Cheapening Value Of Human Life

The implications of discounting lives are quite significant. If, for example, the government decided the value of life is now worth less than a tenth of what is used to be, policymakers could decide to allow 10 times as many deaths from environmental pollution -- claiming the "benefits" were unchanged -- to keep costs down for industry. Such a review procedure could block federal agencies from adopting meaningful standards for a range of pollutants, and even set the stage for agencies to weaken effective environmental protections that are already in place.