Michelle Obama's organic garden angers US farming companies

reply to post by Charis


Alright, well said. Thanks!

Michelle will have to be quiet about this from now on - if she keeps on mentioning organic gardening, they will have a serious problem. Barack could loose office, he could get suddenly ill or something...you don't mess with Monsanto.

Originally posted by Charis
Breeding plants (hybridization) isn't the same as genetically engineering plants. With hybridization, the plants have to be closely related so that they can cross-pollinate. As a home gardener you can do this with your own plants, and mother nature does it too. Genetic engineering involves inserting DNA from completely unrelated species, sometimes even different kingdoms (animal DNA into plants, for instance), something mother nature never intended.

Exactly! The frightening thing is that none of these GM products have been tested to determine if there isn't any kind of long term unnatural negative affect upon us all and our future descendants. And, then you have to worry too whether these GM crops can cross pollinate with natures version of the same, thus possibly creating environmental disasters that nobody can predict. What an irresponsible bunch these scientists are.

[edit on 24-4-2009 by Divinorumus]

Originally posted by nixie_nox
What a silly statement.

No, nixie_nox, it's a perfectly valid statement.
And it's dead on accurate as well.
She didn't have a veggie garden before, let alone an organic one.
Now there is a highly visible one at the White House.
It makes the far left happy. It's all politics.

Who cares?

She claims it's HER garden. If she's not working it then it's not hers. It's just a political commercial.

reply to post by FlyersFan


Wow, you and I may be at odds on politics, but hamsters and chocolate?...Now there're two things we have in common. In fact, just was told a cute story yesterday about a hamster observed going hand over hand at the cage top in desperation to reach the latch for a "jail break". His humans tied the latch down, but he gnawed right through the string for a repeat escape! Love your avatar, too, BTW. But, I digress...

Symbolic events at the White House can be powerful statements. When Jimmy Carter installed the solar panels, it was a sign that Americans wouldn't take it anymore from the Saudis, a symbolic thumbing of the nose...we would be independent! Then Mr. Reagan tore down those panels, in another highly symbolic gesture, that said to the nation and oil industry, Americans would not go off the oil standard but continue to enslave ourselves to its sticky, gooey mess.

The Agricultural Business men can go and shove their whining up their @#$. That is just my opinion. I also think its all about money with them. They are just rich, greedy, bas@#$%s. The First lady should and do what she wants. This is america, if the business men don't like it, oh well

reply to post by FlyersFan


I didn't have a garden till 2 years ago.
so does that mean I am just making a political statement?

Maybe she read a letter of a supporter and decided to look into the idea?

Are people supposed to be stuck on the exact same ideas infinetly?

Or is it because as the Mrs. President, she has found out information she wasn't formerly privy too?.

Also, MO went as far as to have all the soils professionaly tested to see what the chemical conditions were before she even moved into the white house. That is a lot of effort to be put into a political ploy.If the area had been too contaminated, she would not of proceeded to use the land. But apparently they stopped using chemicals over 6 years ago I think.

If she didn't have it at her last residence, it may have not been a clean setup and they decided to buy.


And you have no idea if she is working the garden or not. Your just speculating.


[edit on 24-4-2009 by nixie_nox]

I didnt vote for Barrak Obama. I dont approve of alot that his administration is proposing.

But Barrak Obama took the oath of office..not Michelle. If Michelle wants to put in a garden of any type...more power to her.
Also I did not reallize that it had been that long since anyone had put in any type of garden at the White House. Very interesting.

Nonetheless...You go Michelle!! Its your garden..not anyone elses garden. If you want organic...you go Girl!! IF you want another type of garden..you go on that too. It is your garden...not anyone elses!!

As a matter of fact..if the President of the United States wants to put in an organic garden or any other type..more power to them too. It's nobodys buisness.

Good Lord..I hate this kind of micro politics to the level of interfering in private affairs. This type of nonsense is getting down right stupid. It doesnt even make good nonsense.

Thanks,
Orangetom

Wow never thought Id see the day that I agreed on something which surrounded the winner of this Presidential Idol's wife. Good decision by her and lets hope that Americans do actually copy this behave after her. As said, she should stick to her guns and not let the big lobby of people who put poison on our vegetables walk over her.

This is freakin' retarded. It's a GARDEN! She can grow whatever she wants! Jesus CHRIST! What are they going to start looking down on the type of makeup she wears, or how the soles of her shoes are made from some rare wood that is frowned upon in some nation over-seas. People gripe about the stupidest stuff lately. I'm not talking about the OP, I'm talking about MSM and it's deciphiles online. It's all about drama. It's why my girlfriend is addicted to reality T.V., it's trash, but hey, it's something to talk about and get upset about when there's nothing to bash a First Lady about. Ridiculous.

Of course it's a 'statement'. You can't be First Lady and do much of anything that it wouldn't be.

And corporate farming understood her message. That's why they rushed to send her a letter warning her. Because what she did was a slap in their faces.

Good for her! She's just saying what we've all said, again and again on these forums. I loath the whole corporate farming industry. Of all the devils in the world, those that plot to control the very food we eat are among the worst.

There's also more subtle nuances to the message, drawing parallels to the 'victory gardens'.

Why some are casting a light to demonize her for this, I don't understand. The point isn't to portray her as some 'knees in the soil' home farmer, and even if it's in part, a photo op, it's still about the message and the symbolism of the act.

100's of millions of people have gardens throughout the world. They all should get these "warnings". Having a garden is perfectly legal for EVERYONE. You can grow whatever you want, and eat whatever you want. If you don't have one, I say grow one for the sake of shutting the "farming community" up. This society pisses me off.

I'm afraid that there's a real danger of our losing the right to these home gardens.

Did you know that the Victory Gardens that were grown in WWII took a significant burden off of the food industry at the time and supplied nearly 40% of the food to the country? Could you imagine if that happened again? It would be a threat that the food industry couldn't ignore.

I read that there's booming sales in garden equipment and supplies this year, as much as 25%.

America, the land of the free. Except when corporations are involved...

can anyone confirm or deny the genetic splicing of tomato with scorpion, as a form of pesticide?

This is a good stance to take by the first lady. An organic garden is a great idea.

However, are there hidden implications, such as a hint to prepare for worsening economic conditions in the future by encouraging home owners with enough land to grow their own food? Not sure.

But I have experienced first hand the annoying, over-reaching power of the farming industry. We live in the midwest and for that last two years a certain local farmer has been reporting to soil and water conservation services that thistle is growing on our property. Apparently thistle is a danger to crops...even though the local farmers don't mine crop-dusting, via planes, large amounts of herbicides that kill these weeds anyway, some of the herbicide falling right on our property too. Nevertheless, we have to destroy this naturally growing thistle, by whatever means possible...OR ELSE face imprisonment and/or a $700 a year added tax charge to our property by county authorities.
So, we have a few local horse owners cut down the thistle and other grasses for feed hay for their horses.

But this was hard to do at first...finding someone willing to mow down about 9 acres for free...we were quite panicked before this (who wants $700 a year added to their taxes, or worse?), and are low income, but the county didn't care, the farmers have more rights than we do, since we're just lowly home owners...

Frustrating to say the least...

reply to post by truskeptic

Thank you for the information. I think we're going to try it.

reply to post by SpadeofAces

100's of millions of people have gardens throughout the world. They all should get these "warnings". Having a garden is perfectly legal for EVERYONE. You can grow whatever you want, and eat whatever you want. If you don't have one, I say grow one for the sake of shutting the "farming community" up. This society pisses me off.

Yes, it is legal now. However, Congress has introduced a bill, HR 875, to make organic gardens illegal:

www.opednews.com...

HR 875, the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009, is another affront to organic farming and is backed by chemical and genetic engineering giant MONSANTO. It must be stopped in its tracks or organic farming will be outlawed: Allen L Roland

US House and Senate are about (in a week and a half) to vote on bill that will OUTLAW ORGANIC FARMING ( HR 875, and S 425). There is an enormous rush to get this into law within the next few weeks before people realize what is happening.

Main backer and lobbyist is (guess who) Monsanto ~ chemical and genetic engineering giant corporation. This bill will require organic farms to use specific fertilizers and poisonous insect sprays dictated by the newly formed agency to "make sure there is no danger to the public food supply". This will include backyard gardens that grow food only for a family and not for sales ~ which would, of course, include Michelle Obama's White House garden.

Under the provisions of this law you could NOT legally:

1. Buy heirloom seed and then harvest and re-use your own seed.
2. You could ONLY legally purchase governmentally distributed seeds (aka Monsanto’s zombie seeds)
3. You could NOT raise your own seed and sell, or even GIVE them to a neighbor.
4. You would no longer be able to take your kids down to the local “pick-your-own” blueberry or strawberry farms, or buy from the roadside backyard grower of garden vegetables, or even grow your own vegetable plants, fruit trees, or nut trees, for your own consumption!

That is why it is important that Mrs. Obama has an organic garden.

alot of farmers are brainwashed by the use of chemical fertilizer because it's simpler and easier to use than organic methods but it's based on how much knowledge you know about gardening. most of farmers say about 75-80% of don't know nothing about organic and are too lazy and ignorant to read and learn about gardening with organic methods so they go with the simpler route, the chemical route. i used to garden with chemical then switch to organic and i was suprised how well plants grow with organic and was able to get 5-7 times more yield than chemical! beneficial microbes and fungi in soil helps to break down the nutrients and feed the plant and also the protects roots and boost root amd plant growth with hormones and enzymes produced by the beneficials so no need to spend extra cash on growth enhancers. it's funny when people prefer chemical over organic without even knowing that plants and beneficials had evolved their relationship in over millions of years so they are made for to take care of each other.

If Michelle is doing this out of an honest need for organic gardening, why is her and her husband's party the only sponsors of HR 875?

From Govtrack.us:

Sponsor
Rep. Rosa DeLauro [D-CT]hide cosponsors

Cosponsors [as of 2009-04-18]
Rep. Gwen Moore [D-WI]
Rep. Bob Filner [D-CA]
Rep. Timothy Bishop [D-NY]
Rep. Jerrold Nadler [D-NY]
Rep. Mark Schauer [D-MI]
Rep. James McGovern [D-MA]
Rep. John Tierney [D-MA]
Rep. Raul Grijalva [D-AZ]
Rep. Eliot Engel [D-NY]
Rep. Nita Lowey [D-NY]
Del. Eleanor Norton [D-DC]
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz [D-FL]
Rep. Robert Wexler [D-FL]
Rep. Sam Farr [D-CA]
Rep. Kathy Castor [D-FL]
Rep. Anna Eshoo [D-CA]
Rep. Diana DeGette [D-CO]
Rep. Linda Sánchez [D-CA]
Rep. James McDermott [D-WA]
Rep. Sanford Bishop [D-GA]
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords [D-AZ]
Rep. Timothy Ryan [D-OH]
Rep. Fortney Stark [D-CA]
Rep. André Carson [D-IN]
Rep. Joe Courtney [D-CT]
Rep. Betty McCollum [D-MN]
Rep. Barbara Lee [D-CA]
Rep. Chellie Pingree [D-ME]
Rep. Barney Frank [D-MA]
Rep. John Hall [D-NY]
Rep. Maurice Hinchey [D-NY]
Rep. Louise Slaughter [D-NY]
Rep. Janice Schakowsky [D-IL]
Rep. Marcy Kaptur [D-OH]
Rep. Mazie Hirono [D-HI]
Rep. Betty Sutton [D-OH]
Rep. Eddie Johnson [D-TX]
Rep. Shelley Berkley [D-NV]
Rep. Christopher Murphy [D-CT]
Rep. Peter DeFazio [D-OR]
Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger [D-MD]

That's 42 people all from the same party that obviously do not want people to grow their own food. Remember, if you control the food, people will do anything you ask.

The White House garden is an Oprah moment, nothing more. Enjoy the show, but remember, it's a public face to distract from the background work to make self-sustaining living impossible.

I was raised on a farm and grow a significant portion of my own food on my subdivision lot. I don't want to change my lifestyle so a bunch of folks can make more money and limit my ability to take care of my family as I see fit.