GMOs

A lot out there on the subject, but here's a little video on it if one has like zip awareness on the problem.


http://www.netflix.com/WiPlayer?movieid ... 3-20319111

here it is on you tube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQUm5Qg4-5I


I know one thing for sure--the flavor of the organic eggs I buy, which are twice the price of the general branded eggs, is far, far better. I like that the chickens actually have a life too....

But this debate on GMOs is maybe a whole lot more of a concern than most believe.

Wouldn't it be true that the more overabundance of food we have the greater our population growth rate becomes a problem??  I mean would you make four kids if you knew there is only enough food for two??

Aren't we about to genetically engineer those children by the way??? Maybe we could engineer our selves to eat grass clippings.......

This issue has a of of ways of looking at it. I like that he interviews many of the farmers and folks that are down and dirty with the problem...

Post any good relevant links if your a concerned citizen on the GMO problem and you can share.


Paul

With having to watch TV commercials loading our airwaves in Oregon's election (the big boys of the seed growers made it the most expensive fight in Oregon's history), I want a break from the discussion. The Big Boys won the battle by the way (narrowly).

Mike in O wrote:With having to watch TV commercials loading our airwaves in Oregon's election (the big boys of the seed growers made it the most expensive fight in Oregon's history), I want a break from the discussion.  The Big Boys won the battle by the way (narrowly).

Hey Mike...Com on back when your recovered

Paul

Announced after the election for labeling....settlement with Oregon Wheat growers
http://time.com/3582953/monsanto-wheat- ... ettlement/

If you want to learn a lot about GMOs, follow the links posted in this thread:

http://www.naturescapes.net/forums/view ... 7&t=249098

It's eye-opening!

Joe

In Oregon we have 3 GMOs which have gotten loose and are destroying crops meant for export. They are grass aeed, rape seed and winter wheat. Round Up resistant crops are wrecking havoc with foreign exports since few countries allow them.

Thanks Joe for the links. You know I just plum missed that entire thread. The links will certainly keep me busy for at least a minute.

So I'm watching Ken Burns documentary on the dust bowl of the 30's tonight. Excellent. And how relevant to things now in a way as far as unregulated, capitalistic profit driven motives, channeling our actions down self destructive paths. Is it even possible to keep letting free enterprise run things any more??? Could it be be that with the greater numbers of people now, and the level of comfort and greed we are all accustomed too now,  dictate that no way can we continue to let business run it's course without regulation? Not on everything, but aren't we heading for an inevitable showdown as we aren't dealing with the copious amounts of serious changes that are going on now. This just seems to happen over and over and over again....profit trumps everything till crisis hits......

One of the eyebrow raising facts in the documentary was this Ogallala aquifer underneath the middle of the united states which was filled up by the last ice age and has now dropped in level from 100 feet originally to 50 feet (Oklahoma)now due to crops irrigation, most of which is used to feed the meat industry. Well what happens when that water is gone and there is no new ice age around to fill it back up?? Cleveland is going to be a economic hotspot!!! 

I never heard of it before so here it is if others are unfamiliar also:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogallala_Aquifer

This thing is huge!!  Well that's where the water comes from to grow all those crops in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, S. Dakota, New Mexico, and Wyoming.

"About 27 percent of the irrigated land in the United States overlies the aquifer, which yields about 30 percent of the ground water used for irrigation in the United States."

That's a big deal 30% is!!

"Since 1950, agricultural irrigation has reduced the saturated volume of the aquifer by an estimated 9%. Depletion is accelerating, with 2% lost between 2001 and 2009[sup][2][/sup][sup][not in citation given][/sup] alone. Certain aquifer zones are now empty;[sup][3][/sup] these areas will take over 6,000 years to replenish naturally through rainfall.[sup][4][/sup]"

6000 years? Aiyeee! We better hope we have some unbelievable technologies in a hundred years.

But back to GMO's do you think you guys settled on any consensus from the previous thread discussion?

Paul


Oh wait... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogallala_Aquifer#cite_note-mcguire07-8 "Some estimates indicate the remaining volume could be depleted as soon as 2028".  Hey that's right around the corner!!

***Oh wait...there's hope...There are playa lakes that are replenishing the aquifer....

Oh darn...just read this: "The destruction of playas by farmers and development decreases the available recharge area."

Never mind......

Any controversial subject will never have a consesus! My hope is that open minded persons will see how they were developed by the very chemical companies that developed the herbicides with profit and monopoly as a bottom line. How they were tested and approved is important as well! It will soon be very hard to keep any seed natural. Then Monsanto and the others will control everything. Greed is not good!!!

Joe

Greed is not good....maybe need is not very good either. The video I posted though had a couple of guys who claim that yes we can grow all our crop needs organically. In previous research I found out that less than 3% of land in the US is used for growing crops for human consumption--the other 67% is for animal product feed. So at 3% why can't we grow without resorting to GMOs for our vegetables and such.?? This does not make sense...

Paul

The settlement mentioned by Mike shows how there is really no containing the GM grains. Monsanto sues farmers whose fields are tested positive to have modified crops, but don't admit liability when crops they developed can't be contained or destroyed, but spread to places where they raise havoc! How can a farmer keep the garbage out of his fields? Could it even be sabotage?

Joe

Interesting article on developing a new modified potato.
http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-north ... cart_river