The U.S.A. of E.T.O.: The Brad Schneider National Anthem

     During the 2017-2018 congressional campaign season, U.S. Representative Brad Schneider (Democrat from Illinois's 10th District) accepted $7,736 from the medical company Medline.

     [Source: http://www.opensecrets.org]

     Medline emits Ethylene Oxide from its smokestacks. Ethylene Oxide - abbreviated E.T.O. - is a chemical which is both explosive, and known to cause cancer.

     Medline has used the fact that E.T.O. sterilizes medical equipment, to justify allowing the poisonous chemical to contaminate water and air supplies in Lake County, Illinois. But the company has also refused to use safer chemicals to sterilize medical equipment (of which there are at least five alternatives). It has also refused to either: 1) make their smokestacks shorter (in order to reduce the distance that polluted air can travel from said smokestacks), or 2) relocate their facilities to a more sparsely-populated area (in order to reduce the number of people who have to breathe said polluted air).

     Despite touting what he sees as an exceptional record on environmental issues, Rep. Schneider has also accepted campaign contributions from Abbott, AbbVie, and Baxter, which have polluted Lake County with other chemicals aside from E.T.O..

     [Source: http://www.opensecrets.org]

     You can learn more about Schneider's sources of campaign funds by reading my February 2020 infographic and campaign pamphlet "Where Does Congressman Brad Schneider Get His Money?: The True Sources of Schneider's Campaign Donations", available at the following address:

     http://www.aquarianagrarian.blogspot.com/2020/02/where-does-congressman-brad-schneider.html

     It is also worth noting that Schneider's wife, Julie Dann, is a senior vice president at Alliant / Mesirow Insurance Services.

     [Source: http://www.readsludge.com/2019/03/01/stock-ticker-wife-of-rep-on-health-subcommittee-is-trading-health-stocks/]

     Despite being one of the richest congressmen in the country, Schneider is rumored to be on his wife's health insurance plan.

     You can learn more about the suspicions regarding possible corruption involving Schneider and his wife, by reading the following article:

     http://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/democratic-rep-brad-schneider-of-illinois-violated-a-conflicts-of-interest-law-with-late-stock-trade-disclosures-his-office-blames-a-missed-mouse-click-/articleshow/90404303.cms

     

     I composed the following set of lyrics - a parody of "The Star-Spangled Banner" by Francis Scott Key - about the corrupt relationship between Congressman Schneider and these four pollution-emitting companies.

     I hope that this parody will, one day, be sung in protest, straight to the congressman's face.

Bradley Schneider takes bribes

Fro-om Bi-ig Pharma

To pollute all our air

With the ethyle-ene oxide

E.T.O., it explodes

And it gives us cancer

Still Brad takes those bribes

From Abbott, AbbVie, Medline, and Baxter

But they say it’s sterilized

To-oo keep us a-live

But even that is a lie

‘Cause the smokestack’s too high

O say does tha-at Schneider

He... really really really su-ucks

‘Cause he’s pri-vately insured...

So he don’t... give a... fuck

Song composed in summer 2023.

This article written and published

on September 6th, 2023.

Originally posted under the title
"The Brad Schneider National Anthem".

Title changed on October 8th, 2023.