MONSANTO # (GMO) FOOD 4 THOUGHT - Know What You Eat # (Ongoing Videos & Articles)

Busted: Biotech Leader ‘Syngenta’ Charged Over Covering Up Animal Deaths from GM Corn
Anthony Gucciardi
Friday, June 15, 2012
Activist Post

In a riveting victory against genetically modified creations, a major biotech company known as Syngenta has been criminally charged for denying knowledge that its GM Bt corn actually kills livestock. What’s more is not only did the company deny this fact, but they did so in a civil court case that ended back in 2007. The charges were finally issued after a long legal struggle against the mega corp initiated by a German farmer named Gottfried Gloeckner whose dairy cattle died after eating the Bt toxin and coming down with a ‘mysterious’ illness.

Grown on his own farm from 1997 to 2002, the cows on the farm were all being fed exclusively on Syngenta’s Bt 176 corn by the year 2000. It was around this time that the mysterious illnesses began to emerge among the cattle population. Syngenta paid Gloeckner 40,000 euros in an effort to silence the farmer; however, a civil lawsuit was brought upon the company. Amazingly, 2 cows ate genetically modified maize (now banned in Poland over serious concerns) and died. During the civil lawsuit, however, Syngenta refused to admit that its GM corn was responsible. In fact, they went as far as to claim having no knowledge whatsoever of any harm.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

The Case for Mandatory GMO Labeling
by Mike Adams
June 18, 2012
Natural News

Now that the GMO labeling ballot measure has been officially accepted onto the California ballot, Monsanto is gearing up its propaganda campaign that aims to convince people you don't need to know what you're eating! Trust us, we're the food companies! We never lie, do we?

For the record, I'm an opponent of most government mandates against individuals. When the government says you have to give your children vaccine shots, that's a violation of your liberty. When Mayor Bloomberg says you can't buy a 16 oz. soda in New York, that's a violation of your liberty, too - even though I am opposed to soda consumption in general.

When the government says you can't drink raw milk, or you can't treat cancer with medicinal herbs, or you have to get EPA approval before building a house on your own neighborhood lot, those are all examples of government mandates against individuals gone terribly wrong.

But this GMO labeling ballot measure is not a government mandate against the People. In fact, it's quite the opposite: A People-powered mandate against the corporations.
Forcing corporations to tell the truth

It is the People of California, after all, who developed this GMO labeling ballot measure, gathered the signatures, and put it on the ballot. And the point of it is solely to keep corporations honest about what they put in our food. It is, technically, merely an extension of existing food ingredient labeling laws, and I can't think of a single person who would argue that food companies shouldn't even be required to list food ingredients.

For the record, I've actually lived in a country where food ingredients were not required to be listed on labels. It was a nightmare trying to avoid MSG because food companies consistently and tirelessly seek to deceive consumers about what they put into foods. Without labeling laws, we would all soon be eating melamine, human fetal cells, and mystery chemicals of dubious origin (even beyond what we're already eating).

CONTINUE: [link to globalresearch.ca]

Monsanto Faced with Paying 7.5 Billion Back to Farmers
Anthony Gucciardi
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Activist Post

Monsanto may soon be forced to pay as much as 7.5 billion dollars back to the farmers who say that the mega corporation took their rightfully earned income and taxed their small businesses to financial shambles.

It all started with a monumental lawsuit launched by over 5 million farmers against Monsanto looking to recover financial losses from ridiculous seed taxes that bankrupted many families.

Back in April, a Brazilian court ruled that Monsanto absolutely was responsible for paying back the exorbitant amounts of cash to the farmers, ordering the company to issue back all of the taxes collected since 2004 — a minimum of 2 billion dollars. Afterwards, Monsanto appealed the decision and the case is now suspended until a further hearing is initiated by the Justice Tribune of the local court stationed in Rio Grande do Sul.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Monsanto-Funded Science Denies Emerging Roundup-Cancer Link
Sayer Ji, Contributor
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Activist Post

Monsanto-funded research has been proliferating as uncontrollably as their genetically modified (GM) plants, and the bugs increasingly resistant to them.

Two studies have appeared in scientific journals in the past eight months, both funded by Monsanto, and both discrediting a Roundup herbicide-cancer link. [ii]

The context within which these new studies are appearing is the growing body of experimental research indicating that the active ingredient in Roundup, glyphosate, along with the surfactants and related "inactive" ingredients found within glyphosate-based formulations, cause genetic damage associated with cancer initiation, and at levels far below those used agricultural applications and associated with real-world exposures.[iii] [iv] [v] [vi] [vii]

This has put manufacturers and proponents of glyphosate, as well as "Roundup Ready" GM plants in a vulnerable position.

If, the precautionary principle is employed and a much-needed reclassification of glyphosate as a class III carcinogen to a class II or I occurs, the increasingly global dominance of GM-based food crop systems will come to a screeching, regulation-induced halt.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

How GMO foods alter organ function and pose a very real health threat to humans
The Health Ranger, Mike Adams, explains how studies in cell research have demonstrated the mechanism by which micro RNA from genetically engineered foods may alter organ function in humans.

1#The Men Who Made Us Fat (1/3)
Around the world, obesity levels are rising. More people are now overweight than undernourished. Two thirds of British adults are overweight and one in four of us is classified as obese. In the first of this three-part series, Jacques Peretti traces those responsible for revolutionising our eating habits, to find out how decisions made in America 40 years ago influence the way we eat now.

Poison is Treatment: The Campaign to Fluoridate America
by Prof. James F. Tracy
June 23, 2012

The wide scale US acceptance of fluoride-related compounds in drinking water and a wide variety of consumer products over the past half century is a textbook case of social engineering orchestrated by Sigmund Freud's nephew and the “father of public relations” Edward L. Bernays. The episode is instructive, for it suggests the tremendous capacity of powerful interests to reshape the social environment, thereby prompting individuals to unwarily think and act in ways that are often harmful to themselves and their loved ones. The example is especially pertinent today as Western governments withhold data and utilize propaganda techniques to suppress knowledge of new technologies and life-threatening disasters such as the still-unfolding nuclear breakdown in Fukushima.

Today the battle over water fluoridation remains obscured in caricature and falsification often perpetuated by the mainstream press itself. The potential for popular myth to eclipse historical fact is greatly accelerated when the political and informational pillars of civilization actively support such distortions. For example, a recent New York Times editorial points to “that cold war paranoia about fluoridation in drinking water [sic].” Citing the Center for Disease Control’s claim that fluoridation is one of the top accomplishments in public health over the past century, the Times evokes fluoride’s difficult struggle with purportedly uninformed segments of the public. “Critics no longer contend that fluoridation is a Communist plot. Instead, they express concerns about the costs involved, improper government control over a personal decision, and potential health dangers.”[1]

The refrain is familiar throughout a corporate-controlled media that unquestioningly amplifies the pronouncements of government agencies concerning fluoride's alleged safety and value for dental health. Having been seemingly vetted and upheld by the newspaper of record and its counterparts, such sweeping declarations are seldom interrogated further by readers, much less the broader public.

In fact, sodium fluoride is a dangerous poison and has been a primary active ingredient in a wide variety of insecticides and fungicides.[2] The substance bioaccumulates in mammals, has been linked to dulled intellect in children [3] and is a cause of increased bone fractures and osteosarcoma. Further, recent studies indicate that fluoride's role in preventing cavities through ingestion [4] or even topically [5] is close to non-existent.

CONTINUE: [link to globalresearch.ca]

Genetically Modified Grass Kills Cattle By Producing Warfare Chemical Cyanide
Anthony Gucciardi
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Activist Post

Another report of genetically modified creations taking the lives of livestock has hit the media, and this time genetically modified grass has been identified as the culprit according to CBS News.

Shockingly (and quite disturbingly), the GM grass actually produced toxic cyanide and sent the cattle into a life-ending fit that included painful bellowing and convulsions. The deaths have led to a federal investigation centered in Central Texas, where the cattle had resided.

Just east of Austin, the cows lived on an 80-acre ranch owned by Jerry Abel. Abel says that the fields were used for over 15 years for cattle grazing and hay, and that the genetically modified grass was ‘tested’ previously and should have been ‘perfect’. The GM grass however, known as Tifton 85, appears have been producing toxic cyanide.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Research: Gulf Shrimp Widely Contaminated With Carcinogens
Sayer Ji, Contributor
Monday, June 25, 2012
Activist Post

Conservative estimates indicate that the 2010 BP oil disaster released over 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf, followed by at least 1.8 million gallons of dispersants. While the use of dispersants helped mitigate the public relations disaster by preventing the persistent formation of surface oil, as well as keeping many beaches visibly untouched, they also drove the oil deeper into the water column (and food chain) rendering a 2-dimensional problem (surface oil) into a 3-dimensional one. Additionally, research indicates that dispersants prevent the biodegradation of toxic oil components, as well as increasing dispersant absorption into fish from between 6 to 1100 fold higher levels.

Since the event, both the mainstream media and the government have acted as if the oil disappeared, and that no significant health risks remain for the millions still consuming contaminated seafood from the Gulf.*

Now, a new study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives has revealed that the 2010 BP Gulf oil disaster resulted in widespread contamination of Gulf Coast seafood with toxic components from crude oil.1 In fact, levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in shrimp were found to exceed the FDA’s established thresholds for allowable levels [levels of concern (LOCs)] for pregnant women in up to 53% of Gulf shrimp sampled.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Monsanto's seedy legacy
Agricultural giant Monsanto is best known for their production of pesticides and genetically modified foods, but they have a controversial history as a chemical company with a slew of toxic cover-ups.

In addition to their battle against small farmers, the newest buzz about the corporation is the speculation that their GM seeds are linked to the die-off of bees.

Save the World, Save Yourself: Don't Buy GMO!
Sally O'Boyle
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Activist Post

You hold all the power in your hands to save the planet. Actually, in your wallet. Whip out a buck. Hold it in both hands, close your eyes and determine that you will never, ever again spend your hard-earned cash money on GMO foods.

See how easy that was? Now tell your family and your neighbors.

Here's the plan in a nutshell: bankrupt the bastards. This is gonna be so satisfying.

How can you avoid GMO foods?

Simple! Here's how:

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Report: Nature May Soon Overcome Monsanto as ‘Super Rootworms’ Destroy Crops
Anthony Gucciardi
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Activist Post

What will be the end of Monsanto? Could it be lawsuits, new legislation, or perhaps even a tiny insect that is less than 0.10 mm in length.

A new report reveals that rootworms may ultimately be what ends Monsanto’s crops, despite the biotech giant’s rampant success within the United States legislative system.

Amazingly, western corn rootworms have virtually no problem gobbling up Monsanto’s modified maize crop, as they have developed a serious resistance to the very crops designed to kill them. So much so that these little critters are outpacing Monsanto’s top scientists.

To make matters worse for the company, the resistant rootworms are maturing earlier than expected this year. And with the enhanced growth has come enhanced birth rates, with the bug’s larvae hatching the earliest in decades.

Monsanto, of course, is absolutely defenseless against the resistant rootworms which have adapted to their biopesticide known as Bt. At least 8 populations of insects have developed resistance, with 2 populations resistant to Bt sprays and at least 6 species resistant to Bt crops as a whole. The answer? Use even more intelligence-crushing pesticides.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

GMO Farming, Glyphosate Significant Causes of Water Pollution
Mike Barrett
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Activist Post

Water pollution and air pollution has been and continues to be a serious issue in many nations. Both of these pollution types are successfully bringing down the health of not only humans, but also animals, plant life, and the ecosystem as a whole. While the causes of water pollution and causes of air pollution are many, research is actually pointing a straight finger at GMO farming and chemicals like glyphosate for being important culprits.

Causes of Water Pollution – GMO Farming, Glyphosate Big Contributors

One groundbreaking study found that glyphosate, the active ingredient residing in the ever-so-popular Roundup product from Monsanto, is making its way into groundwater across the nation through widespread contamination of aquifers, wells, and springs.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Turning Crops, Animals And Even Babies Into Genetic Monsters - What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Michael Snyder, Contributor
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Activist Post

The greatest environmental threat that we are facing is genetic modification. All over the globe, scientists are treating the fabric of life as if it was a playground where anything goes. Behind closed doors, scientists all over the planet are creating some of the most freakish and most bizarre monsters that you could possible imagine, and very few people seem concerned about it. But the truth is that messing with the building blocks of life is going to have some very serious consequences.

Scientists claim that they are making our crops stronger, more productive and less vulnerable to insects. Scientists claim that they can alter our animals so that they are more "useful" to us. Scientists claim that genetic modification is only going to "enhance" humanity. But what if something goes seriously wrong?

For example, what if we learn that eating genetically modified food is really, really bad for us? Well, at this point more than 70 percent of the processed foods sold in the United States contain at least one ingredient that has been genetically modified. It would be kind of hard to go back now. We have rushed ahead and have created hordes of freakish genetic monsters without ever seriously considering the consequences. Someday, future generations may look back on us and wonder how we could have ever been so incredibly foolish.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

America's Farmers Fight Monsanto's Scorched Earth Legal Campaign Of Threats And Intimidation
Friday, July 6, 2012
Activist Post

Seventy-five family farmers, seed businesses, and agricultural organizations representing over 300,000 individuals and 4,500 farms filed a brief Thursday, July 5 with the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington D.C. asking the appellate court to reverse a lower court's decision from February dismissing their protective legal action against agricultural giant Monsanto's patents on genetically engineered seed.

The plaintiffs brought the pre-emptive case against Monsanto in March 2011 in the Southern District of New York and specifically seek to defend themselves from nearly two dozen of Monsanto's most aggressively asserted patents on GMO seed. They were forced to act pre-emptively to protect themselves from Monsanto's abusive lawsuits, fearing that if GMO seed contaminates their property despite their efforts to prevent such contamination, Monsanto will sue them for patent infringement.

"It's time to end Monsanto's scorched earth legal campaign of threats and intimidation against America's farmers. Family farmers should be protected by the courts against the unwanted genetic contamination of their crops," said Dave Murphy, founder and executive director of Food Democracy Now!, a grassroots community of more than 300,000 farmers and citizens dedicated to reforming food and agriculture, that is co-plaintiff in the suit.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Dr. Michael McNeill to Provide Expert Presentation on Health and Agriculture Risks of Monsanto's Herbicide
Activist Post
Friday, July 6, 2012

Dr. Michael McNeill, of Algona, Iowa, will deliver a lecture at the UM Presque Isle Campus Center on Friday, July 13, 2012, from 5:30-8:00 pm. Dr McNeill's lecture is entitled "Genetically Modified – In the News and On Your Plate."

Through the presentation of extensive peer-reviewed scientific research, explained in a manner understandable to farmers, consumers and lay persons, Dr. McNeill will present a strong cautionary examination of the agronomic and food security problems associated with an overuse of glyphosate; the main ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup herbicide.

Dr. McNeill is President of Ag Advisory LTD, an Iowa company that provides agronomic consulting services to farmers. He holds a PhD in Plant Breeding and Statistical Genetics from Iowa State University. His company advises on individual farm plans – organic and conventional – with an emphasis on healthy biological soil management. Dr. McNeill serves as an expert legal witness on livestock and plant diseases. His farm provides contract research capability for agricultural businesses and government on soil fertility, soil tillage, plant disease and insect control. His career includes a position as Research Biologist with the U.S. Army where he studied soybean and corn diseases.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Monsanto Launches Massive Campaign to Stop GMO Labeling
Lisa Garber
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Activist Post

We’ve gone on at great lengths discussing the dangers of genetic modification. Monsanto’s GMO corn has been linked to weight gain and organ function disruption, while GMO crops and pesticides destroy our farmland and environment. According to the Alliance of Natural Health, the grandchildren of rats fed GMO corn were born sterile. GMO is just one of those things to avoid, but with our own government in bed with Monsanto, it’s not easily done. Monsanto has recently launched a proverbial war against the open labeling of genetically modified foods, and only through activism and awareness can it be overcome.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Looming Health Crisis: Wireless Technology and the Toxification of America
by Prof. James F. Tracy
July 8, 2012

As a multitude of hazardous wireless technologies are deployed in homes, schools and workplaces, government officials and industry representatives continue to insist on their safety despite growing evidence to the contrary. A major health crisis looms that is only hastened through the extensive deployment of “smart grid” technology.

In October 2009 at Florida Power and Light’s (FPL) solar energy station President Barack Obama announced that $3.4 billion of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act would be devoted to the country’s “smart energy grid” transition. Matching funds from the energy industry brought the total national Smart Grid investment to $8 billion. FPL was given $200 million of federal money to install 2.5 million “smart meters” on homes and businesses throughout the state.[1]

By now many residents in the United States and Canada have the smart meters installed on their dwellings. Each of these meters is equipped with an electronic cellular transmitter that uses powerful bursts of electromagnetic radiofrequency (RF) radiation to communicate with nearby meters that together form an interlocking network transferring detailed information on residents’ electrical usage back to the utility every few minutes or less. Such information can easily be used to determine individual patterns of behavior based on power consumption.

The smart grid technology is being sold to the public as a way to “empower” individual energy consumers by allowing them to access information on their energy usage so that they may eventually save money by programming “smart” (i.e, wireless enabled) home appliances and equipment that will coordinate their operability with the smart meter to run when electrical rates are lowest. In other words, a broader plan behind smart grid technology involves a tiered rate system for electricity consumption that will be set by the utility to which customers will have no choice but to conform.

Because of power companies’ stealth rollout of smart meters a large majority of the public still remains unaware of the dangers they pose to human health. This remains the case even though states such as Maine have adopted an "opt out" provision for their citizens. The devices have not been safety-tested by Underwriters Laboratory and thus lack the UL approval customary for most electronics.[2] Further, power customers are typically told by their utilities that the smart meter only communicates with the power company “a few times per day” to transmit information on individual household energy usage. However, when individuals obtained the necessary equipment to do their own testing they found the meters were emitting bursts of RF radiation throughout the home far more intense than a cell phone call every minute or less.[3]

CONTINUE: [link to www.globalresearch.ca]

wow, roxy - you are one informed woman! good job, thanks for all the information. This vote in calif is HUGE!!!!

here's a website to add to your list of great articles relating to gmo's and the lack of science behind them!


[link to www.kojoreport.com]

thanks

Monsanto Promises Pain to EU, Assault Underway
Written by John Larabell
Wednesday, 11 July 2012

Since the introduction of genetically modified (GM) crops into the food supply in the mid-1990s, the European Union has generally resisted allowing these crops to be planted in member countries. This resistance has primarily been due to the fact that there is much debate over the potential harm that GM crops could do to the environment and other non-GM crops, and the potential harm that food containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) may do to humans.

This resistance seems to be weakening, however, no doubt due to persistent pressure from Monsanto, the world’s leading biotechnology firm, and Monsanto’s many allies in the U.S. government. According to mercola.com:

It's quite clear that the U.S. government, which is closely tied to Monsanto, has been aiding and abetting Monsanto's tireless and often ruthless quest to control the world's food crops.

U.S. diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks, showed the government even conspired to find ways to retaliate against Europe for refusing to use GM seeds, mainly by engaging in aggressive trade wars against reluctant nations. As you might suspect, the EU has been under heavy pressure to add some slack to their GM regulations — and it seems they are about to cave.

While GMOs have been ubiquitous in the U.S. food supply for nearly two decades (unlabeled and unbeknownst to most of the American public, and after very little testing), several European countries have traditionally upheld bans against the planting of most GM crops and required any processed foods containing GMOs be labeled.

CONTINUE: [link to thenewamerican.com]

The Largest Natural Disaster In U.S. History: The Endless Drought Of 2012 Will Bake America Well Into August
Michael Snyder, Contributor
Monday, July 16, 2012
Activist Post

Why is the heartland of the United States experiencing such a horrific drought right now? At the moment, approximately 61 percent of the entire nation is experiencing drought conditions, and this is absolutely devastating farmers and ranchers all over the country.

Less than two weeks ago I wrote an article asking what would happen if these drought conditions persisted, and now we are finding out. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has created the largest natural disaster area in U.S. history. The USDA has declared 1,016 counties in 26 U.S. states to be disaster areas. The USDA declaration basically covered about half of the nation, and there is now no denying how horrible this drought really is. You can see a map of this disaster area right here.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]


NB:
If this scenario evolves, many farmers might have to sell their lands.

Cheaply.

To whom?

I put my money on Monsanto-connected buyers...

Chellie Pingree - An Organic Farmer in the U.S. Congress
In 2008 Chellie Pingree was elected to represent Maine in the United States Congress. As a member of the Agriculture Committee in Congress, Chellie's focus is reforming farm policy with interests of sustainable farmers and consumers in mind.

Factory Fed Fish: Monsanto's and Cargill's Plans for the Ocean
By Dr. Mercola
July 17 2012

The mass cultivation of genetically modified (GM) soybeans has a hugely detrimental environmental and health impact worldwide.

As it stands, soy is widely used in our diets, in processed foods and found in most meat, as soy is fed to animals on CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations).

The next "natural" step, at least according to two of the largest stakeholders in the soy industry, Monsanto (creator of GM soy) and food giant Cargill, is to make soy the feed of choice for factory-farmed fish around the world – a move they are misleadingly labeling as "sustainable."

Fortunately, Food & Water Watch has released a report that reveals the truth: bringing soy to fish feed would be an environmental, and human health, disaster.

Why We Need to Keep Soy Out of the Sea
It's estimated that about half of the world's seafood comes from aquaculture, which is the term used to describe industrial fish farming. Like the land-based CAFOs, industrial fish farming has had problems from the start, including overcrowded conditions, pollution and unnatural diets.

CONTINUE: [link to articles.mercola.com]

Landmark Family Farmers Lawsuit Against Monsanto Grows
Prominent Allies Join Effort to Reinstate Challenge to Monsanto Patents
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Activist Post

Eleven prominent law professors and fourteen renowned organic, Biodynamic®, food safety and consumer non-profit organizations have filed separate briefs with the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit arguing farmers have the right to protect themselves from being accused of patent infringement by agricultural giant Monsanto.

The brief by the law professors and the brief by the non-profit organizations were filed in support of the seventy-five family farmers, seed businesses, and agricultural organizations representing over 300,000 individuals and 4,500 farms that last year brought a protective legal action seeking a ruling that Monsanto could never sue them for patent infringement if they became contaminated by Monsanto's genetically modified seed. The case was dismissed by the district court in February and that dismissal is now pending review by the Court of Appeals. The plaintiffs recently filed their opening appeal brief with the appeals court.

CONTINUE: [link to www.activistpost.com]

Look Who Supports GMO Labeling – Infographic
Barbara H. Peterson
Farm Wars

The people of California are fighting to get genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in our food supply labeled. Not surprisingly, the biotech industry is fighting back. The following infographic from Voters Edge shows just how much money is being spent by both sides, for and against GMO labeling in California.

“See who’s spending money against our right to know labeling bill in CA and refuse to buy their products!” (Jon Abrahamson).

CONTINUE: [link to farmwars.info]