Politics is a game that relies on distraction: the ability to divert the attention of voters from one issue to another. The very survival of politicians, perpetually hampered by their own ineptitude, relies on this strategy.

If you were to glance at our media (both “journalistic” legacy outlets and social platforms), you’d presume that the greatest threat facing the populace involves unidentified flying objects that are being shot down across the country.

Some believe them to be aliens — aliens who have somehow mastered intergalactic travel through space and time and yet have fallen victim to our comparatively rudimentary military equipment — or a continuation of China ’s vast array of espionage balloons.

And as the country spends all of its energy on either of these two theories, an environmental disaster is threatening millions of people, and no one seems to care, particularly those for whom the environment is akin to a deity.

On Feb. 3, a train transporting numerous toxic chemicals, including vinyl chloride, derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, igniting a fire that, in addition to controlled burns , provided smoke-addled imagery better suited to an apocalyptic horror movie.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, these chemicals, including vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, and ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, were “known to have been and continue to be” released to the air, surface soil, and surface waters.

And while the EPA announced on Sunday that it had not detected contaminants at “levels of concern” in the region and that residents could return to their homes after a three-day mandatory evacuation, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) stated that the EPA had confirmed chemicals had entered the Ohio River basin — the source of drinking water for more than 5 million people.

When we consider the potential impacts of vinyl chloride alone, you’d expect the federal government to respond with an “all hands on deck” approach. Mere inhalation of vinyl chloride fumes can cause dizziness, nausea, headache, and breathing difficulties, while higher concentrations of these fumes have been described as an “acid mist.” According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services , exposure can also result in damage to the nervous system, changes in the immune system, and a decrease in bone strength in fingers, arms, and joints, while studies indicate that higher rates of liver, lung, and several other types of cancer may occur.

As another terrifying insight into the coming months and years, animals are reportedly falling ill and dying near the train derailment site in Ohio.

And what’s the response from the secretary of transportation, and lover of trains, Pete Buttigieg ?

“It couldn't be a more exciting time for transportation,” he said at a recent event. “It's had its challenges. ... We've faced issues from container shipping to airline cancellations. Now we got balloons,” followed by audience laughter.

Ha, ha.

During that same speech, Buttigieg didn’t once mention the train derailment and ensuing chemical disaster, but he did find time to essentially complain that too many white people work on construction projects.

Because this is how politics works. The people of Ohio and neighboring states may be facing the horrifying consequences of an environmental disaster that the Biden administration simply doesn’t want to talk about.

Why? Well, because Biden officials can’t blame their enemies. So let’s stare at balloons in the sky and laugh along with Mayor Pete. But please, try to ignore the suffering.

Ian Haworth ( @ighaworth ) is the host of Off Limits with Ian Haworth .