Category Archives: monsanto

Funding for organic research questioned

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commondreams has this up on the questions of who funded this bogus study.  Knowing about how corporations are trying to influence university’s research, I was suspicious of this study from the start.

Links on the subject here. 

And here.

And here.

And here.  This isn’t shocking to me–Monsanto was giving huge amounts to Purdue University.  During a panel on the genetically modified organisms, circa 1998, they asserted there was no problem with GMO’s.  The panel was made up of three scientists–one against GM’s and the other two for them.  The technology was new and had not been tested for adverse affects not only on humans, but nature, as well.

Deer have been known to cross a road to eat organic corn if a choice were given between GMO corn.  Here’s a link to an article.

A thought struck me as I read that last article–these crops are engineered to “drink poison”.  If we put aside the genetic manipulation, and look at the ability for the gene to absorb much more pesticides, etc., wouldn’t that be multiplying the devastating effects of those chemicals on the body?  I mean, we know how devastating chlorinated hydrocarbons (DDT, etc.) are…so it stands to reason that it’s exponentially more so with these GM crops.  And the Celiac thing–how much is being influenced by not only eating GM crops, but breathing in that poison from, say, corn pollen? Article here. Note that this was clear back in 1999–this stuff has been known…and yet the Monsanto monster continues to grow…

GMO monsters; Nanoparticles and Karl Rove…

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Jill Richardson has this up at PR Watch.  Can anyone make sense of this?  The chemical/bioengineering industry is a monster running amok—make more toxic food that makes people, animals sick and poisons the atmosphere…

…so they can grow more food per acre.

I have a question:  if people are dying from the poison food and poison atmosphere, who is this serving?  Not us.

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More from PR Watch on the propaganda of Monsanto, et al…

Good Grief. Nanoparticles are nothing to worry about??  Just a little benzene (one of the most toxic chemicals out there)  isn’t going to hurt…/snark

And the debate on sunscreens also questions their validity and necessity.

CDC link here: http://www.ewg.org/analysis/toxicsunscreen

Natural News has a story here.

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Finally there’s this story on Rove controlling the purse strings…the behind the scenes and under the radar guy.

Eating their own…

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organic consumers has this up on the companies that mount million dollar efforts to destroy the right-to-know GMO in food products.

Why would these companies do this?  Because, as the article says, they can label GMO food as “natural”.  This translates to Big $$$ for them.  I know that they have done this in a national organic grocery store chain that has switched organic produce with conventionally grown produce and called it “organic”.  The unsuspecting public trusts them and there are no government inspectors keeping watch over them…at least, there aren’t to my knowledge…

That’s another reason to buy local from farmers or organic stores that you trust.  Know where your food comes from!

 

GMO backers

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Grist also has this up on the companies who don’t want the public to know what’s in their food.

Again, I go back to the often used Bush-era phrase:  “If you have nothing to hide…”  Why would one object to the GMO labeling unless they know that the public is going to stop buying that trash food in droves when they realize it’s GMO?  Or perhaps they’re afraid that people will finally be able to link their health issues with GMO food–gut inflammation, allergies, skin rashes, lung issues, heart issues, etc.?

 

 

The Farm Bill

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Alliance for Natural Health has this report up on the Farm Bill. (hat tip to organic consumers).

From the article:

The aforementioned Farm Bill riders would outlaw any EPA review of a genetically engineered crop under the Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act. This terrible legislation would ensure that no agency other than the USDA (which is decidedly pro-GMOs) will be allowed to provide analysis of the impacts of GMO crops. Further, the riders also establish extremely short deadlines for approval of GMOs. If the crops are not reviewed and approved within the extremely short timeline, they would default to immediate approval and commercialization.

So…if this is true, then there’s an underhanded reason why Obama is urging the passage of the Farm Bill–given that he appointed Vilsack as Secretary of Ag, who is a Monsanto toadie…yeah, well, it’s real hard not to think Obama is doing their bidding...

(Note that Methinks They Lie also brings up the Shirley Sherrod fiasco…yeah, that was a great move. Not.)

Farm Bill

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I’m late with this, but it’s nice to know others are out there fighting for those of us most affected by this.  The cuts in food stamps…i.e., the “Eat Shit” campaign of those compassionate conservatives who think all life is precious…as long as you’re a conservative and wealthy….poor people should just dry up and blow away and “decrease the surplus population…”

From the email sent to the organic advocates group I belong to:

Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH) and other hill champions are coordinating Members
of Congress to make ‘one minute’ speeches in opposition to the House Ag
Committee’s proposed cuts to SNAP. When you call your Members of Congress
today, ask him/her to speak out on the House floor in support of SNAP
tomorrow, *July 10 at noon or on Wed., July 11th at noon*. If interested,
House offices should contact LaDavia Drane (ladavia.drane@ mail.house. gov)
in Rep. Fudge’s office. “One Minutes” are first come, first serve.

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“House Republicans think a working poor household with $2,000 in assets
shouldn’t be getting food stamps – an average of $1.50 per meal – but they
don’t seem to have problems with far wealthier insurance companies and
agribusiness getting much bigger handouts from the Farm Bill,” noted Dunlea.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the House bill would cut spending
over ten years by more than $35 billion, the Senate bill $23 billion.****

“****America* ***’s children, seniors and 1.5 million veteran households
facing a constant struggle against hunger deserve better from Congress,”
said Senator Gillibrand of the House bill.****

The House bill does not include several amendments attached to the Senate
bill, including one that required those getting subsidized crop insurance
to comply with conservation requirements and another that reduce by 15
percentage points the share of crop insurance premiums the government pays
for farmers with adjusted gross incomes of more than $750,000. Currently
the government bears an average 62 percent of crop insurance premiums

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The quote from Henry Kissinger popped in my head. Link Here:

http://www.corporate-aliens.com/quotes/getquote.php?Henry-Kissinger&quoteid=1427

Who controls the food supply controls the people; who controls the energy can control whole continents; who controls money can control the world.
Yeah, that about sums up the disaster the world is in right now, doesn’t it?
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A really good article here on conventional versus organic farming.  I take issue with the yields being 25 percent more in conventional farming–I’ve read differently–especially when it comes to drought conditions.  Rodale did a comparison of conventional versus organic farming and found that the crop loss from bugs, etc., was minimal, and when they were in a drought, the organic soil was better able to retain moisture, helping the crop to survive.  If you look at the soil samples in the article, it’s plain to see the difference in soils. I used to have a compost bin at my house, and it was so amazing to put food scraps in the bin, along with leaves, sticks, and stuff, and see it magically transform into rich compost.  Compost is amazing in that it can help break up clay soils and will also help sandy soils to hold moisture.
In the ecology textbook I’m reading, they bring up an important point:  pesticides not only kill the bugs the farmers don’t want on the crop, but they also kill off beneficial bacteria in the soil which the plants need to thrive.  Also, I’ve read that the outbreaks in salmonella and e. coli could easily have been avoided with organically grown food–the beneficial bacteria love to eat them.
Here in the corn belt, we are experiencing a severe drought.  They have pretty much given up on the corn crop, and are unsure about soybeans.  Again I wonder at the wisdom of so much land being devoted to grains, instead of growing nuts, which don’t require chemicals to grow, and the trees help soil erosion.
Also, people are watering their lawns, which drives me up a wall–they cut the grass to two or less inches, and then wonder why the grass dies.  Grass should be grown to at least 3 inches so the roots will grow deeper, allowing it to find moisture when it’s dry out.  I never had a problem with my grass dying when I still had my house/lawn.  But you never, ever hear about this when they’re talking about people watering their lawns.
Finally, I like the idea of subsidizing farms based on how much carbon they leave in the soil.  Great idea.  Probably won’t go anywhere if Monsanto doesn’t like the idea…

California GMO Ballot

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…as California goes, so goes the Nation  (she says hopefully)… (hat tip to organic consumers)

I wasn’t as impressed with this article as Ronnie Cummins.  It failed to note the Purdue University scientist, Dr. Huber, who sent a letter of concern to Vilsack.  But it was sure to get in GMO advocates that have nothing to back up their assertions that this *stuff that resembles food* is safe.

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By now, you have heard of the *cough* research that says people who buy organic food are….jerks.  Um-hmmm…

Organic Consumers states that reason.com is a part of the Reason Foundation, a libertarian “think tank”, which is…wait for it…a member of ALEC.

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Another link organic consumers had was to a movie trailer about the coming water crises.  However, it was made by the folks who brought us “Waiting for Superman” a smear piece on the public school system that was used as a prop to promote charter schools…so yeah, I’m not linking to it.