Re: Questions to the group

April 1, 2007

MY gut feeling is that this is a gray area and a still evolving area but I

think regardless of the outcome

you should stick to your guns and also be honest about the causes of what

happened.

But you should be aware that many of us, myself included, are fighting

battles based on the lack of recognition

of mold, even levels that are UNDENIABLY DANGEROUS by all accepted standards

in the IAQ industry as being

legally dangerous, because in the US there are apparently NO standards

whatsoever for toxic mold exposure, so

all levels of any kind of mold, no matter how severe are often argued to be

'legal'.

For example, a real life hero of many of these battles recently told me of a

case of someone he knew who moved

into an apartment - after fleeing another moldy situation only to find that

the second apartment was more reactive for her

than the first place, and she had then to move out, giving notice, but then

was sued by the second apartment owner for the remander of rent on a years

lease - even though she had moved out after just a few days there.

The landlord would have gotten away with this too, THEY DO THIS ALL THE TIME

- if this person, who was able to act as an

expert, was not there to testify..

This would have bankrupted her and ruined her credit and ability to rent

other apartments forever.

These are the kind of problems we deal with all the time here...

The same kinds of people who don't think twice about subjecting their

employees, tenants to toxic conditions certainly don't like to hear about it

from people and often don't think twice about doing their best to ruin those

people's lives for having the courage to say 'no'.

AND THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH IT.

On 3/31/07, Brad <intotheforest2006@...> wrote:

>

> Hi:

>

> I am brand new to this group and I have a question or two I would like

> to ask. First let me give you a little background information.

> Recently I left a job in Arizona because I felt like I was

> experiencing SBS. It got to the point where I almost passed out one

> day. Unfortunately, I did not seek medical help since I did not have

> health insurance.

>

> I decided to leave my position and due to other connected reasons it

> happened abruptly.

>

> I have moved back to Illinois and filed for unemployment benefits. I

> have been denied unemployment benefits because it was determined that

> " The employer did not have the ability to control such conditions or

> acts. the claimant left work voluntarily without good cause

> attributable to the employer " .

>

> I intend to appeal and fight this decision. My questions are what are

> my rights regarding healthy and safe working environments and what

> recourse do I have in pursuing this further? Any help would be

> appreciated. Thank you.

>

> Brad

>

April 1, 2007

Brad,

You will probably have a hard time with your case simply because you

haven't got the proof you need from doctors or from your old job.

Let me explain, I've been fighting my disability case for the past

five years and I have solid proof from doctors plus proof from a

mold company that I have been exposed to and am extremely ill from

mold in my home. Since you have moved out of the state it will be

hard for you to get proof (pictures, air samples, other people who

may be sick, etc.) of your illness. I would suggest that you find a

doctor in your area who can diagnose you; that will be a start. I

had to find a private doctor who specialized in preventative

medicine to get any help. I know it's expensive but it's worth it if

you have any shot at wining your case. Good luck, Dana

--- In , " Brad " <intotheforest2006@...>

wrote:

>

> Hi:

>

> I am brand new to this group and I have a question or two I would

like

> to ask. First let me give you a little background information.

> Recently I left a job in Arizona because I felt like I was

> experiencing SBS. It got to the point where I almost passed out one

> day. Unfortunately, I did not seek medical help since I did not

have

> health insurance.

>

> I decided to leave my position and due to other connected reasons

it

> happened abruptly.

>

> I have moved back to Illinois and filed for unemployment benefits.

I

> have been denied unemployment benefits because it was determined

that

> " The employer did not have the ability to control such conditions

or

> acts. the claimant left work voluntarily without good cause

> attributable to the employer " .

>

> I intend to appeal and fight this decision. My questions are what

are

> my rights regarding healthy and safe working environments and what

> recourse do I have in pursuing this further? Any help would be

> appreciated. Thank you.

>

> Brad

>

April 1, 2007

I also had proof of my job building making me sick. They said it couldnt yet

they cleaned it up with hazmat suits. I was still denied workmens comp and I

fought like hell.

'Janet

**************************************

See what's free at

http://www.aol.com.

April 1, 2007

It would also be a good idea to pick up the book Mold Warriors at

moldwarriors.com to learn a bit more about how to deal with it - Dr. Shoemaker's

theory is that about a quarter of the population is more susceptible to mold

than other folks because genetically we lack the antibodies to get rid of

biotoxins - therefore, other folks can tolerate spaces some of us cannot.

But, as the others have indicated, this is still a VERY uphill battle. There

are a LOT of forces out there - both corporate that have a stake in these

troubles not being recognized as well as general inertia from folks who haven't

struggled with these issue to whom they seem entirely implausible.

I got here after having mold exacerbate a good handful of health issues I

already had (and triggering some life-threatening others...), but honestly, I

thought I was just crazy. Until my neighbor died - I've been working with his

mother to unravel the mysteries of his death, and sure enough, my 'guess' that

he had been exposed to trichothecene mycotoxins (from comparing his symptoms to

the ones I found documented in medical journals) turned out to be correct. Now

we're fighting with the Coroner's office about what led to his death... Any of

us who have tried to learn what has affected our health have had struggles. The

inertia is at least as strong as the financial incentive the insurance companies

have to keep this from being better understood generally. ly, the symptoms

can be so bizarre that I understand the impulse to reject that they're possible

- I had it myself before my story became part of my life.

The reality is that some of us here are doing what we can to make a difference

in the law (both through the courts and legislation), but we've got a long way

to go before things change fundamentally. Do what you can to regain your health

- that needs to be first priority... and if you can make a case for having been

harmed, do your best, but this isn't a sure thing by any means. We can make

suggestions and help as we can, but there's no formula for proving cases yet.

We're all doing our part to work toward the Tipping Point, as it were of our

plight being understood. Long way to go yet.

Hate to say this, but you're unlikely to win your claim in the first couple

rounds - there just isn't enough of a track record to stand on yet, and there is

some pretty influential misinformation out there. That's why I think most of us

would encourage you to prioritize figuring out how to get yourself healthy over

counting on legal remedies, frankly, even unemployment (although we're probably

more likely to succeed there than in court yet...). But you'll need your

circumstances documented and to have licensed 'experts' to concur with your

theories before you'll make headway anywhere -

At least that's my two cents...

Oh, and just so you know, every so often, we get folks with a general story like

yours showing up here who are just trying to see what we know (or think we know)

so that they can dispute it for the defense side of the aisle.

~Haley

gsgrl2000 <gsgrl2000@...> wrote: Brad,