Positive Agriculture Practices Get A Voice, If Even A Quiet One.
Science Drama at March Against Myths about Modification, and My Showdown with Zen Honeycutt
http://skepchick.org/2015/05/science-drama-mamyths-zen-honeycutt/
"Sometimes science can be boring, or at least seem less-than-riveting to the general public. There are a lot of dry methodologies, frequent snafus, those pesky problems of having to reproduce results, and don’t forget peer review and meta-analyses. Though scientific advances are certainly exciting to many who follow them closely, the process from bench to discovery can seem dry.
Science activism on the other hand is anything but boring. Indeed, this past weekend proved to be a veritable soap opera. Here’s my recap of the highlights from Saturday May 23rd, the day of the third annual worldwide March Against Monsanto (MAM), and the first annual counter-protest against the anti-biotech group’s misinformation mongering. We at March Against Myths about Modification (MAMyths) were buzzing with excitement leading up to our first worldwide event, and were thrilled that it made far more of an impact than we anticipated. Bill Nye even showed up and took a picture with our MAMyths member Chauncey in NYC! MAMyths events happened in 13 locations around the world. My co-founders and I took to the street in Chicago, in the name of science and biotechnology. We were happy to give media interviews, and there was at least one documentary film crew we spoke with.
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The overarching theme that emerged across the country and the world was that MAM protesters were unreasonable, angry, rude, and irrational, while MAMyths members were approachable, civil, and rational. We held signs like “Facts, not fear!” and “GMOs saved the Hawaiian Papaya,” and “Farmers never sued for cross-pollination.” In contrast, their signs were full of expletives and deluded messaging like, “Fuck Monsanto,” “OMG, GMO, WTF,” and even anti-vax signs, middle finger images, and chemtrail conspiracies.
Skepchick friend Kevin Folta wrote in his blog, “The pictures from the scenes across the nation showed small clusters of MAMyths supporters out with signs, standing up for science. The best part was their apparent softness, the repeated theme, “Ask me about GMOs.” These were scientists, and science fans, out sharing science, and there is some real magic in helping people understand facts instead of fear. It was outreach in action at ground zero of insanity, a potential to reach those that cannot be reached and hopefully influence the folks in the middle.”
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Yes, this is a watershed moment for everyone who cares about using the scientific method to make the world a better place.
Cheers!
