Blockk Blockk Blockk Blockk
  • News Portal
  • World Desk
    • Sign In
    • Submit Content
    • Register
  • All Content
    • Edited
      • Topics
        • Agriculture
        • Culture
          • Arts
          • Children
          • Education
          • Entertainment
          • Food and Hunger
          • Sports
        • Disasters
        • Economy
        • Energy
        • Environment
        • Government
        • Health
        • Media
        • Science
        • Spiritual
        • Technology
        • Transportation
        • War
      • Regions
        • Africa
        • Americas
          • North America
          • South America
        • Antarctica
        • Arctic
        • Asia
        • Australia/Oceania
        • Europe
        • Middle East
        • Oceans
          • Arctic Ocean
          • Atlantic Ocean
          • Indian Ocean
          • Pacific Ocean
          • Southern Ocean
        • Space
      • News
      • Commentary
      • Analysis
      • Advisories
      • Source
    • Flatwire
  • About Us
  • Site Map
  • Contact Us

Latest Stories

... loading images
Post-Vaccine Vaginal Bleeding Rates Associated With All ...
Post-Vaccine Vaginal Bleeding Rates Associated With All COVID-19 Vaccine Types Across Reproductive Ages | Justin Jackson
Are NFTs Really Dead And Buried? All Signs Point To 'Yes' ...
Are NFTs Really Dead And Buried? All Signs Point To 'Yes' | John Hawkins
GOOD MORNING! 231002
GOOD MORNING! 231002
Hermit 'Scribblings' Of Eccentric French Math Genius ...
Hermit 'Scribblings' Of Eccentric French Math Genius Unveiled | Juliette Collen
More Banks to Fail? Not in North Dakota | Ellen Brown
More Banks to Fail? Not in North Dakota | Ellen Brown
BOOKS: ‘Capitalism Is Dead. Now We Have Something Much ...
BOOKS: ‘Capitalism Is Dead. Now We Have Something Much Worse’ | Carole Cadwalladr
Ghosts of the Past: For Israel, War on UNESCO is an ...
Ghosts of the Past: For Israel, War on UNESCO is an Existential Battle | Ramzy Baroud
Artificial intelligence (AI) | Wikipedia
Artificial intelligence (AI) | Wikipedia
Blockchain | Wikipedia
Blockchain | Wikipedia
NASA's First Asteroid Samples Land On Earth After Release ...
NASA's First Asteroid Samples Land On Earth After Release From Spacecraft | Marcia Dunn
Our Digital Twins Will Help Diagnose And Treat Diseases ...
Our Digital Twins Will Help Diagnose And Treat Diseases | Thomas Gull, University of Zurich
US Farmers, Tech Tycoons Square Off Over Plans For Utopian ...
US Farmers, Tech Tycoons Square Off Over Plans For Utopian City | Glenn Chapman
Falling Solar Power And Storage Prices Make Global Climate ...
Falling Solar Power And Storage Prices Make Global Climate Transition Cheaper Than Expected | Ulrich von Lampe
Why the Next Crypto Bull Run Will Be Like Nothing We've ...
Why the Next Crypto Bull Run Will Be Like Nothing We've Ever Experienced | Solo Ceesay
Human-Driven Mass Extinction Is Eliminating Entire Branches ...
Human-Driven Mass Extinction Is Eliminating Entire Branches Of The Tree Of Life | Stanford University
The Untold Story of the Abuse of Palestinian Women in ...
The Untold Story of the Abuse of Palestinian Women in Hebron | Ramzy Baroud

Polluted America | Paul Craig Roberts

More items by author
Categories
Edited | Front Page Stories | All Content | Agriculture | Food and Hunger | Business | Environment | Politics | North America | Commentary | Commentary -- WNT Original
Tool Bar
View Comments

roundupFeb. 24, 2013 (PaulCraigRoberts.org) -- In the United States everything is polluted.

Democracy is polluted with special interests and corrupt politicians.

Accountability is polluted with executive branch exemptions from law and the Constitution and with special legal privileges for corporations, such as the Supreme Court-given right to corporations to purchase American elections.

The Constitution is polluted with corrupt legal interpretations from the Bush and Obama regimes that have turned constitutional prohibitions into executive branch rights, transforming law from a shield of the people into a weapon in the hands of government.

Waters are polluted with toxic waste spills, oil spills, chemical fertilizer run-off with resulting red tides and dead zones, acid discharges from mining with resulting destructive algae such as prymnesium parvum, from toxic chemicals used in fracking and with methane that fracking releases into wells and aquifers, resulting in warnings to homeowners near to fracking operations to open their windows when showering.

The soil’s fertility is damaged, and crops require large quantities of chemical fertilizers. The soil is polluted with an endless array of toxic substances and now with glyphosate, the main element in Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide with which GMO crops are sprayed. Glyphosate now shows up in wells, streams and in rain.

Air is polluted with a variety of substances, and there are many large cities in which there are days when the young, the elderly, and those suffering with asthma are warned to remain indoors.

All of these costs are costs imposed on society and ordinary people by corporations that banked profits by not having to take the costs into account. This is the way in which unregulated capitalism works.

Our food itself is polluted with antibiotics, growth hormones, pesticides, and glyphosate.

Glyphosate might be the most dangerous development to date. Some scientists believe that glyphosate has the potential to wipe out our main grain crops and now that Obama’s Secretary of Agriculture, Thomas Vilsack, has approved genetically modified Roundup Ready alfalfa, maintaining sustainable animal herds for milk and meat could become impossible.

Alfalfa is the main forage crop for dairy and beef herds. Genetically modified alfalfa could be unsafe for animal feed, and animal products such as milk and meat could become unsafe for human consumption.

On Jan. 17, 2011, Dr. Don Huber outlined the dangers of approving Roundup Ready alfalfa in a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack. Huber requested that approval be delayed until independent research could evaluate the risks. Vilsack ignored Huber’s letter and ten days later deregulated Roundup Ready alfalfa on Jan. 27, thus accommodating Monsanto’s desire for monopoly profits that come from the company’s drive to control the seed supply of U.S. and world agriculture by approving Roundup Ready alfalfa.

Who is Don Huber, and why is his letter important?

Huber is professor emeritus at Purdue University. He has been a plant pathologist and soil microbiologist for a half century. He has an international reputation as a leading authority. In the U.S. military, he evaluated natural and manmade biological threats, such as germ warfare and disease outbreaks and retired with the rank of Colonel. For the USDA he coordinates the Emergent Diseases and Pathogens Committee. In other words, he is high up in his scientific profession.

You can read online what Huber told the Secretary of Agriculture. Briefly, the outcome of many years of Roundup Ready GMO corn and soybeans has been a decline in nutritional value, the outbreak of new plant diseases resulting in widespread crop failures, and severe reproductive problems in livestock, with some herds having a spontaneous abortion rate that is too high to maintain a profitable business.

Glyphosate is a powerful biocide. It harms beneficial soil organisms, altering the natural balance in the soil and reducing the disease resistance of crops, thus unleashing diseases that devastate corn, soybean, and wheat crops, and giving rise to a new pathogen associated with premature animal aging and infertility. These developments, Huber told the Agriculture Secretary, “are threatening the economic viability of both crop and animal producers.” The evidence seems to be real that genetically modified crops have lost their genetic resistance to diseases that never previously were threats.

There is evidence that the new pathogen is related to a rise in human infertility and is likely having adverse effects on human health of which we are still uninformed. Like fluoride, glyphosate might enter our diet in a variety of ways. For example, the label on a bottle of Vitamin D says, “Other ingredients: soybean oil, corn oil.”

Monsanto disputes Huber’s claims and got support for its position from the agricultural extension services of Iowa State and Ohio State universities. However, the question is whether these are independently funded services or corporate supported, and there is always the element of professional rivalry, especially for funding, which comes mainly from agribusiness.

The Purdue University extension service was more circumspect. On the one hand it admits that there is evidence that supports Huber’s claims: “The claim that herbicides, such as glyphosate, can make plants more susceptible to disease is not entirely without merit. Research has indicated that plants sprayed with glyphosate or other herbicides are more susceptible to many biological and physiological disorders (Babiker et al., 2011; Descalzo et al., 1996; Johal and Rahe, 1984; Larson et al., 2006; Means and Kremer, 2007; Sanogo et al., 2000; Smiley et al., 1992).... Although some research indicates there is an increase in disease severity on plants in the presence of glyphosate, it does NOT necessarily mean that there is an impact on yield.”

On the other hand, the Purdue extension service maintains its recommendation for “judicious glyphosate use for weed control.” However, one of Huber’s points is that weeds are developing Roundup resistance. Use has gone beyond the “judicious” level and as glyphosate builds up in soil, its adverse effects increase.

A submission to the Environmental Protection Agency by 26 university entomologists describes the constraints that agribusiness has put on the ability of independent scientists to conduct objective research. The submission, in which the scientists are afraid to reveal their names because of the threat of funding cutoffs, is included as an item in one of the bibliographical references below. Here is the statement:

“The names of the scientists have been withheld from the public docket because virtually all of us require cooperation from industry at some level to conduct our research. Statement: Technology/stewardship agreements required for the purchase of genetically modified seed explicitly prohibit research. These agreements inhibit public scientists from pursuing their mandated role on behalf of the public good unless the research is approved by industry. As a result of restricted access, no truly independent research can be legally conducted on many critical questions regarding the technology, its performance, its management implications, IRM, and its interactions with insect biology. Consequently, data flowing to an EPA Scientific Advisory Panel from the public sector is unduly limited.”

Monsanto is not only sufficiently powerful to prevent any research other than that which it purchases with its funding, but also Monsanto succeeded last year in blocking with money and propaganda the GMO labeling law in California. I would tell you to be careful what you eat as it can make you ill and infertile, but you can’t even find out what you are eating.

You live in America, which has “freedom and democracy” and “accountable” government and ”accountable” corporations. You don’t need to worry. The government and responsible corporations are taking good care of you. Especially Obama, Vilsack, and Monsanto.

Short bibliography:

http://fhr.branditimage.com/hot-topic-letter-to-us-secretary-of-agriculture/

http://www.fooddemocracynow.org/blog/2011/apr/6/don-hubers-cover-letter-euuk-commissions/

http://vimeo.com/22997532

http://www.greenpasture.org/utility/showArticle/?objectID=7169

http://ourecovillage.org/2011/04/11/dr-hubers-cover-letter-to-secretary-vilsack/

http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/51-2012/14164-glyphosate-and-gmos-impact-on-crops-soils-animals-and-man-dr-don-huber

http://www.non-gmoreport.com/articles/may10/consequenceso_widespread_glyphosate_use.php

http://www.monsanto.com/newsviews/Pages/huber-pathogen-roundup-ready-crops.aspx

http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/blogs/time-for-usda-to-wake-up-to-weed-resistance-and-ban-agent-orange-corn-once-and-for-all/

http://southeastfarmpress.com/resistant-pigweed-plagues-central-georgia-cotton

http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=2909

***

Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and associate editor of the Wall Street Journal. He was columnist for Business Week, Scripps Howard News Service, and Creators Syndicate. He has had many university appointments. His internet columns have attracted a worldwide following.

© PaulCraigRoberts.org -- Please contact Dr. Roberts for information on syndication rights.

back to top
  • Created
    Tuesday, February 26, 2013
  • Last modified
    Wednesday, November 06, 2013

World Desk Activities

  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ Editorial -- Blockchain & Crypto 02/10/2023
  • Report
 

www.coindesk.com/policy/2023/10/02/bankman-fried-s…

FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried Saw Missing Billions as ‘Rounding Error,’ Biographer Michael Lewis Says
FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried Saw Missing Billions as ‘Rounding Error,’ Biographer Michael Lewis Says Michael Lewis revealed management failings at crypto exchange FTX and a multi-billion-dollar plan to keep Donald Trump from running for office again, in an interview… www.coindesk.com/policy/2023/10/02/bankman-fried-saw-missing-ftx-billions-as-rounding-error-biographer-says/
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin 02/10/2023
  • Report
 

medicalxpress.com/news/2023-10-katalin-karik-drew-…

thumbnail

Nobel in medicine goes to two scientists whose work enabled creation of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19

  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ Editorial -- Blockchain & Crypto 01/10/2023
  • Report
 

www-forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.forbes.c…

‘Flashing Red Warning’—$33 Trillion U.S. ‘Debt Death Spiral’ Could Suddenly Trigger A Bitcoin Price ‘Vicious Circle’
‘Flashing Red Warning’—$33 Trillion U.S. ‘Debt Death Spiral’ Could Suddenly Trigger A Bitcoin Price ‘Vicious Circle’ www-forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/10/01/flashing-red-warning-33-trillion-us-debt-death-spiral-could-suddenly-trigger-a-bitcoin-price-vicious-circle/amp/?amp_js_v=0.1#webview=1&cap=swipe
  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ Editorial -- Blockchain & Crypto 01/10/2023
  • Report
 

www.coindesk.com/consensus-magazine/2023/09/29/whe…

Where Liquid Staking Meets Tokenization
Where Liquid Staking Meets Tokenization The crypto industry is changing rapidly, and liquid staking stands at the forefront of this transformation. www.coindesk.com/consensus-magazine/2023/09/29/where-liquid-staking-meets-tokenization/
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin added a video. 29/09/2023
  • Report
 

Sonny Saul Trio:  Intergalactic Suite, recorded live 9/1/2023

Sonny Saul Trio: Intergalactic Suite, recorded...

  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ World News Trust Project 29/09/2023
  • Report
 

www.niemanlab.org/2023/07/openai-will-give-local-n…

OpenAI will give local news millions to experiment with AI | Nieman Journalism Lab
OpenAI will give local news millions to experiment with AI | Nieman Journalism Lab Some of the funding will go to form a "studio" within the American Journalism Project; the rest will go to about 10 of AJP's grantees. www.niemanlab.org/2023/07/openai-will-give-local-news-millions-to-experiment-with-ai/
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin 29/09/2023
  • Report
 

phys.org/news/2023-09-mouthwash-dogs-additive-pome…

thumbnail

Mouthwash for dogs: Water additive with pomegranate helps to keep canine teeth healthy

  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ World News Trust Project 29/09/2023
  • Report
 

www.niemanlab.org/hubs/business-models/

Business Models  |  Hubs  |  Nieman Journalism Lab
Business Models | Hubs | Nieman Journalism Lab www.niemanlab.org/hubs/business-models/
  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ Editorial -- Artificial Intelligence 29/09/2023
  • Report
 

www.economist.com/briefing/2023/09/27/how-microsof…

How Microsoft could supplant Apple as the world’s most valuable firm
How Microsoft could supplant Apple as the world’s most valuable firm It hopes to seize on AI to transform the future of work | Briefing www.economist.com/briefing/2023/09/27/how-microsoft-could-supplant-apple-as-the-worlds-most-valuable-firm?utm_medium=social-media.content.np&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=editorial-social&utm_content=discovery.content
  • Report
Francis M Goodwin
Francis M Goodwin ▶ World News Trust Project 28/09/2023
  • Report
 

www.theguardian.com/media/2023/aug/30/manchester-m…

Manchester Mill newsletter eyes expansion after £1.75m valuation | Regional & local newspapers | The Guardian
Manchester Mill newsletter eyes expansion after £1.75m valuation | Regional & local newspapers | The Guardian Startup considers cities including Leeds and Glasgow for new versions of its paywalled local media model www.theguardian.com/media/2023/aug/30/manchester-mill-prepares-for-uk-expansion-after-valuation?_hsmi=76769268&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--2SxuaW2Axl1BHKIamPkywITYo6r-0bBCoIY6QB5Xo9Tr5dgheWB1i28OXqqLr0UPOzzIYSWuuDlJRz-dH9WKkare06C1LWxgyEPOC3i4SuHaXJ2E

Community Videos

  • Sonny Saul Trio:  Intergalactic Suite, recorded live 9/1/2023 01:25:30
  • David Bowie - Under Pressure (Live) 1996 • TopPop 04:07
  • Chumbawamba - Tubthumping 03:34
  • ZZ Top - La Grange (Live From Gruene Hall) | Stages 04:38
  • Exmagma - Goldball   1974  (full album) 35:06
  • Digital News Report 2023 | Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism 02:20
View all videos

Blogs & Submissions

  • More Banks to Fail? Not in North Dakota | Ellen Brown
  • Israeli ‘Coup’ and the Death of False Democracy | Ramzy Baroud
  • The Other Side of the West Africa Upheaval | Ramzy Baroud
  • ‘Bread and Circuses’: Musk, Zuckerberg and the Art of Distraction | Ramzy Baroud
  • The Twisted Israeli Logic of Murdering Palestinian Children, and What Can We Do to Stop It? | Ramzy ...
blue-flag-thumb2_50x50Our side's flag is a thin, airlight blue, drifting almost unseen against the sky. Our military march is a meadowlark's song among the dandelions.
--Ken Kesey, The Real War 
 
Welcome to the World News Trust social news network. We are dedicated to your privacy and the highest standards of journalistic excellence. Help us build a great news service. Visit our World Desk community to register or log in. See you there.
 
 -Francis Goodwin, World News Trust founder
‘Bread and Circuses’: Musk, Zuckerberg and the Art of ...
‘Bread and Circuses’: Musk, Zuckerberg and the Art of Distraction | Ramzy Baroud
What Are Smart Contracts? | Bing
What Are Smart Contracts? | Bing
Climate Conflagration: Maui to Montana | Amy Goodman & ...
Climate Conflagration: Maui to Montana | Amy Goodman & Denis Moynihan
Best Way To Enter News Stories Into A Blockchain? | Bing
Best Way To Enter News Stories Into A Blockchain? | Bing
War By Other Means: Short-Selling JPMorgan | Ellen Brown
War By Other Means: Short-Selling JPMorgan | Ellen Brown
Israel’s Slippery Slope | Nouriel Roubini
Israel’s Slippery Slope | Nouriel Roubini
How To Stop And Reverse Global Warming | Bing
How To Stop And Reverse Global Warming | Bing
US and Israel: Is the ‘Unbreakable Bond’ Finally Breaking? ...
US and Israel: Is the ‘Unbreakable Bond’ Finally Breaking? | Ramzy Baroud

Electronic Frontier Foundation

  • Cities Should Act NOW to Ban Predictive Policing...and Stop Using ShotSpotter, Too
    October 02, 2023
  • The Growing Threat of Cybercrime Law Abuse: LGBTQ+ Rights in MENA and the UN Cybercrime Draft Convention
    September 30, 2023
  • Watch EFF's Talks from DEF CON 31
    September 28, 2023
  • Get Real, Congress: Censoring Search Results or Recommendations Is Still Censorship
    September 28, 2023

The Intercept

  • Rep. Josh Gottheimer Headlines No Labels Call While Eyeing Run for Higher Office
    October 02, 2023
  • Amazon and Google Are Finally Facing the Music
    October 01, 2023
  • New Group Attacking iPhone Encryption Backed by U.S. Political Dark-Money Network
    October 01, 2023
  • George W. Bush Is Building a Memorial to the War on Terror. He Wants Your Feedback.
    September 30, 2023

VTDigger

  • Suspect in fatal Rutland motel shooting moving to trial more than 2 years later
    October 02, 2023
  • Another of Vermont’s most photographed farms off limits to leaf peepers
    October 02, 2023
  • Vermont’s congressional delegation celebrates short-term budget — but not without chastising House GOP
    October 02, 2023
  • Brattleboro mourns the deaths of brother-in-law patriarchs of neighboring farms
    October 02, 2023

Mountain Times -- Central Vermont

  • Your weekly horoscope, Sept. 28 – Oct. 3, 2023
    September 28, 2023
  • Great Gulf announces design team for village at Killington Resort
    September 28, 2023
  • Teenagers earn podiums at U.S. Open
    September 28, 2023
  • Mountain Times – Volume 51, Number 39 – Sept. 27 – Oct. 3, 2023
    September 28, 2023
  1. You are here:  
  2. Home
  3. All Content
  4. Edited
  5. Polluted America | Paul Craig Roberts
Copyright © 2023 World News Trust. All Rights Reserved.
Joomla! is Free Software released under the GNU General Public License.