HR 875 MONSANTO'S DREAM BILL

Yeah really. A good portion of my income is from selling organic foods. My food is safe to eat, I don't spray with any chemicals and I treat pests with predators. I hate to do this but I'm going to get patents on the crops that have been in my family for generations. I'm against the idea of patenting life, but I need to secure the ability to grow pure genetically unmodified crops for everyone. The big chemical companies have been patenting plants for years. Now they have rights to these organisms. They can sue anyone who uses them without signing a contract, even if you have been saving seeds since before the patenting took place.

People in the Organic community must stick together and begin to share our seeds and the rights to them. We have become one of the few providers of clean nutritious food, in this country.

Apparently Jan, you don't know the difference between offense and defense. I am "challenging" the validity of your interpretation of this bill (as well as everyone else on this thread). That is what we call being offensive . . . not defensive.

All of this hysteria surrounding HR 875, the Food Safety Modernization Act, got me curious in the bill. So I did a novel thing . . . I actually looked it up and read it. And it is "hysteria" when people are saying that this bill is going to outlaw home gardens, destroy small business farms, and hand everything over on a silver platter to industrial agriculture.

However, I took the time and read this bill since I come from a small family business background and have friends and family-friends that have small family owned farms back home.

After reading this bill, I can only think that either all of you guys are misreading it in order to come to these conclusions . . . or that you didn't read it at all and are operating solely on "popular" opinion.

So I challenge you to back up your claims with "facts" for once and look at this bill and quote the actual lines that are dangerous. I've looked at many of the lines that have been commented on and I can point out very easily how many of the criticisms are grossly misplaced.

So please, explain to me how my interpretation is wrong. I am very open to changing my opinion like I changed it about "Roundup Ready" crops (and that only took one pubmed article). If you can do this without being hostile, I'll gladly have a civil conversation with you for once . . . as this is an important subject that should be clarified.

Unfortunately, I missed this debate a month ago, but it looks like Slarabee raised some very significant points which I would raise myself (among others). . . and he was not adequately answered.

And since you already have a month of looking at this bill, then it really shouldn't be a problem for you to point to specific lines . . . I really don't think you can though.

Furthermore, if you (or anyone for that matter) can convince me that this bill will either:

-ban organic farming,

-cause an adverse environment against organic farming practices,

-cause devastating effects for small business farmers, or

-ban home gardens (though I think I have a completely solid rebuttal against this claim)

. . . if you do this, then I promise I will contact ALL of my representatives and express whole heartedly my disagreement for this bill.

I'm serious, if the logic is there and the argument makes sense, I will admit I'm wrong and switch sides in a NY second in regards to this legislation. So, here's an opportunity to convince one person, if not multiple people, to join the opposition of this bill.

But in order to convince me that this bill will do ANY of those things, it has to be an argument of sound logic based solely on a logical reading of the text of this bill, and not second-hand interpretations.

So if you (or anyone) really gives a damn, then let's start going over this bill and show me why my interpretation is wrong. http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h875/text

HOW is this bill the "stuff of nightmares"??? And I'm not asking you to echo another person's analysis . . . the bill isn't that hard to read, so I really would love to know which lines you personally think are troublesome and for what reasons . . . in all seriousness.

Because if I'm missing something, then I would GLADLY admit to it and change my point of view.
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h875/text

I wrote already . I think it is good to tell a lot of officials what you think (them that can help) . This bill is the stuff of nightmares .

If you feel inclined to read the legislation for yourself, I found sections 2, 3, 101, 201, and 206 to be the ones that were relevant to farming.

I would actually enjoy talking about specific lines with people and interpreting various clauses . . . but no one has yet to take me up on the offer, and I think this is the 4th thread I've posted the legislation on. =/

It's kind of funny (though in a sad way) that so many people who claim to care so much and charge the complaint that the representatives need to read the legislation . . . but then refuse to read it and analyze it themselves.

/sigh

If Lucidstone's interpretation is correct and my stepbrother(who has a doctorate in environmental sciences) thinks the bill is harmless, I'll call Frank, Rob, and Bob(my Senators and rep.) in support of the bill.

Very important. I would like to get involved as well.

I will definitely do my part as well.

For everyone that demands their representatives to read the bill before voting, here is the bill:
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h875/text

I'd encourage you to read it yourself and to point out anything that you see wrong with it to your congressman. (your voiced concerns will be more powerful if you point to specific lines)

Personally, I think most of the fears behind this bill are misplaced. (home gardens are not farms and would not fall under this bill at all, farms are commercial entities)

It's also important to remember the difference between the definitions of a "food establishment" (plant and warehouses) and "food production facility" (farms, ranches, orchards, etc) throughout reading the bill.

I also don't fear that organic methods will be banned as organic methods have plenty of positive science behind them and would be in agreement with this bill for clauses like:
"(4) establish and enforce science-based standards for--"

I think the biggest hurdle will be how new regulations for minimum standards effect small businesses. However, there is a clause for tech assistance to small businesses:
"(12) provide technical assistance to farmers and food establishments that are small business concerns (meeting the requirements of section 3(a) of the Small Business Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder) to assist with compliance with the requirements of this Act."

If anything, I see this bill as a potential threat to Monsanto's "Roundup Ready" crops as there are credible scientific studies that show that minute amounts of Roundup pesticide are indeed dangerous and would not be favored under this bill:
"(A) the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) related to and requiring the safety, quality, nutritional composition, labeling, and inspection of food, infant formulas, food additives, pesticide residues, and other substances present in food;"

The scientific study that details possible danger from Roundup:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19105591?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2...

So be informed, if you feel there are not enough protections for small businesses and/or organic methods . . . then express your concerns to your representative. But as it stands, I don't think this bill will have an adverse effect for organic farming.

Absolutely. And thanks. Yours was good as well. We need to see more. They need to hear us. Codex Alimentarius is coming. I think this may be the precursor.

That is a great letter, can I borrow lines from it to incorporate into my letters to my congressional and senatorial reps?

Sent to my rep and two senators:

Regarding HR 875: You cannot allow multinationals to get their foot in the door to penalize small farmers in a move to control all our seeds and the water that is used to grow them, especially when most of the recent salmonella poisoning is not coming from small organic farms, but large processing plants, factory farms, and perhaps even the genetically modified poison food you and the FDA have allowed Monsanto and other ag companies to foist upon us without our consent.

As this bill is written so vaguely and seeks to place most of the financial burden on small farms that will break them as well as then allowing Monsanto and other ag companies to get a foothold in taking over this market completely with untested GMOS that contaminate our environment and health, I oppose this bill and I request you do as well.

Biodiversity is what will save this planet and feed it for future generations... not industrial agriculture and surely not Monsanto and their ROUNDUP poison that has also been linked recently to brain cancer in children.

You cannot claim to care about the environment and allow companies like this to continue to control it clandestinely through government revolving doors and vaguely written bills. If you wish to address the safety of food do so with seeking accountability from the places it is really coming from. If you vote with the multinationals on this bill you will lose not only my respect, but my vote.
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We need to flood them, and they have to know we mean it.

Thank you covelogibbs for consistantly being one of only a few here who really care about the world and don't just come here to cut and paste links. I've already done this, but you can be sure I will do it again. Monsanto and companies like them that seek to control our food and water to control us must be stopped. My child is not going to live in a MONSANTO WORLD.