big chainring 

Looks like Grantby in Hurbertshire just west of Stover. Go Lamplighters!

Gconan

https://foodbabe.com/the-united-stat...s-in-the-dark/

​As a delegate from North Carolina at the recent Democratic National Convention (DNC), I sought the truth about GMO-labeling from the leaders of our country and was completely appalled at what I discovered. As many people may know, our food is missing a very important label – one that ​​​​​​President Obama, the FDA, and the USDA have made a concerted effort to deny us from having.

This label is for foods containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which are in 90% of our processed food. GMOs are foods biologically manufactured in laboratories – injected with new DNA, viruses, herbicides, insecticides and/or other chemicals – to be resistant to synthetic chemicals and are completely different than hybridizing techniques allowed by nature. Furthermore, GMOs receive patents by the U.S. Patent Office because they have been deemed to be unique and different. Over 50 countries around the world require GMOs to be labeled or regulated.The U.S.A. does not

https://foodbabe.com/the-united-stat...s-in-the-dark/

President Obama promised to label genetically modified foods during his campaign in 2007 but once elected into office, he abandoned this stance. Why? Upsetting Big Ag and the chemical industry was not going to help him get re-elected in 2012. Protecting the rights of American consumers and keeping his campaign pledge were obviously of secondary importance.

Representing North Carolina at the DNC, I believed it was my obligation to hold the leaders I helped put in office accountable for their actions. Below are highlights from the GMO–labeling conversations I had with national democratic leaders, media and celebrities. I now know why a GMO-labeling law has never passed.

https://foodbabe.com/the-united-stat...s-in-the-dark/

balut bandit

Happy Feet

Ughh... Just a brief look at the authoritative websites you quote shows where you get your info from.

The "Institute for Responsible Technology" was created on the internet in 2003 by author and self proclaimed GMO expert Jeffrey Smith. That's it - he's the institute.

"foodbabe" (that inspires confidence whenever someone uses babe to describe scientific work) describes herself as such:

My name is Vani Hari, but I’m now better known as “The Food Babe.” For most of my life, I ate anything I wanted. I was a candy addict, drank soda, never ate green vegetables, frequented fast-food restaurants and ate an abundance of processed food... I used my new found inspiration for living a healthy life to drive my energy into investigating what is really in our food... I didn’t go to nutrition school to learn this. I had to teach myself everything... I was no longer confused by lengthy food labels...

the more I learned and the more lessons I put into action, the better I felt and wanted to tell everyone about it!

Happy Feet

I don't know what's fair. Someone tossed out a fear based supposition that something bad might happen if they mix human and plan genes and I provided an actual situation where something good happened when they did a similar thing to make bacteria produce human like insulin. You know, balancing what might happen with what did happen, the maybe bad with the real good.

To be really fair, why not link to the bad thing that happened on a scale comparable to helping millions cope with diabetes?
Ps. Preferably from a non biased source not seeking to profit from their own advocacy.

Also, I covered the perceived Bt concern earlier by stating what the real alternative was, or did you just want to ignore that part. They didn't develop that strain out of a vacuum - it is in response to the current practice of broad spectrum manual application of Bt to crops. That means spraying it all over everything (the soil, other plants, other insects that don't feed on plants, workers, equipment) and hoping just some of it sticks to the plant.
How about just asking yourself what the alternative currently is when questioning a product.

Like, what's the real current alternative to not producing a product like Golden Rice: The Golden Rice Project

That website is also biased in its way so I would invite one to read the section entitled: Who we are to discover what their motivation is and their open patent policy for third world farmers so they will be able to grow from their own seed stock without patent/payment issues.

balut bandit

jon c. 

We've moved from "it's no different from hybridization" to "nothing really bad has happened yet."

FBOATSB

One could spend some internet time reading about the rising levels of glyphosate in everything, including bloodstreams. Seems to me bad things are happening.

Ironfish653

Damn, this is going to be a long winter. (Thanks, Global Warming!)

Here I was getting ready for a nice, cosy conversation about the joys of Bacon, Moustache Bars, and Suntour barcons, and you lot had to go get all internet-scientific on it.

I'm going to finish my coffee and bacon, then take the old Bridgestone out for a ride. This is a Bicycle forum, isn't it?

Happy Feet

Weird. I thought it had moved from unsubstantiated claims of fear to demonstrated facts of benefit.

livedarklions

So is this thread about splicing bacon into my hybrid bike?

Happy Feet

If that is an issue arising from the use of glyphosphates in agriculture it is from the overuse of a broad spectrum, manually applied liquid herbicide - Roundup.

That has also led to the development of herbicide resistant weeds, again from overuse of old fashioned sprays.

There could be an emerging issue with GMO resistant crops that allow Roundup to be sprayed post emergence (you currently can't use it on actively growing crops) but that is a policy issue - not a problem arising out of the seedstock itself. Those GM seeds have nothing to do with the old fashioned chemical being applied to them.

It's a good example of why one needs to think about the science and not just give into fear based generalizations.

Happy Feet

Yes and no. It's about the fear that splicing bacon will one day make your hybrid bike assplode!
Even though it will really only turn it red and thus... make it go faster.
Status quo would be to keep wrapping it in bacon and forget about the aerodynamic drag (and small animals nesting under the saddle).

prj71

This is why you have pains. Too much processed foods causes inflammation in the joints.

And by the way...Soylent Green is People!!!

mstateglfr 

So this thread has managed to veer way off of Grant, but still has the legs of the usual controversial Grant thread! That’s impressive.

Ill toss some views on the topics discussed since, well, it’s a message board.

I work with 4 of the largest US distributors of GMO seed corn and the common chemicals along with many smaller companies too. It is a constant tug of doing my job to make money and fully recognizing that what I work on is absolutely not good for my environment. There is no part of me that doubts glyphosate’s danger because it certainly isn’t a good thing to touch, be around, or ingest. And if it isn’t a good thing to ingest, then...
And then there is the clear environmental problem due to ag chem runoff and leaching into waterways and groundwater. Good lord that’s just an awful topic to sit down and come to terms with.

GMO isn’t the boogeyman many against it make it seem to be. But the technology has some seriously concerning potential unintended consequences from ethical and legal perspectives.
I fully understand why corporations effectively own the patents on life for GMO seed- their technology makes it happen and they need to make money year after year so they make it law to buy the seeds year after year. Pretty easy to understand from the perspectives of the companies. But the patenting of life has some potentially dangerous results. Yes, I typed out potential and not realized, but the potential downside of something is still sometimes cause enough to not go balls in on embracing it.

Since this thread has now touched on the benefit of messing around with genetics at the human level…
8 years ago, our youngest child was tested for a fatal recessive disease at the 8 cell embryo stage. We knew the recessive disease was fatal since our second child died shortly after birth due to the recessive disease(ARPKD). It was, at the time, absolutely cutting edge biotech. It was also incredibly difficult to handle because each embryo tested was potential life and we were effectively determining what would have a chance to live. Knowing that the afflicted embryos would die shortly after birth if carried to term helped clarify things.
All of this is connected- advancements in one field find their way into other fields. Its incredibly concerning to consider the potential issues genetic manipulation can and will have on humans and we are moving way too quickly in advancements with not enough regard for the social and health impacts. Science fiction is fiction until it isn’t.

The US produces enough food to feed the entire world. The US also disposes of about 35% of its food. Perfectly good food- just tossed out because its imperfect looking, not preferred seasonally, etc. There are areas in the world with very real and very instable food security and that must continue to be addressed, but as it is there is enough food in the world to feed the world many times over, so saying in general that we need this tech to produce enough food is…not fully accurate. Ill phrase it that way. It isn’t inaccurate, but it also isn’t accurate.


As for injected junk, I don’t want to subject my children to hormones and excessive antibiotics by way of the necessary act of eating, if its at all possible. And I am fortunate enough to be in a position to avoid it to a decent degree.
I don’t think any parent would sit down at the table with their children for dinner physically spoon out glyphosate, bovine hormones, or poultry antibiotics to their kids, even in the incremental amounts that are found in each meal. If they wouldn’t, then why would they do the same thru food if they have the opportunity not to?

Again- not all of this is the boogeyman its made out to be, but until I see video of all the defenders eating a spoonful of glyphosate with their Peaches N Cream Oatmeal, im gonna continue to try to periodically avoid indirectly consuming field chemicals and livestock hormones.


<end rant>

OBoile

foodbabe.com? Really?

FlashSteve

I solved the knee/bacon problem by getting a custom Land Shark carbon bike. John Slawta's logo includes a sizzling slice of bacon. For $9500, and zero calories, my kness are now fine.

jimrno

I received "EAT BACON, DON'T JOG" for Xmas. It is a super easy read, almost every thought presented in short one page chapters. I think it is very interesting, and I am trying some of his suggestions.
Look up Rivbike.com if you want to read Grant Petersen's advice on how to enjoy bicycling without spandex jumpsuits and mechanical shoes.

JanMM

But, I enjoy my mechanical shoes.

willibrord

Big biotech companies pay people to post on social media, forums etc. and defend their techniques and products. Maybe this topic should be shut down.

FBOATSB

Yes. Too political. Thanks Grant.

balut bandit

Tin foil hat sales are off the charts!

noglider 

I noticed this book is available in Kindle version for free for Amazon Prime subscribers, and I am one, so I just "bought" it for nothing. I enjoyed Just Ride, so I will see how the new book is.

Lemond1985

Hopefully you don't end up with the Scott Peterson book, by mistake. That would be kind of disturbing.

Happy Feet

Where's my cheque? I want to buy GP's book.