[Marxism] Is Cuba really turning to GM crops?

[Waistline2 at aol.com]

In a message dated 3/1/2009 11:33:08 P.M.  Eastern Standard Time, 
theguavatree at gmail.com writes:
On 3/1/09, David Picón  Álvarez <david at miradoiro.com> wrote:
> From: "Ruthless Critic of All  that Exists" <ok.president+nbsy at gmail.com>
>
> > In any  case,Cuba needs to be applauded for not kow-towing to the
>  >  Luddite, reflexively anti-GM greenie-green bandwagon.
>
>
>  Absolutely. A good part of this opposition seems to be rooted in
>   quasi-religious views about the goodness of nature  


FROM HYBRIDS, TO FOOD IRRADIATION, TO GMOS: The Blade Runner Paradox. 
 

The process of hybridization of food began when humans first began to  
cultivate the wild foods that grew in their environments. Hybridization became  more 
sophisticated over the years as humans noticed certain traits in foods and  
in order to enhance those traits began to selectively breed plants with other  
plants, within the same genus. (This process was also occurring in the animal  
kingdom. Most of the animals that surround human lifestyles are domesticated  
from their wild cousins: cows, dogs, chickens, cats, turkeys, etc.) Desirable 
 traits in plants often include greater and more consistent size, sweeter, 
more  pronounced taste, smaller or no seeds, brighter colors. Most of the foods 
that  we consume today have been through the selective breeding process to 
produce  familiar foods. These include most vegetables, like potatoes, corn, 
tomatoes,  apples, carrots, broccoli, rice, all greens, cauliflower, as well as 
most of the  animal foods consumed. 
 
The process of selective breeding for desirable traits began the subtle  
alteration of the DNA of the foods. Minor changes in gene sequence and structure  
that allows for the desirable traits activate or deactivate the genes for the  
traits of the occurrence of the organism in nature. 
 
The subtle alteration of the DNA of the food that humans consume will  affect 
subtle alteration of the DNA of those consuming the food. This happens  when 
the food is broken down into cellular and subcellular components and then  in 
some cases is restructured to the configuration that the body can use. In  
other cases the cellular and subcellular components are easily bioassimilable.  
When these components are less than optimal, they may be usable by the body, 
but  important components are missing. This causes the cells to mitosis daughter 
 cells that look identical but have subtle flaws in their gene sequences. 
Thus,  begins the slow decline, the degeneration or devolution of a people into a 
less  conscious, less connected, less aware state. Constitutional cellular 
weakening  can and often appears in generation cycles, traditionally requiring 
up to seven  generations to correct. 
 
In this state of historic disconnection, metabolic breach, from self and  
environment – which is microcosm and macrocosm, internal and external – the  
devolution and warping of consciousness causes increase in fear to be a prime  
motivator; and when combined with relentless production for exchange value,  
inexorably results in maddening and insane attempts to control energy in all its  
forms, rather than to use focused energy and intention to create and flow 
with  observed outcomes, in harmony with the natural order of the earth itself. . 
 
These "disconnected ones," in fear of the environment, fearing organisms,  “
germs, viruses, bacteria, molds,” developed food irradiation as a means of  
eliminating “pathogens” from foods. The "disconnected ones" in their greed  
state, unable or unwilling to sense the subtle shift in the energy of the  
irradiated food, purported to bamboozle the consumers into consuming more and  more 
dead genetically selected, radioactive food. Consumers in the classic  “
double-think” fear-state could not recognize the term “radiation” in food  “
irradiation” and also unable to see or sense the subtle shifts in energy  patterns of 
the foods, continue, lazily oblivious, to ingest radioactive food.  Greed has 
a biological component buttressed and reproduced as capital and the  capital 
relations. All of us intimately know the cycle but not a conscious level  and 
most certainly not on the level as Marxist outlook, which speaks to why this  
cycle is self reproduced as an intimate part of the value  relations. The  
body enters a cycle of relentless craving because its cellular structure has  
been weakened and is not being sustained and reproduced by molecularly complete  
fruits and vegetation. One becomes and remains hungry while bodily "full." 
 
Completely disconnected, suffering from metabolic breach, with subtly  
altered DNA, in an increased and artificially created fear state and irradiated;  
the consumers in the U.S. have now been ingesting transgenic food for 10 years.  
Ten years ago this subject was discussed here on Marxism with more sympathy 
for  th protest, riots and opposition to what was then called "frankenfood" in  
Europe. At that time European governments were refusing to allow genetically  
altered American meats in their markets. Somewhere in Marxism archives these  
discussions can be found. 
 
Trans-genetic food, commonly termed “genetically modified” (frankenfood) is  
yet the most insidious form of DNA manipulation occurring to date. 
Genetically  modified organisms cross classification, genus, and even species that arose 
in  the evolution of the myriad of life forms on the planet. The danger comes 
from  combining gene sequences in ways that violate the subtle laws of 
evolution and  creation out of which all life forms have arisen – until now. 
 
With the same selective breeding mentality that brought about  hybridization, 
albeit with greater technology, and now driven by the pursuit of  exchange 
value, the idea of selecting certain desired traits continues at a  higher 
level. The real problem is that "desired traits" is established as and on  the 
basis of the value relation and the law of unknown long term results. Most  folks 
of my generation still remember "real tomatoes" without the thick skins,  "to 
meaty insides" and less robust juices, whose properties had evolved over  ages 
in unison with the nature that is man/women. 
 
With the advent of gene mapping, researchers can now isolate the gene that  
contains the desired trait, and/or import desired traits to enhance  
marketability. Apples are far to hard and depleted of much of  their  alkaline juice 
properties. With the use of a rather relatively unsophisticated  technology, 
known as a “gene gun”, the desired genes are “fired” into the  sequence of the 
DNA of the cells of the target organism. The result, hard  strawberries with 
fish genes, hard tomatoes with potato genes, sheep with monkey  genes and other 
such combinations as befit the fancy of the financiers of the  research, at 
the call of the madmen of finance capital. More often, the traits  of single 
celled organisms are fired into the gene sequences of the target  organisms. 
 
The hardness, firmness and rate of decay of vegetables is historically  
evolved and alters the human body through our senses, also historically evolved,  
the optimal time in which to consume these foods. Mother nature cannot be  
fooled, although the body can be fooled - blunted, in such a way that we no  
longer remember life's biological cycles. Capitalism in agriculture has not  
reckoned well with ecology because nature is torn from its normal biological -  
metabolic, cycles. Once upon a time beautiful "Sun Flowers" golden heads would  
literally follow the sun across the sky, which is why they were called sun  
flowers. Today, sunflowers hang their heads in same at their debasement,  
hybridization and being transported to areas that does not support their unique  
properties. 
 
Genetic engineering crosses the phenotype barrier to genotype. 
 
Phenotype is the appearance or manifestation of the gene sequence, whereas  
genotype relates to the actual gene structure. Hybridization of foods must 
still  followed certain laws of nature because it allowed whole series of genes to 
be  transmitted between plants within the same genus. For example, a white 
rose  could be bred with a red rose to produce a pink rose. We are still talking 
about  plant to plant transmission, within the same family, rose. There is a 
whole  series of genes that is transmitted to the offspring from both parents. 
Whereas  with genetic engineering, only one gene or a snippet of a gene is 
introduced  into the target organism, without knowledge of what that one gene 
inserted into  an already existing sequence will produce. Thus the gene is 
inserted without the  accompaniment of other genes or gene sequences with which 
that gene has existed  for millennia. With genetic engineering we cross species 
barriers in performance  of experiments that have not occurred in this cycle of 
existence. Perhaps we  have forgotten that tampering with natural and 
physical laws have brought about  the end of all of the other great cycles on earth? 
Including things like  patterns of bird migration. 
 
Further, much of the subtle alteration of genes remain below the eye, even  
when using the most powerful microscope, and below the understanding of the  
observer, who more often that not does not deeply understand what is being  
viewed because a desired result block their field of vision. 
 
The dangers of genetically modifying organisms has been underplayed and it  
is not in the interest of the agrochemical companies that produce these  
combinations to disclose all of their facts. In fact, there are currently no  
labeling requirements for genetically modified foods. In the U.S., if the food  is 
not labeled, “non-GMO,” then it is safe to assume that it is genetically  
modified. This process started quietly in 1995 when Americans were distracted by  
the Gulf War,  “Monica Lewinskya," and the Clinton administration  destroying 
"welfare as we know it."  Meanwhile, around the world, most  other countries 
vehemently protested and defrayed the attempts of Monsanto,  Novaris, Dow and 
others to push gmos down their throats. The agrochemical  companies quietly 
lobbied, wooed, seduced and bedded their counterparts in  Congress. And in fact 
there is a revolving door policy between the government  and these big chemical 
companies. For example, Donald Rumsfeld, current  Secretary of Defense, held 
a position of at Monsanto. 
 
Moreover, the genetic modification of food assures, unless there is a  
successful counter movement, the elimination of genetic diversity that has  existed 
on this planet for millennia. It is a mistake to label these spontaneous  
movements quackery. Since all that we have to consume is increasingly  genetically 
altered food, how is that affecting us? It has been proven that  genetically 
modified organisms, through the natural propagation processes of  plants, 
infests, supersedes and eliminates non-gmo foods in the field. Also,  there is a 
concerted effort by the agrochemical companies to eliminate heirloom  seeds. In 
the past several years, aggressive grassroots movements have arisen  around 
the globe to preserve heirloom seeds and thus all of our genetic  heritage. 
 
All genetically altered food is not bad because it has been altered.  
Capitalism alters food in its image: value expansion at all cost. 
 
Several years ago Monsanto began taking farmers to court whose fields their  
seeds found their way into and the farmers harvested the fruits and 
vegetables.  Monsanto claimed this produce as their property and could prove its genetic 
 markers as theirs, regardless to the fact that the culprit was the wind. 
 

No references provided, no links, no author. However, all of the  material is 
available on line for those who seek the information. 

WL. 
 
Los Angeles 2017 -  Blade Runner. 
 
Roy Batty a synthetic human, has escape from an off world colony, high  
jacked a ship, made his way to earth; discovers the emotional pain of life and  
death basis. Roy is capital in pants and leather jacket. With a life cycle; a  
historical limit, 
 
. . . . as does all productive forces 
 
and mode of productions. Roy is a productive force. 
 
Roy makes his way to the uppermost ribbon in the sky to meet his maker.  
Mister Tyrel 
 
Tyrel: "I'm surprise you did not come here sooner." 
 
Roy: "Its not an easy thing to meet your maker. 
 
Tyrel: "What can he do for you?" 
 
Roy: "Can the maker repair what he makes?" 
 
Tryel: "Would you like to be modified?" 
 
Roy: "I had in mind something a little more radical." 
 
Tyrel: "What seems to be the problem?" 
 
Roy: "Death!" 
 
Tyrel: "Death?" 
 
"Well, I'm afraid that's a little out of my jurisdiction . . . you . . ." 
 
( Roy pleads, ) 
 
"I want more life father." 
 
Tyrell: "The facts of life. To make an alteration in the evolution of an  
organic life system is fatal. A coding sequence cannot be revised once it has  
been established." 
 
Roy: "Why Not?" 
 
Tyrell: "Because, by the second day of incubation, any cells that have  
undergone reversion mutations give rise to revenant colonies, like rats leaving  a 
sinking ship, then the ship sinks." 
 
Roy: "What about EMS recombination?" 
 
Tyrell: "We already tried it. Ethyl Methane Sultanate as an alkalizing  agent 
and a potent mutagen. It created  . . . a virus so lethal the subject  was 
dead before he left the table." 
 
Roy; " Then a repressor protein, that blocks the operating cells." 
 
Tyrel: "It wouldn't obstruct replication, but it does give rise to an error  
in replication, so that the newly formed DNA strands carry a mutation and 
you've  got a virus again. 
 
But, uh, all of this is academic. You were made as well as we could make  
you." 
 
Roy: "Not to last." 
 
Tyrell: "The light that burns twice as bright, burns half as long. And you  
have burnt so very very bright Roy. Look at you. You're the prodigal son. 
You're  quite a prize." 
 
Roy: "I've . . .gone questionable things." 
 
Tyrel: "Also extraordinary things. Revel in your time." 
 
Roy: "Nothing the god of bio mechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for." 
 
 
 
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