More Fun for the Food Chain?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

Well, the IDIOTS in Congress are at it again. Not related to Y2K, other than an example of how dangerous those Congressional asswipes are. "Hey guys, lets put the entire plant kingdom at risk of exposure to mutated mold."

From the Libertarian Press Release:

Libertarians blast Congress for spending $23 million to develop anti-drug killer fungus

WASHINGTON, DC -- The United States government is spending $23 million to develop a killer fungus to wipe out marijuana plants -- a dangerous plan that could cause an environmental catastrophe, said the Libertarian Party today.

"This project is the political equivalent of athlete's foot fungus: It's nasty, it's dangerous, and it needs to be stopped before it spreads," said LP National Director Steve Dasbach. "The last thing we need is a bio-engineered killer fungus turned loose on the world."

Late last year, Congress passed legislation that authorized $23 million for research into soil-borne fungi called "mycoherbicides," which will attack and kill marijuana plants, poppy plants, and coca plants.

When developed, the fungus could be released in such South American countries as Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia, said U.S. officials.

The legislation was guided through Congress by U.S. Representatives Bill McCollum (R-FL) and Mike DeWine (R-OH), who said the killer fungus was potentially a "silver bullet" in the War on Drugs.

But Libertarians say the tax-subsidized fungus is a "biohazard" that could have a disastrous impact on the ecosystems of the target nations -- and, potentially, the whole world.

"In the government's irresponsible search for a quick-fix in the War on Drugs, politicians could cause terrifying long-term ecological problems," warned Dasbach. According to scientists, the killer fungus could...

* Attack other plants, wiping out valuable cash crops. "For example, a chemical alkaloid similar to the one that produces cocaine is present in many legal plants -- including tobacco and coffee beans," said Dasbach. "In an effort to wipe out drugs, this killer fungus could wipe out the livelihood of millions of farmers."

* Cause many plants to develop stronger chemical defenses against the fungus, which could then mutate and spread to other, harmful plants. "According to scientists, mutated plants could pass on these resistant genes and create herbicide-resistant weeds, which could have a ruinous effect on farm yields," he said. "With world hunger already a problem, why risk making it worse?"

* Wipe out industrial hemp plants, which are legal in every major industrialized country outside the United States. "No fungus is smart enough to tell the difference between legal hemp and illegal marijuana," noted Dasbach. "This fungus could be the biological warfare equivalent of carpet bombing -- killing whatever is in its path."

What should Americans do about this dangerous program? Tell their Congressional representatives to apply a strong dose of political fungicide to "cure" it, said Dasbach.

"This tax-funded fungus should be treated like any dangerous mold or mildew -- exposed to sunlight and wiped clean. Congress should just say no to biological warfare."

Dasbach also said Libertarians have a better way to reduce the consumption of marijuana, with no environmental risks: Legalize it.

In the Netherlands, he noted, where marijuana is decriminalized, drug use is half that of the United States. In fact, a new study revealed that while 32.9% of Americans have tried marijuana, only 15.6% of Dutch adults have done so.

"Treating adults like adults -- and letting them make decisions about how to live their lives -- seems to have a stronger anti-drug effect than any killer fungus," said Dasbach. "Wouldn't it be ironic if liberty was a more effective anti-drug program than deadly mycoherbicides?"

END QUOTE

Does this plan sound risky to anyone else? Supose this mold mutates and develops a taste for wheat or rice?

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), January 12, 1999

Answers

Well, Uncle... Since the plan was crafted and devised by the federal government, it stands to reason that it is stupid, untimely, and another example of profligate spending. Oh yeah, it's probably dangerous, too.

You know, I worry about Y2K and what a terrible impact it may have on us all. Then I think, "If it's bad enough, we'll be rid of the leeches and suckers in Washington whose only mission in life is to get re-elected." Y2K just may take down the corrupt politicians, an amoral politician, the useless bureaucrats, the deadly IRS and all the other remoras that have attached themselves to the body politic.

-- Vic Parker (francisco@d'anconia.com), January 12, 1999.


I meant to say an amoral president.

-- Vic Parker (francisco@d'anconia.com), January 12, 1999.

Or perhaps a remoral president ?

-- Blue Himalayan (bh@k2.y), January 12, 1999.

Good one, Blue!

-- Vic Parker (francisco@d'anconia.com), January 12, 1999.

There's already a planet killer in the form of Monsanto's Terminator Technology, designed to create seeds that cannot reproduce. It's targetted at poorer countries, and farmers in India and Ireland have already vigorously protested and burned Monsanto's test fields. Imagine your food crop cross-pollinated with terminator seeds. Want to save seeds for next year's crop? Not if Monsanto has anything to do with it.

-- Karen Cook (browsercat@yerf.net), January 12, 1999.


There are already problems from Roundup Ready beans, etc. It seems that the gene that was to make beans resistent to Roundup has spread to local weeds and therefore require even more herbicide to kill them. Can we say Oops???

-- Just Me (none@nomail.com), January 12, 1999.

Yeah, I've heard about all of these, and I agree, they sound awfully dangerous. The one thing I'll say about the Terminator seeds, it seems as though that would be a self-limiting problem. By definition, that's one gene which isn't going to reproduce...

But it is one more effort by the big rich guys to tighten the screws on the little guys. Things are looking Orwellian all over, aren't they? I hadn't heard about the field burnings--good for them!

-- Shimrod (shimrod@lycosmail.com), January 12, 1999.


The folks running this show must be certifiably crazy.

I read recently that the U.S. Navy had a wire-guided torpedo (for submarine use) in service for some ten years. This torpedo carried a nuclear warhead. You only get one shot with this one, since the first explosion destroys your own ship. Go figure.

-- Tom Carey (tomcarey@mindspring.com), January 13, 1999.


Unc',

You've got it pegged. I'm still sitting with my jaw slack and my mouth agape! Where O' where do these so called leaders come up with asinine plans such as that. I don't know which would be worse:

a. living through the"reformatting of America's hard drive"(TEOTWAWKI)

b. living the rest of my life with the "status-quo" such as it is.

-- c (c@c.c), January 13, 1999.


Sometimes -just sometimes - I get this nagging suspicion that The Powers That Be actually do not have our best interests at heart.

A disturbing thought, no?

-- humptydumpty (no.6@thevillage.com), January 13, 1999.



C

Methinks that answer A might be better than answer B, sad but true.

I often say to Mrs. D, "I know that UFOs are real, and someday, if I've been a good boy, they will land in the front yard and take me home where I belong."

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), January 13, 1999.


yeah you think those clowns would have learned something after the Paraquat fiasco...

-- a (a@a.a), January 13, 1999.

Shimrod,

It won't be a self-limiting problem. There is a significant chance of the plants that have Terminator built into them cross pollinating with other plants that are nearby. Say you have 1 field with Terminator in it. The pollen blows or is taken to adjacent fields by insects. The pollen changes some of the plants in the non-Terminator fields. Next season, the farmer who was counting upon the seed that he harvested to grow is going to have NO crop, or very little.

If the corn with Terminator were to crossbreed with some wild plants that are in the same genus (Graminae family), there could be devastating results. This includes nearly all of the grains and grasses that humans eat (wheat, corn, rye, you name it).

Never before has man had the capability to disrupt the seed-to-seed cycle that sustains land life on this planet. He does now, and it is in the hands of our "trustworthy" corporations. Thank you, Monsanto.

I don't like the idea of some mega-corporation having a stranglehold on all food on this planet, thank you.

-- Bill (billclo@hotmail.com), January 13, 1999.


Is there any chance that Monsanto will be facing a class action suit from affected farmers (or consumers)? Maybe we can close that amoral ^%@&%A& company down.

-- Tricia the Canuck (jayles@telusplanet.net), January 13, 1999.

Picture Mankind in the Universe as a monkey wandering around in the dark in an explosives factory.

Those criminally insane morons in Congress have given the monkey a zippo and told him to find and light the fuse attached to the packages labeled "Hemp", "poppy", "coca", etc.

Will the monkey find the fuse before the lights go out everywhere? Or, will he simply not be able to figure out how a zippo works in time?

Maybe he'll find the right "packages" and light the right "fuses" and nothing else will blow up! (Yeah, right. . .)

-- Hardliner (searcher@internet.com), January 14, 1999.



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