Government Failures
I think that the Flint crisis should be a learning experience for other governments. It should be a wakeup call for all officials to make sure that everything is running safely and smoothly where they live and to maintain the current system if it is working well.
The Flint water crisis is a story of government failure, intransigence, unpreparedness, delay, inaction, and environmental injustice
I agree with this sentence and I wonder what we can do to help prevent crisis's like this from happening in the future.
mistrust is so deep
It saddens me that residents have little to no faith in the government that they elected. I think that because America is a democracy and the people can elect who they want to be in charge, officials should took their responsibilities seriously and try to change things for the better.
orange-tinted
I am shocked that the government did not take action when they were notified that the water was slightly orange, a color which signifies impure water.
He was harassed, lampooned, and threatened. He lost friends.
This goes to show the extent of Edward's dedication for a cause he strongly believes in. I admire his persistence and hope that he receives more recognition for his valiant efforts.
The Washington Post, that corrosion in the nation’s capital’s pipes had caused lead to seep into the water supply and pass through kitchen faucets and shower heads. After helping to expose that water crisis in 2004, he spent six years challenging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to admit they weren’t being honest about the extent of the damage the lead had on children.
I am happy and excited to see that there are people who advocate for change; however, it is shocking to see that a trusted organization would dishonest. I wonder what would have happened if Edwards had not gotten the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to admit that they were not being honest?
They want Marc Edwards. And now, they’re getting him.
From the beginning, there is a communal tone which signifies that the community of Flint is going through these hardships together.
As Clinton put it at the Democratic debate on January 17:
I am glad that these issues are being addressed on a presidential level. What can we do to make sure that water is always discussed?
more miscarriages, more infant deaths, and more convulsive disorders
Before this crisis happened, the government should have been proactive and fixed their lead pipes.
Flint was not the first city to have a crisis involving lead in the water.
While Flint is a major crisis that is happening, it is important to realize that it has not been the first place to have contaminated water and most likely will not be the last.
every dollar spent on reducing kids' lead exposure would lead to a return of $17 to $221 later in life
I would have thought that this fact would be an incentive for the government to clean up the water supply and prevent their city from drinking unsafe water.
Emergency managers, unelected officials appointed to oversee the city's finances, made the decision to begin drawing water from the Flint River.
At that point, did they know about the water contamination?
A state budget office in Flint got bottled water for its employees after issues of bacterial contamination first emerged, even as the state insisted the water was fine to drink.
It is saddening that the government only tried to protect themselves instead of the entire community. When they initially noticed a problem they "got bottled water for [their] employees," but said nothing to the rest of the city, allowing them to suffer and drink polluted water.
When pediatricians in Flint reported a spike in lead in children's blood, a state referred to it as "data" — with the scare quotes in the original.
Despite several indications that there was a problem, the government continued to be ignorant. What can we do to change the way things are? How can we prevent similar situations from happening in the future?
Even after the city announced the water was briefly contaminated with bacteria and, later, chemicals that cause cancer, state officials insisted that nothing was seriously wrong
The fact that the city knew that the water contaminated and dangerous but still let its citizens drink it is appalling. If Flint's government ignored the problem, what is stopping other cities' governments to do the same?
The river water was corrosive. Flint failed to properly treat the water, and the state failed to properly test it.
If the government had been proactive and tested Flint's water supply before its citizens drank the contaminated water then this whole issue could have been resolved. I hope that this raises awareness around the world and cities start to protect their water supplies more carefully.
8,000 children were exposed to a poisonous element that will have lifelong effects on their brain and nervous systems
It is devastating that so many children were exposed to toxins that "will have lifelong effects on their brain and nervous systems." We should try to minimize the consequences of contamination so that everyone can stay healthy and safe.
Flint is a powerful illustration of how politicians ignore the problems and concerns of poor African Americans — even when the politicians caused the problems in the first place.
It is shocking how politicians seem to ignore the problem even though they are the ones that can fix it. Even though this crisis happened in Flint, I would think that presidential election coming up environmental issues such as water contamination would be brought up. How do you think we can encourage politicians to take action?
its situation seemed easily preventable and because the water crisis exemplifies problems that stretch far beyond a single city.
I think that it is important to realize that what happened to Flint is not a unique situation. Polluted water is a major problem around the world. If we focus on the issue now, we can come up with solutions to prevent future contaminated water sources.
And the effects of lead poisoning on the city's children will last a lifetime.
It is scary that our actions today will affect the way the world works in the future. I think that this fact should make everyone more conscious of how they are affecting the environment.