Re: Suicide Seeds on the Fast Track

[nik <fragments@va.com.au>]

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> On Mon, 27 Mar 2000, Lizzi wrote:
>
> > What is the problem with genetically altered
> > seeds--the site that is recommended doesn't give
> > any reasoning?  Also Monsanto appears to be the
> > target of alot of slander...any paticular reason
> > for that, or are they just 'bad' because they are
> > willing to use modern technology?

well,...
first off, seeds with a terminator function destroy the seed collection
traditions that are essential to most of the worlds farming communities,
especially the world third world farming communities who are already
poor enough without having to buy the seeds for their crops year after
year after year.

secondly, most of the crops that terminator seeds are being developed
(or have been developed) for are not pure products of a lab - they have
existed for centurys as a common biological resource. if you could
collect the seeds, and get yourself some land, you could grow a crop.
privatising what was a common resource by way of making a minor
detrimental change to the overall plant contributes to the growing
inequity between multinational corps and farmers-on-the-land.

thirdly, genetically modifying a staple crop and then releasing it into
general circulation is a reckless action, needlessly endangering entire
ecosystems with genetic pollution - no where near enough testing has
been down to study the effects of modified organisims on an establised
ecosystem.

and finaly, as the lorax said, the modification only serves to make
other chemical herbacide products more attractive to buy, thereby
contributing to the poisoning of the earth through the overuse of toxic
chemicals...

oh, and i suppose theres always the point that we dont know what GMO's
do to people yet either.

nik



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