Revelations: This Week in Mad Science

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Boycott, Gandhi Style, Organic  Consumers Association

DNA-Myth-CommonerFeb02“The deed is done. On Friday, July 29, 2016, President Obama signed a bill that was written by corporations, paid for by corporations and that serves no one in this country—except corporations.

S.764, known by its opponents as the DARK (Deny Americans the Right to Know) Act, preempts Vermont’s mandatory GMO labeling law and substitutes in its place a federal bill that, no matter how Obama and his Congress try to spin it, is not mandatory and does not require labels—at least not labels that anyone can read. Not to mention that most GMO ingredients will be exempt under this fake “law.”

Florida cleared to release genetically modified mosquitoes in Zika fight

“Aedes aegypti is believed to be primarily responsible for the transmission of Zika, a primarily mosquito-borne disease believed to cause birth defects including microcephaly, by which children are born with abnormally small heads and severe, lifelong developmental problems.

The Oxitec Florida trial would run for between six and 22 months, with a goal of determining whether wild Aedes aegypti females, the gender that bites, will mate with the company’s “OX513A” males, which are designed to produce offspring which do not fully mature, thus undercutting the mosquito population.”

N.I.H. May Fund Human-Animal Stem Cell Research

“The purpose is to try to grow human tissues or organs in animals to better understand human diseases and develop therapies to treat them.

Researchers have long been putting human cells into animals — like pieces of human tumors in mice to test drugs that might destroy the tumors — but stem cell research is fundamentally different. The stem cells are put into developing embryos where they can become any cells, like those in organs, blood and bone.”

Seven Myths About GMOs Debunked, Vandana Shiva

A global battle is being fought over the future of the world’s food. Hear from the women on the front lines in Seed Sovereignty, Food Security: Women in the Vanguard of the Fight Against GMOs and Corporate Agriculture. These seed keepers, food producers, scientists, activists and scholars are committed to building a food system that is better aligned with ecological processes, human health and justice for all.

Unraveling The DNA Myth: The Spurious Foundation of Genetic Engineering  BARRY COMMONER / Harper’s Magazine Feb 02

“Our leading scientists and scientific entrepreneurs (two labels that are increasingly interchangeable) assure us that these feats of technological prowess, though marvelous and complex, are nonetheless safe and reliable. We are told that everything is under control. Conveniently ignored, forgotten, or in some instances simply suppressed, are the caveats, the fine print, the flaws and spontaneous abortions. Most clones exhibit developmental failure before or soon after birth, and even apparently normal clones often suffer from kidney or brain malformations.5 ANDi, perversely, has failed to glow like a jellyfish. Genetically modified pigs have a high incidence of gastric ulcers, arthritis, cardiomegaly (enlarged heart), dermatitis, and renal disease. Despite the biotechnology industry’s assurances that genetically engineered soybeans have been altered only by the presence of the alien gene, as a matter of fact the plant’s own genetic system has been unwittingly altered as well, with potentially dangerous consequences.6 The list of malfunctions gets little notice; biotechnology companies are not in the habit of publicizing studies that question the efficacy of their miraculous products or suggest the presence of a serpent in the biotech garden.”

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