From the October 2002 Idaho Observer:

Pierce county residents protest fluoride mandate

by The Idaho Observer

Pierce County Health Board voted to mandate the fluoridation of water supplies in communities with 5,000 or more service hookups at its October 2, 2002 public meeting. The decision has been met with loud opposition by nearly all of the currently unfluoridated communities that would be affected by the mandate.

The Health Board ignored a scientific survey commissioned by the Pierce County Water District which demonstrated that 80 percent of area residents believe that people should vote on whether or not fluoride will be added to their water.

The issue is best outlined in a September 30, 2002 letter from Bonney Lake Mayor Bob Young to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Board. The letter was co-signed by other towns and organizations in the affected area. The board also ignored the letter in its decision to defy public opinion and organized opposition to mandate fluoridating area water supplies.

It is difficult to understand why municipalities across the nation are so insistent upon mass medicating their people with fluoride when some 400 peer reviews scientific reports that concur with claims that fluoride is a toxic, mutogentic, carcinogenic, immunosuppressive, bone brittling poison when adminstered by dentists or in parts per million through drinking water have been published.

Other studies have linked systemic doses of fluoride over time to suppression of mental processes.

The use of fluoride has never been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advocates water fluoridation, EPA scientist Dr. William Hirzy publicly stated June 29, 2000, that, “In 1997 we [EPA]....voted to oppose fluoridation. Our position has strengthened since then.”

The CDC, a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is also the lead agency in the campaign to vaccinate every American against smallpox even though their own documents indicate that the campaign it's recommending will cause epidemics much worse than the disease could ever cause on its own. Tacoma, Washington and New York City were among the first cities in the U.S. to begin fluoridating their citizens' water. As a result, there are now 50-year studies available which prove the public health “benefits” of municipal water fluoridation.

We can prove that mass medicating the public through water fluoridation causes incidence of tooth decay and dental fluorosis to increase dramatically over nonfluoridated communities; incidence of immune dysfunction and broken bones, particularly hips in the elderly, are more than double the national average compared to nonfluoridated water district areas.

Since municipal water fluoridation has been scientifically proven to be such a boon to Tacoma's medical and dental industries, the local health board has decided to force this extremely effective, medical procedure-promoting poison on communities in the county seat's outlying areas.

Fortunately yet another group has been formed to fight fluoride and protect the health and vitality of its family members, friends and neighbors. One has to wonder why Americans, city by city and county by county, must spend so much time and energy fighting government mandates that expose them to substances such as fluoride when science and field experience proves them to be highly toxic.

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September 30, 2002

Clerk of the Board of Health
3629 South D Street
Tacoma, WA 98418-6813

Dear Board of Health Members:

As a group of community leaders who evaluates county-run health policies, you have vested responsibility to thoroughly examine any of the potential risks or hardships created by a policy implementation, and to also listen to concerns expressed by affected Pierce County community members.

It has been brought to our attention that at the upcoming October Board of Health meeting, you will vote on a resolution that will mandate fluoridation for the majority of communities in Pierce County that are presently unfluoridated.

The City of Bonney Lake respectfully requests an opportunity to talk with you in person about issues regarding the proposed fluoridation mandate. We feel that the three-minute comment period allowed to individuals during health board meetings failed to give us adequate time to address our questions and concerns.

Considering that the mandate will intimately impact much of Pierce County, and possibly outlying areas, the meeting will be open to include members from the other city governments, institutions, municipalities, or tribal governments who have recently expressed concerns about the fluoridation mandate to include:

The Bethel Public School District

The City of Edgewood

The City of Puyallup

The City of Lakewood

The Puyallup Tribe

The Nisqually Tribe

Parkland Light and Water Company

Summit Water and Supply Company

Spanaway Water Company

Edgewood Water District

Unfortunately, because of our tight timeframe, we need to request a quick written response from you before the Wednesday afternoon meeting.

You can fax it to us at 891-3251.

We will be sharing your response to our request with Pierce County community members, City civic leaders, County council members, state legislators and tribal members, and local media contacts.

Open, honest discourse is the basis for balanced and informed judgments. As community leaders serving to protect our health and well being, we hope that you will honor our request and respond amicably.

Sincerely,

Bob Young , Mayor

CC: The City of Bonney Lake City Council, The Bethel Public School District, The City of Edgewood, The City of Puyallup, The City of Lakewood, The Puyallup Tribe, The Nisqually Tribe, Parkland Light and Water Company, Summit Water and Supply Company, Spanaway Water Company, Edgewood Water District, Members of Pierce County Council, Rep. Tom Campbell, Rep. Dave Morell, Senator Pam Roach, Senator Karen Fraser, Senator Rosa Franklin, Sandy Doughton, The Tacoma Tribune, Ani Harrison, The Tacoma Reporter, The Puyallup Herald

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Those interested in networking with this coalition of Pierce county communities to fight the latest battle on the mandated fluoride front can contact the group via email at toxicfree@qwest.net