Re the "impossibility of educating" the European politicians about the
absurdity of the lead-free solder mandates, I suggest a couple of scenarios.

1) It's 2006, going on 2007, and it is obvious to all that most electronics
equipment manufactured all over world is not using lead-free solder.  What
then? To cover their behinds, the aforesaid parties will probably expand the
list of exemptions.  They have already opened the door in the weasel- worded
document that emerged from the EU Parliament on May 15, 2001.  It's a
classic-- I urge all to read it carefully.  In fact, they will probably
expand the list of exemptions to include almost everything.

2) Long before that, the "precautionary principle" will be exposed as the
charade that it is.  (Thank you, Kay Nimmo of the Tin Research Institute, for
stating it so clearly.)  There is one thing that politicians all over the
world fear above all things-- being laughed at.  There is nothing more deadly
to political careers than that.  Pretty soon, we will see defections.

Actually, I expect both scenarios to unfold.

Harvey Miller

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