Posted on 03/09/2015 5:08:39 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas told the Iowa Ag Conference that it was time to “push back” on “anti-science zealotry” concerning GMOs or genetically modified organisms, according to a Saturday story in the Washington Times. GMOs are crops that have been modified to have desirable traits, such as resistance to pests or to contain certain helpful vitamins and nutrients that they otherwise would not have. Oddly enough, Bill Nye, the former “science guy” and former GMO opponent has come around to Cruz’s point of view.
Nye, who is not a scientist but played one once on Children’s television, has joined in on the scientist as priesthood phenomenon, inveighing against the unscientific thinking of the hoi polloi. He has been particularly vehement against climate change “deniers,” even those who are actual climate scientists. He was also, until recently, an opponent of GMOs, on the theory that they were bad for the environment.
However, Nye, unlikely many “anti-science zealots,” decided to investigate for himself and went to the belly of the beast, as many view it, and studied the technology at Monsanto, the leading firm for GMOs. He discovered something that Ted Cruz already knew, that GMOs are a good thing. Pest resistant crops, for instance, mean less use of pesticides, which is good for the environment. Nutrient and vitamin infused crops, such as “golden rice,” can help millions of people overcome deficiency diseases, in this case, blindness....
(Excerpt) Read more at examiner.com ...
It is truly amazing to me to see how little people understand about basic genetics and molecular biology.
Every food crop that exists has been genetically modified. People have used a number of methods throughout history to accomplish this.
A popular technique at the turn of the 20th century was to expose seeds to strong radiation, which causes significant damage to the DNA in the form of altered nucleotides (i.e. mutations) and double-strand DNA breaks (which can cause whole segments of DNA to disappear or to move to another part of the genome where it didn’t already exist). The seeds that randomly picked up desirable traits were bred and became the basis of many crops.
No one seems to mind the old random methods of genetic alteration of food crops. But when a single gene is targeted for alteration, inactivation, or insertion without changing a single nucleotide of the rest of the genome, then, all of a sudden, it’s “Frankenfood.”
Seriously, people, before getting all panicky about targeted genetic engineering, inform yourselves.
Old genetic engineering methods (going back thousands of years) were random and unpredictable, comparable to trying to take a sledgehammer to a marble statue and hoping to improve its aesthetic qualities. New genetic engineering methods, dating back to the 1970s, could be compared to taking a tiny chisel and tapping the statue gently to remove a nearly invisible flaw.
All of the diabetics have to realize that the insulin that they take is produced by genetically engineered bacteria. They don’t make it from pig pancreases anymore.
You wrote:
“It is truly amazing to me to see how little people understand about basic genetics and molecular biology.
Every food crop that exists has been genetically modified. People have used a number of methods throughout history to accomplish this.”
Additionally, many organic crop are only possible commercially because of of previous non-organic practices.
For example: organic cotton is possible in large part because of pesticides that have made the “Bowl Weevil” almost extinct. Once the pest were extinct there is no need to poison them.
There is a bunch of misinformation put forth by the organic food movement.
That does not mean that the big agricultural companies are blameless or without sin but the organic food movement is just as bad.
BTW: I used to own a State Certified Organic farm so this is something I know something about
I had the fortune of having one of the early genetic engineering pioneers for a professor in class, who told us about the early days of modern genetic engineering.
In order to modify DNA, we use natural enzymes extracted primarily from bacteria. There are hundreds of those enzymes now, and we can use them very precisely to modify DNA exactly how we want. But the bulk of those enzymes had not been found in the early days. Because of that, even though insulin is a small protein, making its gene so that it could be produced by bacteria was a major endeavor.
I’m not anti-GMO, but Monsanto and friends have used the court system and friendly legislators to run roughshod over individual farmers not using their product.
When I ran for office, I heard example after example of farmers being harassed for not using ‘product’ seed. The deep pockets can sue a ‘crop-to-crop ends meet’ family into submission, not because they’re right, but because they have might.
I oppose using the levers of government to beat up on the little guy.
Without GMO introduced by the University of Hawaii there would be no papaya in Hawaii today.
Try to sell this anti-GMO crap to the thousands who eat and enjoy these papaya and the farmers and others who rely on GMO for their livelihood. Even anti-GMO here in Hawaii eat GMO papayas.
Thanks for posting this. You are spot on of course.
The problem with pest resistant corn is that they are making the plant produce the pesticide which you ingest when you eat it. They also have made corn much less healthy as they chase the sugar portion. Watch Food, Inc. and Corn, Inc. They may be from a liberal funding, but the facts presented will change your thinking on GMO.
The problem with pest resistant corn is that they are making the plant produce the pesticide which you ingest when you eat it.
That is completely false.
They are simply “removing” a very specific piece of the plants genome that allowed the PEST to take hold.
They are NOT creating a pesticide that KILLS the PEST !!!
They are making the PEST unable to affect the plant.
Don’t buy that websites BS.
Thanks
Sorry, Bill and Ted, I’ll pass on the Tomatoes with Flounder genes. Party on dudes.
16 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?
Cruz is pro-GMO? Well, that does it, I’m not voting for him...
I assume you are talking about the Bt corn. In that case, Bt is a protein produced by a soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis, which naturally gets onto plants and which you already eat whenever you eat plants grown in soil.
The pesticide itself is very specific to certain kinds of insects. It is a protein that is inactive in acidic vertebrate guts, but in insect guts, which are caustic, the protein changes shape and becomes able to attach to insect gut cells. This causes the cells to not stick to each other very well, which allows the contents of insect digestive systems to escape into the abdomen, killing the insects.
In vertebrates, however, the protein is digested just like any other protein.
You’re welcome.
He discovered something that Ted Cruz already knew, that GMOs are a good thing. Pest resistant crops, for instance, mean less use of pesticides, which is good for the environment. Nutrient and vitamin infused crops, such as “golden rice,†can help millions of people overcome deficiency diseases, in this case, blindness.He discovered nothing, except for himself. The safety and efficacy of GMOs has been known right along.
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