After WWII, a number of companies were totally devastated that the money stream from the federal government was being cut off.
Big Oil, the petroleum industry, managed to remain profitable by convincing the government to use its products to fertilize all the farms in America. The results have been devastating. Our fruits and vegetables now have a fraction of the nutrition they had before the war.
Another industry that was freaking out with the loss of income from the war was the aluminum manufactures (ALCOA). Not only did they get cut off from the government gravy train, they also lost all the Nazi war time manufacturing. That’s right. They supported the Nazis during the war.
The biggest expense to this industry was a toxic bi-product called sodium fluoride. It was so toxic, it had to be buried in special landfills. This cost a fortune. But, as luck would have it. Or maybe I should say, as corrupt politics would have it, the head of ALCOA became the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
On some very bizarre science, he convinced the government that it was healthy to pollute the entire water supply in the United States with this neuro-toxin to help prevent tooth decay. Welcome to the dumbing down of America.