[Alternative_Medicine_Forum] Threats from GE crop show up everywhere.
Towards the end of Kali Yuga everything will turn poisonous. Air will be
poison, water will be poison, food too will be poison. People will die from
just plucking food from their fields and eating them. So many will die that
there will be no one to cremate. The corpses will be devoured by wild animals
and they too will die after eating them.
- 500 year old Indian prophecy.
Monsanto's plans for Kunia pose risk for other crops
GATHERING PLACE
Paul H. Achitoff
Star Bulletin (Hawaii), April 12 2007
http://starbulletin.com/2007/04/12/editorial/commentary.html
MONSANTO just announced its purchase of thousands of acres in Central
Oahu to test genetically modified (GM) crops, and protests of the
Legislature's refusal to hear bills prohibiting genetic engineering of taro
and coffee have been in the news. The newspapers publish a steady stream
of letters from industry employees suggesting that anyone unwilling to
give the industry free reign is an ignorant fear-monger mindlessly
opposed to everything "biotech," from aspirin to stem-cell research. Time
for a reality check. Here are some facts -- you decide.
In the past six months, three federal courts have ruled that the USDA
broke environmental laws when allowing Monsanto and others to grow GM
crops that could contaminate other crops or harm the environment,
including corn and sugar cane engineered to produce powerful drugs in their
cells. Hawaii's Judge J. Michael Seabright found USDA acted in "utter
disregard" of the law.
During the past year, the U.S. long-grain rice crop was discovered
contaminated by GM varieties not approved for human consumption, resulting
in rice import bans by Japan, rejection of contaminated shipments by
the European Union, and lawsuits to recover huge losses to rice farmers.
The California Rice Commission has called for a moratorium on planting
GM rice in California. Thousands of farmers in the United States and
Canada have been investigated and/or sued by Monsanto for saving seeds
with patented GMO traits. Farmers have paid huge fines even when their
crops were inadvertently contaminated with Monsanto's traits. On the
other hand, Monsanto refuses to take any responsibility for contamination
of others' crops.
Consumers want as much organic produce as they can get; it's the
fastest-growing agricultural segment. But since the genetically engineered
papaya was introduced, to the hosannas of the Hawaii Farm Bureau, it has
become virtually impossible to grow organic papaya reliably in most
parts of Hawaii; the GM trees cross-pollinate other trees, and GM seeds
are spread everywhere by birds and people. Even UH's papaya seed stock is
contaminated. GM papayas receive much lower prices than conventional or
organic papaya, and the export markets to Japan and Korea, where
consumers refuse to buy GM fruit, have been seriously damaged. Should Kona
coffee farmers assume they have nothing to worry about from GM coffee
field testing?
Claims that GM crops will enhance yield or improve nutrition are
completely speculative, even after years of research and development; 99.9
percent of all GM crops worldwide are corn, soy, canola or cotton
designed to be resistant to herbicides, produce their own pesticides, or both.
Monsanto developed crops resistant to its RoundUp herbicide so it could
sell more RoundUp, which farmers can now dump on their fields without
killing their crop. Sales of RoundUp skyrocketed six-fold from 1992 to
2002, producing RoundUp-resistant "superweeds" infesting 2 million acres
of U.S. farmland. To kill RoundUp-resistant weeds, farmers are turning
to even more toxic herbicides, such as 2,4-D, a component of Agent
Orange produced by, you guessed it, Monsanto.
Pesticide-producing crops are not resistant to many corn and cotton
insect pests, including the boll weevil, mirids, plant bugs and stink
bugs. Farmers continue to spray insecticides to control them, and overall
pesticide usage on such crops climbs back up after an initial drop.
Claims that GM crops have been "proven safe" or are "rigorously tested"
are simply false. The EPA regulates pesticide-producing crops, but
requires no feeding studies with the GM crop; nor does the FDA require any
such proof. Scientific studies of GM foods in animals have shown signs
of organ damage and raise legitimate concerns about allergies,
immuno-suppression, and toxicity. Because the industry has fought requirements
that GM foods be labeled so consumers can make their own choices, it's
impossible for consumers or doctors to track illnesses back to their
sources. Yet 70 percent of all processed foods in supermarkets now
contain unlabeled GM ingredients.
About a year ago, the USDA's own inspector general issued a scathing
audit criticizing USDA for failing to adequately regulate field tests of
GM crops. The USDA was unaware of the location of many field trial
sites and failed to conduct required inspections. A long and ever-growing
list of contamination incidents has amply demonstrated that no field
protocols have succeeded in reliably containing experimental GM crops,
like the ones Monsanto plans to grow in Kunia.
Want to know more about exactly what crops Monsanto will be growing, or
where? Too bad! Monsanto claims it's "confidential" -- that is, none of
your business. Oh, and the Hawaii legislators who refuse to hear bills
seeking to restrict genetic engineering of taro, coffee, or anything
else? Monsanto says it's none of their business, either. We're all
Monsanto's guinea pigs now.
Paul H. Achitoff is managing attorney in Hawaii for Earthjustice Legal
Defense Fund.
US: 1 in 150 children has Autism
US: 1 in 6 children suffers a developmental disorder
New Jersey: 1 in 94 has Autism
UK: 1 in 86 has Autism
China : Over 20 lakh autistic children,
India : No authentic figures, expected 40 lakh +
AUTISM IS NOTHING BUT MERCURY POISONING.
THERE IS MERCURY IN VACCINES!!
---------------------------------
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