1,300 lives
And the Turf Wars continue.
Our Lords and Masters are still debating whether or not to ban the sale of turf [or peat, as some foreigners call it]. They have done so many U-turns in the last few days they have actually created a vortex.
Of course the Health mob [bless their cotton socks] have waded in with the startling claim that burning turf kills 1,300 people every year. This is not from immolation as you may suspect but from the inhaling of smoke from the turf. Yes – the smoke that has filled Irish skies for countless generations is suddenly killing 1,300 people a year. That is the number they reckon are killed from air pollution. As the latest debate has shown, apparently industrial and exhaust [in particular diesel] fumes have paled in comparison to the odd whiff from a turf fire which is now up there on a par with Zyklon B or [God help us] second hand cigarette smoke.
Who exactly are these 1,300 people? Is this some little village in Mayo or Leitrim where the population has to be replaced every year? They love to pluck these figures out of the [turf smoke laden] air but they seem quite confident. It’s not 1,400 or even 1,200. Do they have the names of these people? If someone snuffs it in a turf burning cottage how do they determine it was the smoke that did it and not the motorway that was build in the cottage’s back yard a few years ago?
But the biggest mystery of all…… What are these people going to die from? Some poor bastard who made his life miserable by giving up the drink and the smokes to prolong his life and has now had to forgo his fire has to die of something?
Hypothermia?
Always remember, there are two types of statistics – those you look up and those you make up.
And if no-one can prove the latter to be wrong, then it becomes the truth until someone demonstrably proves it wrong – that’s how ‘science’ works.
For further evidence, see Covid, Global Warming, Public Health outputs etc. ad infinitum.
It has reached the stage that I don’t believe any statistics. Virtually every one from any source has little loopholes that can be spotted with proctice.
My family Doctor, (who was a pipe smoker by the way) told me once of a notice that the American Medical Association had sent out to Medical Examiners nationwide.
The MEs were advised that if a cause of death could not be positively identified they could enter “Smoking Related” as a possible cause if the person had ever smoked or been around smokers for any appreciable amount of time.
Could it be that you have some death certificates over there that are “Turf* Related”?
*(This may also apply to gang turf in order to boost the numbers.)
I doubt that the word “smoking” has ever appeared on a Death Certificate and I can guarantee “turf” has appeared even less.
Dear Grandad
One assumes that these deaths do not include those who tested positive for covid within 28 days of death, so there must be a few who were guilty of dying of both turf related disease and covid. Then again, what of the turf exposed smokers? And the subset of those who also tested positive for covid with 28 days of death?
Meanwhile in dear old Blighty, something odd happened last year in the excess mortality in the 0-44 year age group compared with the average of the previous 5 years:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/189200946@N04/52032784867/in/dateposted-public/
DP
It’s all a matter of shuffling figures from one column into another. It’s only when you look at the grand totals you begin to get the picture.
I read one report that said it was sitting at open fires that caused 1,400 deaths a year. Having worked in a community where there were numerous nonagenarians with turf fires stacked up the chimney, I felt dubious about such a nonsensical claim.
Of course it is utter bilge. I honestly don’t know how they keep a straight face when quoting these figures.
Q: Who exactly are these 1,300 people?
A: They don’t exist. They are a numerical output from some computer model. Almost certainly they don’t actually measure smoke levels in the air but instead use some proxy. W M Briggs (aka “Statistician to the Stars”) has covered this quite a bit if you want more info.
But, hey, modelers gotta model and regulators gotta regulate, otherwise their nice taxpayer funded livings would disappear. Also see “Climate EMERGENCY – Woop Woop” 😉
PS: nice to have you back from wherever you weren’t last week.
’tis true I was still here just not here. It’s hard going when nothing happens. My peak of excitement today is a grocery delivery. What bright fucking spark said that the ’12 x dogfood tins’ was out of stick and substituted it with one ‘6 x tin’? Now I’m going to run short on dogfood!
Were you still charged for the 12 by? Things like this happen to us quite some little bit.
No. They pass each item through the checkout as if I were doing it myself in a normal shop. So I pay for what I get.