Yesterday I blogged about the incredible recalcitrance of the French and Russians, daring to maintain there are dangers in GMO food and, in Russia's case, actually banning it from the country. (Oh, I can hear it now on See BS News, on CNN(See No News), or Faux News: "there goes that neo-Stalinist crypto-communist authoritarian hardliner Putin again, standing in the way of democracy and capitalism"). It's just another case of the French and Russians being difficult as usual, right?
Wrong.
Consider this one (and again, a whole bunch of you emailed me this one: many thanks!):
Shock findings in new GMO study: Rats fed lifetime of GM corn grow horrifying tumors, 70% of females die early Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/037249_GMO_study_cancer_tumors_organ_damage.html#ixzz27iE7oKMK
Note that the study was done by the University of Caen (apparently they're doing more there in that French city than watching film festivals... gotta watch those French!). Let me draw your attention to that paragraph again:
"Our analysis clearly reveals for the 3 GMOs new side effects linked with GM maize consumption, which were sex- and often dose-dependent. Effects were mostly associated with the kidney and liver, the dietary detoxifying organs...
(Gee, is that all? "No problem there! Our GMO food is perfectly safe! No labeling required!" Duponzanto.)
...although different between the 3 GMOs. Other effects were also noticed in the heart, adrenal glands, spleen and haematopoietic system.
("No problem here folks! Nothing to see. Move along! Here...have some vegetables." Duponzanto)
...We conclude that these data highlight signs of hepatorenal toxicity, possibly due to the new pesticides specific to each GM corn. In addition, unintended direct or indirect metabolic consequences of the genetic modification cannot be excluded."(Emphasis in the original)
Now, lest you think that the American Way of Mercantilism is going to sit back idly and let France, Russia, or for that matter, the Republic of California, openly challenge their corporate bottom line in the name of humanity and good health, think again:
That's right folks, nearly $20 million just to prevent the citizens of California from knowing what is in their food. When pesky things like French scientists or neo-Stalinist crypto-communist authoritarian Russians like Putin get in the way(Sorry Vlad, but that's how our media is portraying you), simply stifle any open discussion of the subject, and, if that fails, well, then it's on to round two of the American Way of Mercantilism: buying enough corrupt Dummycrooks and Republithugs to take any teeth out of any law, to allow "ambiguous" labeling, and if that doesn't work, well, then just altogether do not enforce the law and lie through your teeth.
Seriously folks: the GMO food issue is, in my opinion, a microcosm of what has gone wrong in this country: Mercantalism - another word for fascism - has become the model. Fake securities-driven prosperity for the few over real productivity; corporate private interest trumping the public good, Federal agencies that are little more than rubber stamps for policy decisions made in secret between bought-and-paid-for politicians and corporate executives, "science" studies whose results are predetermined by the foundations and corporations running the study (think "global warming here" and who has been behind that meme. The same pattern obtained in the early history of GMOs, and once again, you can thank the Bushes for that. Don't believe me? )
There are some countries rational enough to understand the long-term human implications of GMOs. France, Germany, Hungary, India, and now, Russia, have all issued bans on various GMO crops. They deserve, not our villification, but our encouragement. And the agribusiness companies with their strong arm tactics (see Dr. de Hart's and my forthcoming book Transhumanism) to intimidate the farmer, deserve our scorn not only for their tactics, but for their product. They must be made to be aware, that if they are indeed granted the status of "persons" in law, that they must be responsible members of human society, that shoddy science, bought-and-paid for politicians, and corrupted agencies of government, are not the way.
Of course, these are the same oligarchs that ultimately think there are too many people to begin with, and perhaps that is ultimately why they are promoting "food" that kills virility and fertility.
See you on the flip side.
As in every other matter, Australia looks to the US and follows blindly. GMO food is a big issue amongst the more aware here. Unfortunately we still have “Lucky Country” syndrome (it amazes me, for instance that so many believe we will not be affected by the global economic mess) and so show no interest in the GMO issue. A cousin who is a wheat farmer has no problem with growing GMO tainted wheat.
However a small but growing minority ARE very aware and doing their best to spread the word. A real problem they have, which I discussed at a local market, is that they cannot guarantee their crops are GMO free as the wind from neighbouring farms can taint theirs. But those who care press on.
The plight of Indian farmers distressed me recently. Many are subsistence farmers who have kept back seed each year for next season’s crops. They are finding that the seeds no longer regenerate, They can’t afford to buy Monsanto’s seeds and go broke. The farmers are suiciding as that’s the only way his family becomes debt free.
And I read years ago that Iraq was storing a huge vault of seeds, many ancient. As they are now forced to buy GMO seeds I expect that vault has been destroyed.
Then there’s the fresh milk story which has been spoken of here. I was a dairy farmer for many years and our four children grew up strong and healthy with fresh milk straight from the vat.
It definitely seems that this is just a slow but sure method of culling the herd through sickness, and especially perhaps infertility.
“Our” government (both sides) will never address this issue of course. In fact the hot topic at the moment, while our world is falling apart, is gay marriage… And people get caught up in it.
Along with elimination GMOs we need to recognize and support the wisdom of both micro and macro biodiversity.
90% of our bodies are not per se human. That is, only tenth of a human ecosystem stems from our own DNA. The other 90 trillion are microbials and viruses living in symbiosis.
What do we and the fruit fly have in common? We both have roughly the same number (30,000) of genes. In contrast Arabidopsis, a small plant in the cabbage family has 128,000 genes.
Naturally occurring microbials played a major role in the chemical breakdown of PBBs and PCBs emanating from the Love Canal hazardous waste site.
If you want to fast track an appreciation of how incredibly diverse our planet is then watch this authoritative interview. Sign on for the 10 day free trial but do it when you have time to watch many more of the other great offerings.
http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/compton-rom-micronutrients-heal#play/28184
This got me thinking… Perhaps John Hagee is a chimerical creature, created in Monsanto laboratories. It would be easy to do. You simply abduct a babbling idiot, give him a shot of donkey DNA, and feed him a steady diet of Monsanto High Fructose Corn Syrup, Aspartame, Sodium Fluoride, pesticides, genetically modified goat’s milk, McDonalds GMO cheese burgers, and then you hypnotize him with a television set, and let him play video games, until he is a brain dead vegetable. This poor miserable thing will now be nothing but a sorry lump of flesh with no will whatsoever, but the real trick is this. You hire Arabs to sexually abuse him, stage a phony rescue by the Mossad, who goosesteps onto the scene and rescues the poor thing. Abracadabra, you have “Homo Goyimus Televangelist.” Eternally grateful to his rescuers, this creature will forever goosestep for you, and if released into the American public, it will serve you well as a raving Jackass, who will compulsively scream and shout that he would like to bomb the whole Middle East for Israel.
ROF….this made my day Tor!! I’m still laughing!!!
Dr. Farrell, this is somewhat off topic, but of supreme interest, I would assume, to both you and the general membership:
https://mail.google.com/mail/ca/?ui=2&view=btop&ver=lsvjwajrtlp4&search=inbox&th=13a1e4ff22972b5d&cvid=1
A series of Russian videos on the failed postwar US Antarctic expedition, the Ahnenherbe, Nazi saucers, etc.
George Ure (Urban Survival.com) featured it today on his blog.
Couldn’t get the link to work (an iPad problem?) but I’ll go to the site. Sounds fascinating.
Love it! Thanks for the laugh!
I’m in CA to finish a book, so I’ve been able to watch the Prop 37 arguments from a local perpective. CA alone is the 9th largest economy in the world.
Polls have the measure passing at close to 66%. It’s the one issue Mendocino aging hippies, Berkeley New Agers, SF LGBT advocates, Silicon Valley techies, Inland Empire conservative Christians, and Orange County NRA activists all agree on. Sure, “organic” tends to be seen as an educated liberal and leftist thing, but its older form as “health food” was common among 50s right-wingers.
No one, except the most inflexible conformists and shills for the corporate econopaths buys the arguments against. Which is the whole issue– who wants to buy something with G*d knows what in it?
The media ads trying to convince people Frankenfoods are a modern miracle have become desperate. They’ve pretty much given up trying to appeal to NorCal cliches. Except for the libertarian techies, by arguing that there are no confirmed scientific studies showing GMO harm. True in a way, since the megacorps will not not fund such research. And long-term data is just now being collected by independent scientists.
They figure the very busy family suburbanites might bite, so out come the sentimental appeals. The family farm. In CA, ag is big biz., and those “families” are corporate. Or: it’s no different than breeding nice little kitties or puppies. Except no pet I’ve ever known had jellyfish genes. Or: it’s about good old American (cue flag) consumer choice. Well, duh. Or: let the marketplace decide. The usual sleight of hand turning an abstract idea into a thing able to make decisions, but even that rests on certain assumptions. Among them that a buyer has all pertinent info.
If that doesn’t work, how about getting the primates to howl at bad guys? So raise (cue ominous music) the image of “special interests.” As if GMOrganizations weren’t. Or, most scary (just in time for Halloween) TRIAL LAWYERS! Who doesn’t hate them? As long as you aren’t the one injured and you believe harmful stuff is always an illusion.
The show has been entertaining; rivals Hollywood. Reminds me of those old horror movies where Dracula hisses as he’s exposed to sunlight, desperately racing to cover up with his native dirt.
Keep us posted… this is a key ballot issue.
I’ll tell you who might well be against it–the young well-paid drones in virtually any urban environment, many of whom hold multiple (worthless) degrees, and are totally keyed into statism, either because they are paid via state/.gov jobs, or because they sense they might gain some power by being allied with same. Or even those who are older and no longer gave a hoot: I was appalled to read on Lew Rockwell this morning a post by one of their regular contributors, a Canadian who lives in Mexico, who was celebrating the fact that he had finally, in his forties, begun smoking tobacco, without a worry in the world, because whatever might happen was years away (like 20-30), and he never planned on getting that old anyway! Well, I am close to 60, quit smoking at 32 (after 13 years), and am still fearful, as I am of any GMO product I might have ingested, or may ingest in the future. I keep insisting to my kids that either they grow their own food, or buy organic, and cook (which I always did–they always had home-cooked meals from scratch)…Some seem to understand, but not all.
Incidentally, I do not fault most Asians for smoking–they appear to be far more immune to the nasty effects of tobacco, and many I met in Tokyo
when I lived there a few years ago, including doctors and other highly educated people, appeared to smoke with no health issues. Prior to the nastiness at Fukushima, Japan had the world’s record in longevity. However, despite the local culture of drinking to excess for work promotion purposes,
many utterly fail, as about 40% lack much of the enzyme to counteract alcohol in the system; I met one young woman who was utterly incapacitated the first time she ate an alcohol-infused bonbon. While she understood her limitations, many do not.
Politics remains the sole force to prevent economic and social injustice.
The iron curtain fell & politics no longer dominated & thus no longer was of service to citizens. Privatization does not lead to wealth creation but to asset stripping.
The way every totalitarian regime takes control of the population is with food; a means of eradicating portions of the population –
HUGE Portions.
The media, of course wouldn’t know how to tell the complete and accurate truth EVEN if their ratings actually depended on it.
The law is an instrument of control NOT an instrument of protection.
Ultimately, the fight againt this Frankenstein known as “The Corporate Cartel (BIS & Co./Inc.), can only be done by The Peoples of Earth, in A Fight To The Death.
Addressing the issue on the science side of the coin; it is now appreciated that humans did not evolve as a single species, but rather that humans and the microbiomes associated with us have co-evolved as a “super-oranism”., and that our evolution as a species and the evolution of our associaterdv microbiomes have always been intertwined. But remember, Earth has always been, and always will be, a microbe-dominated world. To get by, you’d better keep a line of communication open with the ones in charge.
If you’re an aspiring multicellular organism lumbering into this world, do you reinvent the wheel(yourself/transhuman/genectic-engineering), or do you defer to the masters with billions of years experince.
It’s not that symbiosis occasionally occurs in nature; it’s that everywhere, at every level of complexity, symbiosis makes what we call nature possible.
An ecosystem of microbes can evolve and shift more quickly than our own compartive stiff genome – even with the added tools we now possess.
You’re right.! In humans, skin and gut bacteria are our allies.
I studied soil ecology– get this: virtually all plants, especially trees, grow in obligate symbiosis with fungal hyphae (tiny threads) on their roots. The system is called the mycorrhizosphere, and thousands of other soil critters are associated.
It makes cooperation by far the dominant mode of existence on this planet.
The elite propagandist took Darwin & twisted the message into survival of the fittest.
It is survival of the fittest, only in the sense of fitting into the web of life. Those who fit And support the web in a myriad of ways are the fittest. Those who destroy life are in line for extinction.
The current system is destroying life.
I’m not kidding when I say it is a fight to the death. Not only ours, but other life forms.
The microbes will continue on…
…the question is will mankind.
ATTENTION ROBERT ET AL
For years I was an arm chaired farmer by reading the agricultural-political periodical ACRES USA but in the busyness of life admittedly I let the subscription lapse.
Earlier today I read one financial gurus observation that a cohort of his had remarked that the world is becoming more libertarian by some 10,000 converts a day. This he lamented sounds impressive until one realizes that even in a zero sum population world it will take approximately 2000 years before the conversion is complete.
Recently I pitched my desire on this forum to start going public with my own insights in a local community center setting thereby creating a groundswell of awareness and I hope enthusiasm that might proliferate into a populist movement. The road is long and there seems to be so little time left to get the message out considering the clock, much like during the peak of the cold war, reads just a few minutes to midnight.
I agree that politics, although not necessarily running for office, is the best means by which to affect real change. So the eternal question is how does one knock people out of their complacency in short order? Or are we doomed to, in all our wisdom, singing here for each other while remaining voices in the wilderness?
I could go on but we all have a pretty good idea already of what changes need to happen in Washington before we might curtail the way business there is conducted. I’m open to any and all ideas that might help me optimize my efforts.
Hi Dr. Farrell,
please forgive me for profusely being highly off-topic but I’ve tried so many times to order “Yaweh” on lulu but absolutely nothing works on lulu’s website if one lives in/wants to buy from Germany-
please help- is there another way around this? (Amazon isn’t the answer- and I don’t ‘do’ Kindel- yet)-
many thanks in advance-
Larry