Monsanto and Argentina

[Magoya]

Fabe:

From where I stand, its the first world saying "do as I say and not as I do".

You framing a hundred houses will probably not make much of a difference. But how much virgin land is there in the US? The UK? How much "unproductive" land (no crops, etc.) remain? Originary forests? I'd guess not much except for Natural Parks.

As I see it, either
1. Find a way to get enough money into the developing world by means of eco tourism so that it pays out to keep the original resources
2. Stay out of it and let the countries do whatever it bests for their citizens. After all, its nobody's business but theirs and you lack any standing to do anything about it.

If Brazil decides to flat out the amazon forests to raise crops...well, unless you are willing to pay to avoid it, its their choice and their right to do it.

 

[Fabe]

but therein is the matter.
Brazil or the people of chaco wont go thru the herculean effort to wipe out 6 square miles just to plant crops. They will SELL that land to whom has the coin to buy it .
So , blame is a funny thing. Who can one blame here ? The buyer ? why ? There is someone willing to sell out .

 

[Magoya]

I can tell you that local would wipe out 6 sq miles to plant soy or a money making crop. So would Brazilians.

 

[sesamosinsal]

I can tell you that local would wipe out 6 sq miles to plant soy or a money making crop. So would Brazilians.

Ecuador has some brilliant initiatives to prevent deforestation. They have a program called Socio Bosque, which pays people who own land with a bosque to keep it the way it is.

As far as the international community's reaction to all of this, you're correct in saying that it's more talk than anything else. Also in Ecuador, the international community has had an opportunity to play a role in the Ecuadorian government's initiative to save a forest area filled with oil. The Yasuni-ITT initiative would seek $3.6 billion over 13 years from public and private contributors, in exchange for maintaining the ecological area untouched and the oil underground. I think they've raised -- in actual cash donations -- maybe a couple million. It's a shame...

 

[redrum]

for those who haven't seen the french documentary on monsanto, please watch and see why monsanto is quite possibly the most evil corporation out there.

for those who don't know, monsanto has genetically modified the seeds of crops so that they will "terminate" themselves and self destruct after one harvest season. this ensure that farmers must purchase new seeds from them every year rather than use seeds from the last harvest.

companies like monsanto seek to put a patent on life itself. as something occurs naturally in nature, obviously you cannot obtain a patent. however, if you can genetically modify it, then you can legally claim ownership and a patent. it's playing god and creating frankenstein gmo food stuffs that is put into our food, which they are not required to label, according to the FDA. gmo is one of the most dangerous threats to man today and one of the least known.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQ6YIlXIokA

 

[redrum]

It doesn't have much of anything to do with this government. It comes down to the predominant capitalist economic system, which emphasizes continuous, steady growth and mindless consumption. The only problem is that our resources are finite, and nothing -- not even this planet -- will last forever.

And re: "Free Stuff" ... What are you referring to exactly? Health care? Education? Public transport subsidies? Child Credits? I guess the U.S. model works like a charm, right?

you can point the finger at "crony capitalism" where we no longer have free markets. one could argue we haven't had free markets for decades now. capitalism did work for a while and i don't think it's fair to say capitalism is to blame per se. michael moore's blind condemnation of capitalism is completely disingenuous as he has had made 100s of millions from capitalism.

when you have corrupt govt. working hand in hand with corrupt business, the only outcome that can occur is that a few will become outrageously wealthy at the expense of the people, who will become further impoverished. this is happening in the US right now. our govt. is nothing more than a mafia. it's the largest mafia that reigns over smaller regional mafias and so on - prob not much different than argentina.

how else can you explain why an obama crony like jon corzine can get away with being at the helm of the 8th largest bankruptcy in history(MF Global), while stealing billions in customer funds and the courts don't even have the decency to take the man's passport to ensure he doesn't run. most people have probably not even heard of MF Global. he gets up in front of congress and lies to their faces, saying that as CEO, he had no idea what was going on. of course is it any surprise that he used to head up goldman sachs.

 

[mikaela]

Has anyone seen the new thrive movie? i doubt it will hit the cinemas here - but worth seeing, can view on online. It discusses this all. I do think its a big shame that anyone will sell their country, but I guess so long as there are unconscious corporations, there are always sellers and buyers - what's one to do....

 

[willwright]

Good discussion, the the OP should have mentioned that the tract is from an article in the Argentina Independent from 2008 written by Caitlyn Greene. The link to the article is here http://www.argentinaindependent.com...beyond-the-amazon-deforestation-in-argentina/ Sorry couldn't get the link to work but you can still look it up. I think it's ok to use other peoples material on a site like this, but it should be properly attributed. Thanks

 

[Fabe]

Redrum,
I dont see anything wrong with those seeds. Its a product that has many attributes. Most of the modern world has been geneticaly engineering corn since the days of the plymouth colonies.
That product has been engineered to resist diseases and other things that attack that particular crop.
The stopped selling it to argentina because someone in argentina decided to back engineer it so it wouldnt auto sterilize itself .
These folks , like many others are in buissiness to make money , not to redistruibute "riqueza".
However , that said . Did you ever see the documentary on DOW Chemical ? It has to do when they were devolping PVC. Their the bones of their workers qho would mix the batches over a short period of time would decalcinate. In other words , they were left with fingers with no bone.
Because these employees were looked after by the company doctor , they amassed over 20 years of xrays that finally screwed them when they were sued.
I love PBS !

 

[redrum]

Redrum,
I dont see anything wrong with those seeds. Its a product that has many attributes. Most of the modern world has been geneticaly engineering corn since the days of the plymouth colonies.
That product has been engineered to resist diseases and other things that attack that particular crop.
The stopped selling it to argentina because someone in argentina decided to back engineer it so it wouldnt auto sterilize itself .
These folks , like many others are in buissiness to make money , not to redistruibute "riqueza".
However , that said . Did you ever see the documentary on DOW Chemical ? It has to do when they were devolping PVC. Their the bones of their workers qho would mix the batches over a short period of time would decalcinate. In other words , they were left with fingers with no bone.
Because these employees were looked after by the company doctor , they amassed over 20 years of xrays that finally screwed them when they were sued.
I love PBS !

fabe thanks for your comment however i think you and i have a fundamental difference in opinion on what is considered acceptable and what is not.

the terminator seed does not have any attributes expect to corner a market and attain control over nature using despicable methods. where do you draw the line between making money and harming society?

i'm sorry but there is no comparison to what monsanto does and what the colonists of plymouth rock did by cross breeding corn varieties in order to create a more resistant hybrid. what monsanto does is fundamentally against the laws of nature - all for profit and at the expense of the poor. saying that it is more resistant to disease and insects and has greater yields is nothing more than a gimmick.

do you honestly think that engineering an insecticide into the crop that keeps away insects won't harm humans? really? think about it. food is the most precious thing our bodies need after water. do you really feel comfortable eating gmo food? if genetic modification is so good then why not allow proper labeling? why conceal when certain products contain gmo?

this has nothing to do with feeding the world. it has nothing to do with creating a better product. this is about agribusiness and who gets to control food. you destroy and steal from nature and replace with your own frankenstein food that you own and that you control - and that you make billions from.

"If you put a label on genetically engineered food you might as well put a skull and crossbones on it." - Norman Braksick, president of Asgrow Seed Co., a subsidiary of Monsanto, quoted in the Kansas City Star, March 7, 1994

Monsanto's GMO Corn Linked To Organ Failure, Study Reveals
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/12/monsantos-gmo-corn-linked_n_420365.html

Monsanto Whistleblower Says Genetically Engineered Crops May Cause Disease
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?aid=3912&context=va

New Study Links Monsanto's Roundup to Cancer
http://www.organicconsumers.org/monsanto/glyphocancer.cfm

10 Things Monsanto Does Not Want You to Know
http://www.organicconsumers.org/Monsanto/ten-things-monsanto.pdf

It is too late to shut the door on GM foods
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/oct/16/too-late-to-stop-gm

"Three companies now control nearly half of the total global market in proprietary seeds, worth $22bn (£13.5bn) a year. In 2007, the US-based Monsanto accounted for nearly a quarter of the total global market (23%), followed by another American company, DuPont (15%) and Swiss-headquartered Syngenta (9%)."