Kerby Anderson
The gas stove controversy last month illustrates how the establishment media uses a controversy to malign conservative media and members of Congress. You may remember how it started. The commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission warned that 40 percent of US homes have a “hidden hazard.” He went on to explain, “Products that can’t be made safe can be banned.”
Many in the conservative media warned that gas stoves could be banned. Senators Ted Cruz (a Republican) and Joe Manchin (a Democrat) even introduced legislation that would block the commission from banning gas stoves. Quickly, the commissioner put out a Twitter post clarifying that they weren’t banning gas stoves, but new regulations only apply to new products.
That should have been the end of it, but liberals in the press went on attack. One host at MSNBC labeled it “the imaginary ban on gas stoves” and laughed that “they’re all getting mad over on Fox.” The Washington Post ran a headline: “GOP thrusts gas stoves, Biden’s green agenda into the culture wars.”
There are legitimate concerns that gas stoves emit far more toxins than previously thought, including nitrogen dioxide and methane. But any reasonable discussion devolved quickly into charges that this was merely another battle in the culture wars. Never mentioned is the fact that several cities (Berkeley, Los Angeles, Seattle) have enacted bans on natural gas in new home construction.
Earlier this month, the Biden Energy Department has proposed new regulations on … wait for it … gas stoves. These standards would apply to gas and electric stoves and ovens. It’s true this is not a ban, but it appears the new standards would make most gas stoves noncompliant, thus effectively banning them.
Once again, we find that there is more to the story than what is covered in the establishment media.
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Penna Dexter