Millions to March Against Monsanto

Global Anti-GMO Action

Marches against Monsanto are taking place today in dozens of countries and across scores of US cities.

“MAM supports a sustainable food production system. We must act now to stop GMOs and harmful pesticides,” said Tami Monroe Canal, the founder of March Against Monsanto (MAM) in a press release earlier.

“Monsanto’s predatory business and corporate agriculture practices threatens their generation’s health, fertility and longevity,” Monroe said.

The movement was born after the 2012 California Proposition 37 on mandatory labeling of genetically engineered food initiative failed, prompting activists to call for a boycott of the GMO in food production.

Monsanto has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to obstruct all labeling attempts” while suppressing all “research containing results not in their favor,” say activists, who blame GMO for birth defects, infant mortality, and increased cancer risks among other side-effects.

In 2013 more than 2 million people in hundreds of cities across 52 countries  marched against Monsanto, the largest producer of genetically engineered seeds.

May24th- Event list at https://t.co/fdoESKykJ7

GMO Linked to Gluten Disorders Affecting 18 Million Americans – Report

Genetically Modified Foods Likely Trigger  Gluten Sensitivity: IRT

The Institute for Responsible Technology (IRT) has released a new report linking  genetically modified (GM) foods and gluten-related disorders.

A team of experts suggests that GM foods may be an important environmental trigger for gluten sensitivity, which affect about 18 million Americans.

Based on a variety of data provided by the  U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA), Environmental Protection Act records, medical journal reviews, and international research, “the authors relate genetically modified foods to five conditions that may either trigger or exacerbate gluten-related disorders.”  The conditions include the serious autoimmune disorder, Celiac Disease:

1. Intestinal permeability
2. Imbalanced gut bacteria
3. Immune activation and allergic response
4. Impaired digestion
5. Damage to the intestinal wall

“Although wheat has been hybridized over the years, it is not a genetically modified organism (GMO), which can only be created by a laboratory process that inserts genetic material into plant DNA,” according to the report.

GMO food crops currently being grown for commercial consumption include soy, corn, cotton (oil), canola (oil), sugar from sugar beets,  zucchini, yellow squash, Hawaiian papaya, and alfalfa, says the report.

“Most GMOs are engineered to tolerate a weed killer called glyphosate (Roundup®). They contain high levels of this toxin at harvest. Corn and cotton varieties are also engineered to produce an insecticide called Bt-toxin.”

“The Bt-toxin in corn is designed to puncture holes in insect cells, but studies show it does the same in human cells. Bt-toxin may be linked to leaky gut, which physicians consistently see in gluten-sensitive patients,” said Jeffrey Smith, Executive Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology.

Expressing concern about Roundup®, Stephanie Seneff, Senior Research Scientist at MIT said: “Glyphosate is a patented antibiotic that destroys beneficial gut bacteria. An imbalance of gut flora commonly accompanies Celiac Disease and other gluten-related disorders.”

Dr. Tom O’Bryan, internationally recognized expert on gluten sensitivity and Celiac Disease, said: “The introduction of GMOs is highly suspect as a candidate to explain the rapid rise in gluten-related disorders over the last 17 years.”

Emily Linder MD said: “Based on my clinical experience, when I remove genetically modified foods as part of the treatment for gluten sensitivity, recovery is faster and more complete. I believe that GMOs in our diet contribute to the rise in gluten sensitivity in the U.S. population.”

Full report is posted at  http://responsibletechnology.org/media/images/content/Press_Release_Gluten_11_25.pdf

Related Links:

• Monsanto’s Pesticides Causing Cancer, Birth Defects in Argentina
• Monsanto Chemical Found in Euro Urine
• GM Genocide: Relieving farmers of hardship and misery! [IMAGE  WAS REMOVED BY WORDPRESS. REINSTATED by FIRE-EARTH on NOVEMBER 27, 2013.]
• The GM genocide: Thousands of Indian farmers are committing suicide after using genetically modified crops
• An Assault on Japanese Farmers

Monsanto’s Pesticides Causing Cancer, Birth Defects in Argentina

Pesticides sold by Monsanto poisoning Argentina: AP

The Associated Press (AP) has documented dozens of cases around Argentina where widespread misuse of Monsanto’s products are causing major health problems.

Toxic pesticides were sprayed close to populated areas and close to the water supply; farmers mix and apply poisons without protective clothing; villagers store water in pesticide containers.

In Santa Fe Province [population: 3.2 million, 3rd most populated province,] Argentina’s number one producer of cereals, toxic chemicals were used about 30 meters from homes, instead of the mandatory 500 meters, according to the AP report.

Unsurprisingly, cancer rates in the province are up to four times higher than the national average. In the neighboring Chaco province [population 1.2 million,]  birth defects quadrupled since the mid 1990s when Monsanto convinced the Argentines that  its patented seeds and agrochemicals would sharply increase crop yields and lower pesticide use, thus dramatically transforming farming in Argentina.

Health authorities are now warning that growing health problems among nearly a third of the country’s 41 million population may be due to uncontrolled use of pesticides.

Today, all of Argentina’s soy crop and most of its corn and cotton are genetically modified.

“The change in how agriculture is produced has brought, frankly, a change in the profile of diseases,” says Dr. Medardo Avila Vazquez, a pediatrician and neonatologist who co-founded Doctors of Fumigated Towns, part of a growing movement demanding enforcement of agricultural safety rules. “We’ve gone from a pretty healthy population to one with a high rate of cancer, birth defects, and illnesses seldom seen before.”

Farmers in Argentina use about 320 million liters of agrochemicals last year, applying about 5 kg of pesticide per hectare (4.3lbs. per acres), or more than twice the amount used in the U.S., to boost production, as pests become ever more resistant to the poisons.

“As we’ve also learned in the United States, herbicide-resistant GE crops lead to dramatically increased pesticide use. And as weeds develop resistance to these chemicals, industry rolls out even more hazardous chemicals to battle the superweeds. Farmers get trapped on the pesticide treadmill.” Pesticide Action Network International told AP.

Notes:

1. Total agricultural land in Argentina is 1,333,500km², or 48.0 % of the area.
2. Argentina’s soy planting area is a projected at 20.65 million hectares for the current 2013/14 season, with corn at 5.7 million hectares, and wheat 3.4 million hectares.

India Temple Stampede Deadlier than PHAILIN

At least 60 killed in central India Hindu temple stampede

Panic broke out as tens of thousands of Hindu pilgrims tried to cross a bridge on the Sindh river on the way to Ratangarh temple in central India’s Madhya Pradesh state, said a report.

At least 115 people were killed and more than 110 others injured in the stampede, which left the victims “flattened to the ground in the midst of the melee,” said an eye witness.

“Most of the victims were killed in the stampede, while others drowned after jumping off the bridge,” said a report.

“The narrow bridge is about 500m long, and had only recently been rebuilt following another stampede in 2007.”

Hundreds of pilgrims have been killed at various Hindu festivals in India over the past five years.

Meantime, death toll from storm PHAILIN reached at least 14, as of posting.

Other Global Disasters/ Significant Events

Washington, USA: Hundreds of college students clash with police

Hundreds of college students rioted in Bellingham, Washington state, after police broke up a large party late Saturday, early Sunday and tried to disperse the revelers using pepper spray.

The students responded by throwing bottles and other projectiles at police, as they occupied an intersection and refused to disperse.

“There was drinking, it became disorderly and pretty much an out and out riot,” a police officer told AP.

At least two dozen students were arrested, said reports.

Bellingham, located about 120km north of Seattle, is home to Western Washington University.

Greece: Greek authorities on Alert after M6.4 quake

Greek authorities were put on alert on Saturday for the next two days after a magnitude 6.4 quake struck in the Aegean Sea off the western coast of Crete, about 30km W of Platanos.

Centered at 35.487°N, 23.261°E, the quake occurred at a depth of about 36.2km, reported USGS/EHP.

The authorities are uncertain weather the quake was a mainshock or a foreshock, with a larger event looming.

“We will have to wait and see what happens over a 48-hour course. It has been proved that if nothing big happens within the first two days after a big tremor, there is about 85 percent possibility that this was the main quake,” Professor Costas Makropoulos, Director of the Geodynamic Institute of the Athens National Observatory said.

Large earthquakes throughout the Mediterranean region have also been known to produce significant and damaging tsunamis. One of the more prominent historical earthquakes within the region is the Lisbon earthquake of November 1, 1755, whose magnitude has been estimated from non-instrumental data to be about 8.0. The 1755 Lisbon earthquake is thought to have occurred within or near the Azores-Gibraltar transform fault, which defines the boundary between the African and Eurasian plates off the west coast of Morocco and Portugal. The earthquake is notable for both a large death toll of approximately 60,000 people and for generating a tsunami that swept up the Portuguese coast inundating coastal villages and Lisbon. An earthquake of approximately M8.0 near Sicily in 1693 generated a large tsunami wave that destroyed numerous towns along Sicily’s east coast. The M7.2 December 28, 1908 Messina earthquake is the deadliest documented European earthquake. The combination of severe ground shaking and a local tsunami caused an estimated 60,000 to 120,000 fatalities. —USGS/EHP.

March Against Monsanto: Global march to raise awareness about GMO food products

Thousands of activists from around the world Marched against Monsanto on Saturday, calling for the permanent boycott of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and other harmful agro-chemicals, said March Against Monsanto (MAM).

Marches  occurred on six continents, in 52 countries, with events held in over 400 cities. In the US, solidarity marches occurred in 47 states, said MAM. http://www.march-against-monsanto.com.

More events to follow…

Monsanto Chemical Found in Euro Urine

“Quantifiable levels” of Monsanto herbicide found in urine samples from 18 Euro countries

In a recent study by Medical Laboratory Bremen in Germany humane urine samples from 18 European countries showed residues of Glyphosate and the metabolite AMPA.

“On average 44 % and 36 % of the urine samples analyzed were found to contain quantifiable levels of Glyphosate and AMPA, respectively,” said the report.

• The frequency of detection ranged from 10% to 90%.  The highest Glyphosate concentration was 1,8 μg/L  in Latvia, followed by Malta, UK and Germany, while the highest AMPA concentration was 2,6 μg/L  found in Croatia.

• A total of 6.6% of  samples showed residues that “significantly exceeded the tentative reference value of 0,8 μg/L forGlyphosate,” the report said.

The report concludes; “The results give a first idea to which extent adults in 18 European countries are exposed to Glyphosate. The regional and individual variations are large. Diet seems to be the main sources of exposure. However, more scientific work is needed to distinguish between different exposure situations.”

Glyphosate was discovered to be a herbicide by a Monsanto chemist and was marketed in the 1970s under the trade name Roundup.

Aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), an organic acid, is one of the primary degradation products of the herbicide glyphosate.

Both Glyphosate and AMPA are said to have low toxicity, with glyphosate being an EPA Toxicity Class III chemical (on a scale of I to IV, Class I is most toxic) for oral and inhalation exposure.

In 2007, Glyphosate was the most used herbicide in the United States, with about 100,000 tons applied  by the agricultural sector, government and home and garden users.

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Other Global Disasters/ Significant Events

Black Forest Fire: Initial Home Assessment

Updated: June 15, 2013 at approximately 12:00 a.m. (DST) – El Paso County Sheriff’s office

The extent of damage caused by the Black Forest Fire to homes in the region is as follows:

• Total Loss: 473
• Partial Damage: 17

Note: This is a preliminary home assessment. Due to continuous and dynamic fire activity the information could change.

The blaze was reportedly 30 percent contained, as of posting.

Related Links

• Initial Home Assessment
• Black Forest Fire Map – Thursday, June 13, 2013 – 5:00 p.m.

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Another Toxic Weekend in Beijing

Beijing Air Pollution: Real-time Air Quality Index (AQI). Source: AQICN

What’s the Point of Having the Supreme Court, If…

… If Its Corporate-Friendly Judges Didn’t Side with Big Business?

US Supreme Court Overturns Ban on Monsanto GM Seed

The US Supreme Court has ruled that Monsanto can sell genetically modified seeds without having to worry about  safety tests.

The ban on Monsanto GM seed was imposed by a lower court which had previously ruled that the sale of the modified alfalfa seeds may NOT proceed until an environmental impact study had been carried out.

Monsanto’s Roundup weedkiller has caused an explosion of resistant “superweeds” infesting millions of hectares (acres) of land in the United States.

However, the Supreme Court’s “Magnificent Seven,” that’s 7 of the nine Justices most accommodating to corporate interests than public safety,  decided that the ruling was unconstitutional, and reversed the decision.

Alfalfa is the fourth most valuable crop grown in the U.S., the world’s largest producer of the  grass-like plant used as animal feeds, and the Monsanto modification is meant to make the seed resistant to the company’s own brand of weedkiller—killing two birds, as it were, with one Monsanto stone!

Environmentalists are worried about the real risk of cross-pollination between the Monsanto’s genetically modified plants and crops grown nearby, as well as the danger of polluting the ground water as a result of the overuse of the company’s weedkiller Roundup,  which could also result in rapid growth of resistant “superweeds.”

Monsanto claims its products are no danger [sic]  to the environment and any claims against them are “bad science fiction with no support on the record.”

At least 10 resistant “superweeds”  in more than 22 states are infesting millions of acres, a report said.

Related Links:

• United States farmers are facing an epidemic. Not of health or disease, but of superweeds.
• Roundup Red Alert: U.S. Farms Grow Superweeds
• ‘Superweed’ explosion threatens Monsanto heartlands
• 10 Biggest Threats to the US National Security

Monsanto’s ‘GM Genocide’

GM Genocide: Relieving farmers of hardship and misery!

Painful Suicides, But the Debts Stay!

About 150,000 Indian farmers have committed suicide because their genetically modified crops failed, according to official statistics.

Millions of farmers throughout India have been promised bumper harvests and unheard of income if they switched to planting genetically modified (GM) seeds.

Enticed by the promise of wealth, they borrowed large sums of money at extortionate interest rates to buy Monsanto’s GM ‘magic seeds’ at staggering prices. They paid “£10 [$16] for 100 grams of GM seed, compared with less than £10 for 1,000 times more traditional seeds,” an investigative report said.

To promote the GM seeds, Indian government even banned traditional varieties from most of its seed banks.

Unfortunately the expensive ‘magic seeds’ failed to resist pests. The GM cotton seeds, for example, were devastated by bollworms.

THIS IMAGE WAS REMOVED BY WORDPRESS. REINSTATED by FIRE-EARTH on NOVEMBER 27, 2013.
Vaibhav, left, and Yash, orphans of farmer Rajendra Shankarwar, who committed suicide, stand at the doorway of their house in village Akoli, India, Thursday, April 24, 2008. India’s cotton belt, a land of searing temperatures and backbreaking work, has been hit hardest by an epidemic of suicides. With debts larger than their incomes, these steadiest of workers have become gamblers of the highest stakes, betting their land—and their lives—on one more good crop.  Photo: Reuters/DayLife. Image may be subject to copyright.

But the misery didn’t end there. Soon the farmers in drought-stricken areas realized that the GM seeds need twice the amount of water as the traditional seeds.

After two years of drought, the GM crops died; farmers crippling debts mounted; hope disappeared.

Enter the ‘Terminator Technology’

A triple whammy had awaited the unsuspecting farmers all along. Whereas the farmers were previously able to save seeds and replant them the following year, if the crops failed, the GM genetic use restriction technology (GURT) or the ‘terminator technology,’ which renders the second generation of seeds sterile, meant farmers had to buy new seeds every year.

Many farmers, unable to find a way to repay their debts, took their own lives the cheapest way they knew, with a cocktail of insecticides—a very painful death!

The debt isn’t written off with the farmers deaths; it stays with the land. The widowed wives and their young children have to pay the debts. They are the real victims of what is called the ‘GM Genocide.’

Related Links:

• The GM genocide: Thousands of Indian farmers are committing suicide after using genetically modified crops
• An Assault on Japanese Farmers