to the best of my knowledge, all automobile manufacturers use bags that employ sodium azide as the propellant. and have always used this compound since "air" bags were first introduced.

for all of us hoi polloi, this issue about the implementation of sodium azide as the propellant was adroitly managed so as to keep it out of the public's view. that is how the bags came to be identified as "air"bags. as opposed to sodium azide bags.

it is sort of like the current story that prions cause bovine spongiform encephalopathy[bse, aka mad cow disease]. as you can discover on your own, prions have never been found, they are notional. what is not notional is that cattle are treated with large amounts of neurotoxins[aka pesticides]. the international chemical industry would love for us to ignore the organophosphate, organochloride neurotoxins that are applied to cattle in a thorougly uncontrolled manner.

my guess is that if you looked, you would find that the sodium azide that is supplied to the "air"bag suppliers is manufactured by the same entities.

you know, safety can be a double-edged sword. companies looking for a market for their toxic sodium azide might have created the "air"bag market by the adroit and concentrated usage of public relations and congressional lobbying that resulted in the federal mandate for "air"bags.

something to think about.

for those of you with statistical inclinations, consider injuries, deaths, per vehicle mile travelled prior to sodium azide bag incorporation into automobiles and afterwards.

i haven't crunched the numbers, but my guess would be that there hasn't been a statistically noticeable improvement.

may i reintroduce you to the federal government for sale to the highest bidder? the name is madam.