Monsanto Genetically Modified Foods to End Life on Earth

“The world today produces more food per inhabitant than ever before. Enough food is available to provide 4.3 pounds for every person everyday: 2.5 pounds of grain, beans and nuts, about a pound of meat, milk and eggs and another of fruits and vegetables. The real causes of hunger are poverty, inequality and lack of access to food and land."

I highly suggest everybody interested in this read this article: Ten Reasons Why Biotechonlogy will Not Ensure Food Security, Protect the Environment, and Reduce Poverty in the Developing World


It is a great article that crushes almost any possible argument for GM crops.

reply to post by Dulcimer


Dulcimer! I am shocked at your lead on this one...

Can you provide one shred of evidence "FOR" GMO'S which could possibly validate your stance? Are you serious?

Even people who work for the companies which produce the GMO's call them Terminator seeds...

A simple Google search will give you mountains of information as to why these GMOs need to be stopped. Do you think that they placed even a single GMO seed in any of the food vaults? Why on earth do you suppose they needed to place real natural organic seeds in vaults in the first place? Think about it for just a minute, I am sure you can put 2+2 together and get 4 right?

Sheeze.

We had seed vaults because there are numerous plants that become "extinct" every year just like animals.

Do they contain GM seeds... I dunno, I guess they could because they are all separated and storied individually.

As for terminator seeds:

The decision by the biotechnology giant Monsanto never to commercialise so-called "terminator gene" technology for crops has been called "a major U-turn that will send shock waves across the industry", by the charity Christian Aid.

news.bbc.co.uk...

Are there other plans in the works? Yep, but they are different.

Any farmer in the world could produce terminator technology. I could grow wheat, take the raw seed and microwave it and sell it to you. It would make tasty products, but you couldn't grow it if I did it right.

The germination is nearly destroyed.

This already occurs with hemp seeds.

The future of terminator technology will be in applying some sort of technology to the seed in which you will require other Monsanto products to produce a quality crop.

Its the old razor, razor blade formula. It works every time.

Originally posted by skeptic_al

Originally posted by seenitall
Theoretically, GM crops shouldn't be any different than the normal crops except that they contain genetic code for proteins from different organisms. Something like an unexpected allergic reaction may happen once in a while etc.

It is possible that some crops are causing other issues, but I doubt it.

You also have to weigh this all up against the fact that without GM crops, we wouldn't have nearly as much food on the planet. However, this is not to say that I agree with Monsanto's methods, especially concerning fisheries, where gene flow between escaped GM fish and wild populations could cause ecosystem collapses.

*** I need to see the source studies before I can comment on the sterility, disease etc issues.


[edit on 16-11-2008 by seenitall]

[edit on 16-11-2008 by seenitall]

making more food is not the answer, it just allows the allows the
existing problem tp proliferate even more.

There are simply too many people on the planet, perhaps providing
free condoms for Africa, China, Japan and America would be a better
solution. And possibly some form of baby license prior to copulation is
needed.

Sorry. But condoms for Japan. The population of Japan is shrinking because no one wants to have children. Its one of many countries in this world whos population is going down. American population is up only because of the immigration. The regular Americans are having less children. India, China ,Africa and other nations where there is no education is on the rise. Also, did you know that some countries are saving the native seeds of plants and trees for future generations??? Because they know that someday we will need it when GM foods are no longer produced.

So let me get this straight. You people oppose crops that have higher yields, use much much less herbicide/pesticide, require less energy to produce all because you have a hunch that this is bad? And you wonder why places like mexico and africa are starving.

I got news for you folks, you have been eating GM foods for the last 10 years. How come we haven't all died?

The only thing causing starvation is government. There is plenty of food and we could produce much much much more.

I say save some money and everyone buy there own seeds and start farming fruits or vegetables on there own. It would be alot of work right but worth it in the end?

Green houses anyone?

Originally posted by Cool Hand Luke
So let me get this straight. You people oppose crops that have higher yields, use much much less herbicide/pesticide, require less energy to produce all because you have a hunch that this is bad? And you wonder why places like mexico and africa are starving.

I got news for you folks, you have been eating GM foods for the last 10 years. How come we haven't all died?

Luke,

Mexico has the 13th largest GDP in the world.

reply to post by Cool Hand Luke


Several studys have shown a tendency that we, as a species, are becoming less fertile though.

Not saying this is caused by this, but coupled with the sterile nature of said seeds, would it not be prudent to at least investigate the link ?

Originally posted by Cool Hand Luke
So let me get this straight. You people oppose crops that have higher yields, use much much less herbicide/pesticide, require less energy to produce all because you have a hunch that this is bad? And you wonder why places like mexico and africa are starving.

I got news for you folks, you have been eating GM foods for the last 10 years. How come we haven't all died?

What do you mean the plants use less pesticides? The plants produce the pesticides themselves. All this eliminates is the dangers of workers having to spray the plants and the the money spent having to constantly buy pesticides/herbicides.

Also, you are mistaken. GM crops do not always produce higher yields of crops than non-GM crops. For example, a study of hundreds of soybeans fields showed that non-GM crops actually had a general trend of having higher yields than the GM crops.

Yes, it may require less energy to use certain GM crops, but once those plants exhaust your soil because you mono-cropped the # out of it, what available energy is left then? None, because you created arid, worthless land.

Of course we've been eating GM crops for the past 10 years. Does that make it OK? NO! There's much too much evidence against GM crops to call it a "hunch" that it is bad. Do a little research before you decide to make a post like that again.

Please read through the article I posted above before you respond to this post.

Originally posted by Dulcimer
The only thing causing starvation is government. There is plenty of food and we could produce much much much more.

I agree. In mexico, their government has blocked all these high tech crops for no apparent reason. The consequence of this is Mexican farmers having to use much much more dangerous pesticides/herbicides, and use much much more water then they actually have to. They are using substances that have long been banned by every industrialized nation in the world. That goes for africa too.

Also these crops can be engineered to be drought proof and save alot of water, fuel etc etc. Now why don't these governments allow these crops into their countries? Well if the people can support themselves, then they have no power.

Originally posted by PdT11

Luke,

Mexico has the 13th largest GDP in the world.

Tell that to the peasants in that country. Another thing if the mexican government would allow their farmers to grow these crops, they could support themselves rather than having to import most of their crops from america. They could actually be competitive and start exporting their surplus crops. If just mexico would be allowed to use these crops, the price of food would go way down, especially in north america.

Originally posted by Phatcat

Several studys have shown a tendency that we, as a species, are becoming less fertile though.

Not saying this is caused by this, but coupled with the sterile nature of said seeds, would it not be prudent to at least investigate the link ?

I really don't think our species is getting more sterile. It's more people realizing that they cannot sustain or want any more mouths to feed.

I come from a family of 8 kids. I grew up in a very small house where we could not afford much of anything because my parents grew up in Mexico and had nothing to show for it when they left. Now let's say that my parents only had 3 children. Their lives would have been drastically different. My parents could've probably afforded to pay for new clothes, paid for their sports endeavours and at least some of their college.

The point of the story is that more people are realizing to give their children a better and easier life, they need to have less of them.

Originally posted by shortanconfused

What do you mean the plants use less pesticides? The plants produce the pesticides themselves. All this eliminates is the dangers of workers having to spray the plants and the the money spent having to constantly buy pesticides/herbicides.

I believe you answered your own question.

Also, you are mistaken. GM crops do not always produce higher yields of crops than non-GM crops. For example, a study of hundreds of soybeans fields showed that non-GM crops actually had a general trend of having higher yields than the GM crops.

I am going to assume you are using the numbers from the link you posted earlier. Those figures are from 1999. And even in the article they admit that many crops had higher crop yields. From the article:

In the six crop/region combinations where Bt crops or herbicide tolerant crops (HTCs) fared better, they exhibited increased yields between 5-30%

Now I understand what the article is saying but those figures are from 9 years ago. I would be very curious if those numbers have not improved significantly as the demand to buy GM seeds has increased a great deal.

Yes, it may require less energy to use certain GM crops, but once those plants exhaust your soil because you mono-cropped the # out of it, what available energy is left then? None, because you created arid, worthless land.

Is that not the farmer's choice how to use their land? If they decide to overuse their soil, how does that in anyway lay responisbility on a company like monsanto? Plus was that not always a danger even before GM crops were started?

Of course we've been eating GM crops for the past 10 years. Does that make it OK? NO! There's much too much evidence against GM crops to call it a "hunch" that it is bad. Do a little research before you decide to make a post like that again.

People keep getting healthier and healthier and living longer and longer. That fact has not stopped for the last ten years. In fact it has increased.

Please read through the article I posted above before you respond to this post.

I did and certainly does not "crush" GM crops. It also uses figures from many years ago. Techonology keeps improving. I would be like if used statistics from a cellphone from ten years ago against an iPhone. Apples and Oranges.

Also if you notice in the article it uses alot "it may do this" or "may be related to this" when it has no reason to make these assumptions. Well my gas tank "may" explode, should I stop driving my car?

reply to post by Cool Hand Luke


gah! i had a long, thought out reply to this but accidentally opened a link and it opened a new page, losing everything i typed. i'll have to get back to you later when i'm not extremely busy studying for finals. Well thought out response though. karma's a bitch, eh?

Basically, IMO, pesticides/herbicides don't belong in our crops, especially ones that are supposed to be "fit for human consumption". There are natural ways to counteract this, that actually increase the fertility of the soil and health of the crops. Pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals, etc all build up in your system to create toxic states, allowing for the perfect environment for cancers and other diseases to form.

Yes, it's an old article, but the message is still just as relevant. We do not know the effects of GM crops on our immune systems in the long term yet we are already consuming them. there has barely been any independent research done on the effects of GM crops.

[edit on 16-11-2008 by shortanconfused]

reply to post by Cool Hand Luke


Perhaps it's the bigger picture that you can't see
If all Crops were GM, then bugs and animals and won't eat it unless
nothing else left. That might be good right?, if the bugs die due to lack of
food then that will effect the entire food chain. Alternativly the Bugs turn
into Super Bugs being resiliant to anything we throw at them.

Putting all life at risk because of few bean counters and lawyers deciding
what lives and whats dies has to be a really bad idea.

Nature has been doing this for donkeys years by cross pollination of near
similar plants. But mad scientists come along and start inserting parts of
salmon DNA into things like corn. It's not that different from science
screwing around with better ways to kill bugs. Kitchen Anti-Bacteria that
kills 99.99% of bugs, the .01% that survives starts breeding like rabbits
and becomes a super bug. Nature always finds a way to survive in any
given environment.

Then there's the other thing scientists like to do, Introduce a new species
into a environment to kill a known pest. The cure then becomes a bigger
pest than the pest you were trying to get rid off. Unlike a computer,
Nature does not have an Undo button.


The big difference is Nature makes minor changes taking hundreds of
thousands of years, but these mad scientists want to achive the same
results within a few years.

Originally posted by Dulcimer

And they do not force anyone to plant anything. You are under contract with the purchase of their seeds though.

when their crop gets contaminated, they're on their own, when they fall for glossy marketing they enter a captive contract from which death is often the only escape.

the plot is much thicker than just food slavery, they are working together with banks to grab the land, then expel people, so they have to play by money rules, ie have to purchase rather than grow food, which is quite a difference.

the plans have been set in motion long ago, seed traders, seed growers all are bing marginalized or bought up, concentration of agriculture including vertical integration can only mean one thing, monopolisation, which i might add, becomes indistinguishable from a planned economy on the long run.

unit size, inertia, efficiency-for profit rather than output and the like are the natural consequence. most concepts about increased yield of GM crops are simply wrong as well, which, f-ex. this post clearly illustrates.

herbicide resistance certainly looks attractive, the question is what will happen once weeds have adapted. Argentina has had this problem years ago, yet nothing ever makes mainstream news. the snakeoil industry apparently has a huge clout.

Originally posted by Dulcimer
There is so much B.S. in this thread its hard to take it all in. The members of ATS like to scream disinfo all the time, but funny how it doesn't come up when they do not realize they are doing it themselves.

People need to get the facts straight.

If you want to bash the health effects of GM foods you need to produce the documents confirming years of research.

In my opinion the entire effort has not been around long enough to produce concrete scientific fact to say that either A) GM is ok or B) GM is killing us all.


Im surprised nobody has brought up "terminator technology" into this discussion yet.

If Monsanto controlled the food supply they would have a better stock price instead of nearing a 52 week low and going into the toilet.

Do you still believe in stock charts? For me they are just rubbish. they demonstrate nothing.

Nature must be left alone, it worked perfectly for billions of years and if we wouldn't messed up everything it would continue to work perfectly for other billions of years. Nature is a wonderful mechanism and I believe we don't have a clue of what may happen when you try to alter the laws of nature.

Monsanto and al the others are to be considered no less than terrorists, OGM are a crime against humanity amd should be banned forever. Unfortunately a lot of people don't even know what is a OGM, greed do the rest so the only way to stop this would be a collective uprising against it but, as for many other things in this corrupted world, sheeples are good to their masters.

In Europe we are still resisting OGM but our beloved authorities are pushing more and more to become like the US, a "poisoned country" with "poisoned" people (I have nothing against the US people of course).

Don't mess with nature!!

Just wanted to give you all this link before this thread dies.

Excellent source for information...

organicconsumers.org...

Save it to your favorites, get on the mailing list and stay informed!

It's not about ending life on Earth...that would seriously undermine profits!

It's about owning the patent for every living thing on Earth. If you modify the DNA of a natural organism you can claim you technically invented that organism, so any farmer wishing to use your seeds will have to cover the costs inherent with the patent. This will also apply to cattle, poultry etc. in the name of GMing them to be resistant to disease etc, when in fact it's nothing more than a ruse to 'own' every lifeform on the planet.

Research Codex Alimentarius. By 2009 every cow in the world will have to be fed with Monsanto's growth hormones (you really think they're gonna help 'em grow?!) so our entire milk supply will be contaminated.

Another 'benefit' of GMing is that you can remove any nutritional value form any foodstuff you wish, so mass-starvation becomes possible without the population rioting over lack of food. By the time they realise they are being slowly starved, most people will be too under-nourished to be able to do anything about it. That's the plan anyway, but it'll never happen, because we know what they are attempting right?