Devaluation

Via Andrew Tobias:

According to this, “the US environmental protection agency (EPA) has lowered the value of a human life by nearly $1 million under George Bush’s administration. The EPA’s estimate of the ‘value of a statistical life’ was $6.9 million as of this May – down from $7.8 million five years ago . . . ”

In Euro terms, of course, your kids’ value has declined far more.

“Though it may seem like a harmless bureaucratic recalculation,” the Guardian continues, “the devaluation has real consequences. When drawing up regulations, government agencies put a value on human life and then weigh the costs versus the lifesaving benefits of a proposed rule. The less a life is worth to the government, the less the need for a regulation . . .”