In the many years I worked for the director of the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) at the US Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC, we NEVER claimed that ANY of our registered pesticide products (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, disinfectants, etc.) were "safe." OPP's official position, through every administration, remains that, when used according to label directions, pesticides may be "used safely" but they are not "safe." This is not semantics. Remember, all pesticides are formulated specifically to kill something.

Issues around pesticide use are complicated and fascinating. I came away from this interesting and rewarding job with the determination to strictly limit my intentional exposure to pesticides (disinfectants, repellents and termiticides). And although I am a serious gardener, I garden organically.

That said, I try not to criticize anyone for their choice to use pesticides -- as long as all precautions are observed and they limit both exposure to themselves and others.