Pesticides Make Us Dumber

Ethonomic Indicator of the Day: 7 -- The number of IQ points that children exposed to pesticides in utero fell behind other children.

From the department of "science proves the obvious": exposure to neurotoxic pesticides in the womb results in children with lower IQs, according to a study from the University of California at Berkeley. Time to raid the organic fruits and vegetables section of Whole Foods.

UC Berkeley's study focused on organophosphate exposure (a neurotoxic pesticide sprayed on food crops and used for pest control in apartments) among children in Salinas, an agriculture-heavy town in California. The results were disturbing: Children exposed to the most prenatal pesticides scored seven points lower on standardized intelligence tests compared with children who had the lowest pesticide exposure levels. Two similar studies from Mt. Sinai Medical Center and Columbia University (published in this month's Environmental Health Perspectives) also found links between prenatal pesticide exposure and IQ. Exposure to organophosphates after birth had no repercussions on intelligence (but still: not good for you).

Fearful of Genetically-Modified Crops? You're Too Late

Ethonomic Indicator of the Day: 93% of U.S. soybeans are genetically modified.
Frankenfood! It's the evil-sounding name given to genetically modified crops by organic enthusiasts fearful that altering nature's design will result in irreparable damage to either the environment or our bodies. And there is a good chance that they're right. The fight against GM crops has been intensifying of late, with the USDA approving modified alfalfa early this year, despite protests from big organic (which might be less worried about the potential risks and mostly worried about their organic certification). Because a cow that eats GM alfalfa is no longer organic, no matter how it was raised, and GM alfalfa has the extra ability to spread like kudzu--even to places where it's not supposed to be, like an adjacent field of original-gene alfalfa.
But these fights should not give the impression that we are about to step over a precipice into a world full of GM crops. We did that in 1996. See this chart from the USDA:

Monsanto Will Soon Be Allowed To Police Itself

Monsanto, enemy of organic farmers and anti-GMO advocates alike, will likely be allowed to conduct its own environmental studies as part of a two-year USDA experiment. But there is no good that can possibly come of an experiment where the company behind nearly every genetically modified crop in our daily diets is allowed to decide whether its products are causing any environmental harm. And Monsanto isn't the only biotech company that will be permitted to police itself.

FYI: GMOs that drink your blood

Below the fold, a letter from Pesticide Action Network Asia/Pacific on the application by the Malasian Institute for Medical Research to release GM mosquitoes into the wild.

We refer to the public announcement by the National Biosafety Board of Malaysia about the application by the Institute for Medical Research (IMR) for the release of genetically modified male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in Pahang and Melaka (referred to as Living Modified Organisms or LMOs of the OX513A strain) (Reference No. NRE(S) 609-2/1). We have serious concerns and objections.

First of all, there is a lack of transparency and information about the genes involved in the genetic engineering of the mosquito. For example, how is this male LMO ‘created’? Is there not the risk of a margin of error that might allow female LMOs to be selected in the process? What are the sources of the molecular marker and the ‘lethal’ gene that will make the offspring of the LMO and a female Aedes aegypti die? This is very critical.

Supreme Court Ruling in Monsanto Case is Victory for Center for Food Safety, Farmers (Finally The food Movement wins and Agro biz looses, thanks you CFS)

(small)VICOTRY! 
The Center for Food Safety today celebrated the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Monsanto v. Geerston Farms, the first genetically modified crop case ever brought before the Supreme Court.  Although the High Court decision reverses parts of the lower courts’ rulings, the judgment holds that a vacatur bars the planting of Monsanto’s Roundup Ready Alfalfa until and unless future deregulation occurs.  It is a victory for the Center for Food Safety and the Farmers and Consumers it represents.

“The Justices’ decision today means that the selling and planting of Roundup Ready Alfalfa is illegal.  The ban on the crop will remain in place until a full and adequate EIS is prepared by USDA and they officially deregulate the crop.  This is a year or more away according to the agency, and even then, a deregulation move may be subject to further litigation if the agency’s analysis is not adequate,” said Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director of the Center for Food Safety. “In sum, it’s a significant victory in our ongoing fight to protect farmer and consumer choice, the environment and the organic industry.”

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2. British Envoy to Afghanistan Resigns
3. Evidentiary Hearing Begins in Troy Anthony Davis Case
4. Both Sides Claim Victory in Supreme Court Ruling on Monsanto Crop
5. UN Probes Alleged Abuses in Sri Lanka Fighting
6. Israel Advances East Jerusalem Demolitions, Orders Expulsion of 4 Palestinian Politicians
7. Road Shipments Begin Entering Gaza (but limited)