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Mike Steely's avatar

The concerns about GMOs are a little more reality-based than the anti-vax movement. For one thing, Monsanto was suing farmers who didn’t want their GMO seeds but whose fields had been contaminated with them from neighboring farms. I am not making this up:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/feb/12/monsanto-sues-farmers-seed-patents

Organic farmers were not only losing their crops, but being penalized for it.

Also, there’s a big difference between selective breeding and genetic modification, which often involves the transfer of genes between different species. People have good reason to be concerned about the unintended consequences of something so new and strange, produced and its safety assured by the makers of Agent Orange.

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Barbara Kelberlau's avatar

Sure, votes affect other people, but so does soaking the land in herbicides and other pesticides. You aren’t affected, sitting up on your hill. Ask the people in farm country and the workers who spray the chemicals about being affected. Have you done even a minimum of research into the effects of the chemicals poured onto GMO crops on songbirds and our dwindling but essential insect populations? Any research into the activities of chemical companies like Bayer? Oh, wait, you probably have investments in those same companies that make you a lot of money. You invested for a living, right? Lots of money in agribusiness.

Weed control without herbicides is a bit harder. I once cleared 22 acres of land up on Evans Creek of star thistle just by hand pulling. I did this while working a 40 hour a week job over the course of 2 seasons. I’m sure I could do the same with puncture vine. It is easily recognizable and easily pulled before it goes to seed. What did people do before herbicides?

Can you really not see the problem with fogging acres and acres of farmland with harmful chemicals just to kill weeds which may or may not even be there. If they’re killing weeds, well, what else are they killing?

Bayer produces the GMO seed, the farm chemicals, and when you need them, the anti cancer drugs.

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