Jim Hightower

NIMBY. Stands for Not In My Back Yard.

It s a term of derision and disrespect that The Powers That Be apply to people like us when we have the audacity to say no to whatever load of Hazardous Wastes they happen to be shopping around this week. Like we re the ones being irrational here.

What s wrong with you people? This waste has to go somewhere. If not in your community, just where exactly do you suggest we put it?

It s really tempting to tell em, isn t it?

Then they try to tell us, Our scientists have assured us that this is an absolutely safe method of disposal ... as far as they know ... to the best of their knowledge ... pending further tests.

Now ask yourself, if this stuff is so safe, why don t all these officials and scientists just take a briefcase of it home with em every night?

Notice that toxic facilities tend to be located in working class and poor neighborhoods, or in rural towns. You can drive through Beverly Hills, or River Oaks in Houston, or Nob Hill in San Francisco and never have your senses offended by a dump. Why is it Never In Their Back Yards? NITBY.

This is Jim Hightower saying, being a NIMBY is simply being sane. And it raises a fundamental issue about most of this trash: If we don t want it in our back yards, maybe we don t want it on earth. There s an acronym for that, too: NOPE ... Not on Planet Earth.