortness of breath, dizziness, lethargy, fever, and digestive problems.

Allergic reactions occur only after repeated exposure to a specific biological allergen. However, that reaction may occur immediately upon re-exposure or after multiple exposures over time. As a result, people who have noticed only mild allergic reactions, or no reactions at all, may suddenly find themselves very sensitive to particular allergens.

Some diseases, like humidifier fever, are associated with exposure to toxins from microorganisms that can grow in large building ventilation systems. However, these diseases can also be traced to microorganisms that grow in home heating and cooling systems and humidifiers.

Children, elderly people, and people with breathing problems, allergies, and lung diseases are particularly susceptible to disease-causing biological agents in the indoor air.”

Identification and assessment of possible IAQ problems:
“Methods used in an IAQ investigation may include identifying pollutant sources, evaluating the HVAC system performance, observing production processes and work practices, measuring contamination levels and employee exposures, providing medical testing or physical examinations, conducting employee interviews, and reviewing records of medical tests, job histories, and injuries and illnesses. The Appendices provide resources and checklists that building owners, managers, and occupants can use to investigate IAQ complaints, document walkthrough inspections..”

“To prevent IAQ problems effectively and efficiently, building managers should know and understand the history of the building (construction, uses, maintenance, etc.). If possible, owners and managers should maintain blueprints and construction documents, including information about any renovations of the building.”

Some important practices include:•
“Inspect and assess the building envelope, including the roof, walls, and foundation, and promptly respond to identified problems. Routinely check the building for water leaks, seals around doors and windows, and any visible damp or moist parts of the building. Clean and dry any damp or wet building materials and furnishings within 24 to 48 hours after detection to prevent the growth of mold.

• Ensure and validate that the building is maintained under a slight positive pressure (i.e., air comes out of the building when exterior doors are opened).

• Check whether the temperature and humidity are maintained in a recommended comfort range (temperature: 68 to 78 degrees and relative humidity: 30% to 60%) (25).

• Ensure that routine maintenance of the HVAC system is being performed, including the performance of the system bringing outdoor air into the building. (1).

• Monitor carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. The carbon dioxide levels can be used as a rough indicator of the effectiveness of ventilation (5, 26), and excessive population density (e.g., overcrowding).

• Ensure that good housekeeping practices are being applied.

• Ensure that routine preventive maintenance and upkeep of buildings is being performed. A preventive maintenance program provides the care to all building systems and components that keeps them operating at peak performance according to manufacturer’s specifications, and also allows for early detection of problems
(1, 18).

• Ensure that scheduled renovations are isolated from the building’s general dilution ventilation system when occupants are in the building.

Spring 2011 “INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN COMMERCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS”

Fall 2008 ~ Federal GAO “Indoor Mold: Better Coordination of Research on Health Effects and More Consistent Guidance Would Improve Federal Efforts”

GAO ~ Indoor Mold: Ongoing and Recently Completed Federal Research Activities

2009 ~ World Health Organization (WHO) Dampness & Mould

So where is the BOTTLENECK? Why aren’t US private sector pediatricians, occupational and other physicians being made aware of what OSHA, EPA, CDC, NIOSH, GAO and WHO know of the potential for serious illnesses caused by microbes found in WDB?

ANSWER: Politics in Medicine, the Courts and US Public Health Policy Dissemination of Misinformation by the US Chamber and ACOEM.

July 2003 ~ US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) & Manhattan Institute Center for Legal Policy (CL) “A Scientific View of the Health Effects of Mold”, which is: “Thus, the notion that ‘toxic mold’ is an insidious, secret ‘killer,’ as so many media reports and trial lawyers would claim, is ‘junk science’ unsupported by actual scientific study.”

Jan 2007 Wall Street Journal, “Court of Opinion, Amid Suits Over Mold Experts Wear Two Hats Authors of Science Papers Also Serve The Defense In Mold Litigation”

Dec 2010 ~ WorkCompCentral Group Petitions American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine “ACOEM” for Review of Iffy Based Medicine, Position Statement on the Science of Mold. (ACOEM’s authors of their position statement also authored the US Chamber’s “Scientific View”. No response was received from ACOEM’s BOD)

Jan 2011 ~ Request for Transparency & Oversight of Federal Funds Used to Educate US Pediatricians of Children’s Illnesses Caused by Water Damaged Buildings

March 2011 ~ Physician Critique of ACOEM’s Iffy Based Medicine, Position Statement on Mold “ACOEM 2011 should be retracted. It is an insult to the hard-working members of ACOEM who actually do try to practice good medicine. It is an insult to those sickened by exposure to the interior environment of WDB. It is an insult to science itself.”

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New York Times – Ex-C.I.A. Agent Goes Public With Story of Mistreatment on the Job – “…government employee and his family sued the agency he worked for, saying it had placed them in a mold-contaminated home that made them sick…” – Camp Stanely

Posted on February 15, 2011 by Sharon Kramer
“WASHINGTON — In many ways, the personal injury lawsuit looked routine: In late 2001, a government employee and his family sued the agency he worked for, saying it had placed them in a mold-contaminated home that made them sick and required nearly all their possessions to be destroyed.
But this was no ordinary case. The employee, Kevin M. Shipp, was a veteran Central Intelligence Agency officer. His home was at Camp Stanley, an Army weapons depot just north of San Antonio, in an area where the drinking water was polluted with toxic chemicals. The post includes a secret C.I.A. facility.
Declaring that its need to protect state secrets outweighed the Shipps’ right to a day in court, the government persuaded a judge to seal the case and order the family and their lawyers not to discuss it, and to later dismiss the lawsuit without any hearing on the merits, Mr. Shipp said.”

Ex-C.I.A. Agent Goes Public With Story of Mistreatment on the Job – NYTimes.com

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