Organic Consumers Association: Human-Animal Hybrids, Mad Cow Cover-up and more..

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Human-Animal Hybrids, Mad Cow Cover-up and more...(Organic

Bytes #57)

 

 

Food, Consumer and Environment News Tidbits with an Edge!

Organic Bytes #57

5/10/2005

 

 

CREATING HUMAN-ANIMAL HYBRIDS

New guidelines set by the National Academies of Sciences would permit

the development of human-animal hybrids. The creation of these new

species would be allowed for the sake of research. According to the

standards, this would be permitted " under circumstances where no other

experiment can provide the information needed. " The standards also

recommend " strong scientific justification " for experiments where

human cells are used to develop major aspects of the brain of the new

animal. In addition, newly developed human-animal species are not

allowed to breed with each other. These standards are voluntary, and

human-animal hybrids are already under production. Learn more and

speak your mind: http://www.organicconsumers.org/chimera.htm

 

 

 

I THINK, THEREFORE I AM... A LAB MOUSE

An ethics committee at Stanford University has approved a proposal to

create mice with brains made almost completely of human brain cells.

Stanford law professor Hank Greely, who chaired the ethics committee,

said the board endorsed this procedure based on the assumption that

the animal would probably not experience higher levels of human

thought, given the size and shape of the mouse brain. The committee

recommended closely monitoring the mice's behavior and immediately

killing any that display " human-like behavior, " although, admittedly,

no one quite knows how an observer would be able to truly distinguish

whether or not a lab mouse is thinking and feeling like a human. Learn

more and speak your mind: http://www.organicconsumers.org/chimera.htm

 

 

HUMAN GENES ARE WHAT'S FOR DINNER

Japanese scientists are splicing human genes into rice that will

ultimately be grown for human consumption. While some opponents say

the concept borders on cannibalism, genetic engineers claim the new

rice has environmental benefits. Researchers spliced a gene from a

human liver into rice to help the plant " digest " pesticides, thereby

allowing the crop to be sprayed with up to 13 different pesticides

without damaging the rice. The developers of the new human-rice admit

that if this gene were to escape into the wild, a new generation of

" superweeds " could be inadvertently created. No testing of the

product's impact on human health has yet been conducted.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/ge/humangene042505.cfm

 

 

 

USDA COVER-UP OF MAD COW CASES

The USDA has refused to respond to allegations that it has been

covering up cases of Mad Cow disease in the U.S. for well over a

decade. Lester Friedlander, a former USDA veterinarian, says he was

told by USDA officials as far back as 1991 that if his testing

laboratory ever found evidence of Mad Cow disease, he was to tell no

one. He and other scientists say they know of cases where cows tested

positive for the disease in laboratories but were ruled negative by

the USDA. Mad cow is a concern to public health because humans can

contract a fatal brain illness known as variant Creutzfeldt Jakob

disease from eating beef products contaminated with the mad cow

pathogen. TAKE ACTION! Sign the Mad Cow petition:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/madcow.htm

 

 

 

WORLD LEADERS MEET TO BAN 12 PERSISTENT TOXIC CHEMICALS

Government officials from 130 nations are currently meeting in Uruguay

to discuss methods of eliminating twelve of the world's most toxic

pesticides and chemicals. Specifically, these toxins, such as DDT and

PCBs, are referred to as Persistant Organic Pollutants (POPs). They

are known to kill people, damage the nervous and immune systems, cause

cancer and reproductive disorders, and interfere with normal infant

and child development. According to Klaus Toepfer, Executive Director

of the United Nations Environment Programme, eliminating POPs will be

expensive but " will save lives and protect the natural environment -

particularly in the poorest communities and countries. "

http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/pesticides050405.cfm

 

 

 

MY BOLOGNA HAS A FIRST NAME, IT'S C-A-N-C-E-R

The University of Hawaii has released a new study that shows people

who consume processed meats have a 6,700% increased risk of pancreatic

cancer over those who consume little or no meat products. The study

was done over a period of seven years on nearly 200,000 people.

Researchers pin the blame on sodium nitrite, a chemical used in nearly

all processed meats, including sausage, hot dogs, jerkies, bacon,

lunch meat, and even meats in canned soup products. Although these

same meats can be purchased without sodium nitrite, consumers must

seek the few products that are labeled as such. The USDA attempted to

ban sodium nitrite in the 1970s, but was blocked by the meat industry,

which relies heavily on the chemical to add color to processed meats,

making them look more appealing. Author and nutritionist Mike Adams

said of this and other similar study results, " Sodium nitrite is a

dangerous, cancer-causing ingredient that has no place in the human

food supply. "

http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/processedmeat050305.cfm

 

 

 

BREAK THE CHAINS ON WORLD FAIR TRADE DAY WITH A HOUSE PARTY!

Just in time for World Fair Trade Day, the Organic Consumers

Association (OCA) is pleased to announce our next House Party film and

action pack, featuring the new documentary, Coffee with the Taste of

the Moon. Starting May 14th the OCA and allies around the world will

promote Fair Trade and organic goods, like coffee, chocolate and tea.

Certified Fair Trade goods provide a fair price for farmers, create

sustainable economic opportunities for global communities, and offer

an alternative to so-called " Free Trade. " Make everyday Fair Trade

Day! http://www.organicconsumers.org/fair-trade/house-party.cfm

 

 

 

 

 

BREAKING THE CHAINS: FUN FACTS ABOUT WAL-MART

 

*

In a recent press briefing in Bentonville, Arkansas, Wal-Mart

CEO Lee Scott Jr. announced the corporation could not afford to pay

living family wages to its workers in a manner similar to what its

competitors Costco, Safeway, Giant and Kroger currently do.

*

Wal-Mart does more business than Target, Sears, Kmart, J.C.

Penney, Safeway and Kroger combined.

*

Wal-Mart is the largest profit-making corporation in the world,

with 1.4 million employees, 5,000 stores, and annual sales of a

quarter of a trillion dollars.

* Wal-Mart's profits, after all expenses, have nearly doubled in

the last four years, from six billion dollars in 2001 to ten billion

dollars in 2004.

* Learn more and join the OCA's " Breaking the Chains " campaign

http://www.organicconsumers.org/btc.htm

 

 

 

TEENY TINY NEWS TIDBITS

 

The American Heart Association has released a study indicating that

the rate of obesity among Americans earning more than $60,000 a year

is growing three times faster than the rate among the poor. " Sedentary

lifestyles and restaurants are the two big things that affect that

group the most, " said Marc O'Meara, a dietitian at Brigham and Women's

Hospital. " The portion sizes just keep growing. "

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/rich-obesity.cfm

 

Although dreaming of one day being a heavy metal drummer, 15 year old

Micah Hinton may be destined for engineering. The high school

sophomore has designed a model car that uses a solar panel to create

hydrogen fuel out of water. When the car is running, it converts that

hydrogen back into ordinary water. As a result, the fuel source is

never depleted, and the car never needs a fill-up. " It lasts forever, "

said Hinton, 15. http://organicconsumers.org/corp/hydrogen.cfm

 

The OCA has announced the launch of its new international Science

Oversight Board (iSOB), that will expand OCA's outreach into the

biomedical and public health arena. The iSOB oversight board will

investigate and publicize conflicts of interest at academic medical

centers and in governmental agencies worldwide. It will focus on the

corporatization of medicine and the commodification of human life.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Politics/isob050505.cfm

 

 

 

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