WTO adopts ruling that EU illegally blocked biotech food from U.S.,

[elehhhhna]

WTO adopts ruling that EU illegally blocked biotech food from U.S., others
By BRADLEY S. KLAPPER Associated Press Writer

(AP) - GENEVA-The WTO on Tuesday officially adopted a ruling that European countries broke international trade rules by stopping imports of genetically modified foods.

Argentina, Canada and the United States - which brought the dispute to the World Trade Organization - said the WTO's decision proves there was no scientific evidence to justify an effective ban by the European Union on biotech foods and that it was an unfair barrier to producers who wanted to export to the continent.
...

It did not rule on whether current EU legislation was illegal, and sidestepped the issue of whether biotech foods were safe. But it concluded that the EU had breached its commitments with respect to 21 products, including types of oilseed rape, maize and cotton. It also said individual bans in Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy and Luxembourg were illegal.

http://news.findlaw.com/ap/o/51/11-21-2006/b67b001c71d2286b.html

[TechBear_Seattle]

1. Surprise, surprise. The liberals were right!

I was in the midst of the police-generated fascism that was the 1999 WTO ministerial in Seattle. One of the points of consensus between the far left and the far right demonstraters was that the WTO would weaken our independent sovereignty and make us subject to the rulings of a foreign court.

Well, here we are.

[Nikki Stone1]

3. I'll bet they called you extremists back then too

or accused you of conspiracy theories.

[Greyhound]

4. The Mexican trucking companies that successfully sued the state of California

over emissions and safety standards (bald tires, no emergency brakes, lack of signal lights, unqualified drivers, gross polluters, etc.) is another example of this.

[RB TexLa]

19. So when we have a dispute regarding commerce in the EU

you think our sovereignty is "weakened" by the WTO hearing the case and making a ruling? :crazy:

[Imperialism Inc.]

2. Multi-nationals: "All your laws are belong to us"

[irislake]

5. I'm upset to read that Canada

doesn't believe there are scientific reasons to ban GM foods. I think I'll start hoarding seeds and grow stuff hydroponically at home. In summer I buy from farmers nearby whom I KNOW grow organic not GM food. Too bad this stuff is being forced on us by Monsanto.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

6. Well...

are there?

[irislake]

7. According to my research yes

And Europe didn't ban GM foods for no reason. We should have a choice but we have less and less choice.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

8. Your research?

What journal did you publish in?

[elehhhhna]

9. knock it off, bornagainh'gan. If you have a point, make it. Please.

[Gwerlain]

10. I also would like to know precisely what research...

we are talking about here. I'm not quite clear on what dietary differences there might be between eating GM and non-GM crops, nor why clothing made with GM cotton is bad. What do you expect to get from your T-shirt?

[irislake]

12. Nothing wrong with GM clothes

There's plenty of information on GM foods if you google.

[Gwerlain]

13. Well, then why ban GM cotton?

As is stated in the OP the EU has done. I don't think people eat cotton.

Sorry, I googled: "genetically modified foods pros and cons"

I can't find a health problem that has ever been shown to be likely or even possibly due to GM foods, mentioned in any of the first ten links. Not one. The only thing even comes close is, "I might get bad genes from eating GM food," which is not only about the dumbest thing I've heard this month, if not this year (and friend, it's November, so there's been plenty of time for there to be a lot of competing material), but if it's even possible, no one has shown that the risk of it is any higher than that for NON-GM food.

Again, I ask: what precisely is it that everyone's making a fuss about? Do you guys even know? And what precisely is it that makes you think it's not hysteria, protectionism at the slightest excuse, even though it's supposed to be illegal, or simple idiocy because the people involved are lawyers and accountants, not doctors or biologists?

C'mon, COTTON???? Hel-lo....ooo...

ETA: This is the second case of incredible faith in lawyers and accountants I've run across recently. The last time, everybody seems to think they should be designing nuclear reactors; this time, they're supposed to know more about genetics than the biologists. C'mon, people. THINK. Use the space between your ears for something other than to hold your hair up.

[irislake]

11. Sorry if you misunderstood me.

Understandably. I didn't mean to sound pompous or to present as a scientist. I merely googled and read enough to convince me that GM foods were not proved to be safe. And Monsanto's reputation didn't give me any confidence whatever in their own studies. I feel what Monsanto is doing in the world is criminal. I give whistle-blowers and independent scientists far more credibility than I give Monsanto. There's a lot of junk information but I read enough, thanks. Why do you think it was banned in Europe? I am actually surprised that they did manage to defeat Monsanto (temporarily) because they didn't ban Donald Rumsfeld's deadly Aspartame.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

14. See, you lost me at "Donald Rumsfeld's deadly aspartame."

This is why I'm asking about actual research, as in the scientific variety. If you just google it you end up with all sorts of tinfoil stuff.

[Nikki Stone1]

15. Do you have a reliable source on GM foods for the layperson to read?

I know I'd appreciate some links.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

16. No, I haven't.

Haven't seen any reliable sources as to the dangers of GM foods.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

17. There are legitimate concerns with GM...

...but most of them, as far as I'm concerned, relate to the intersection of weird intellectual property issues and the whims of mother nature.

The EU's GM ban was pretty poorly thought out and doesn't have much of a basis in scientific fact. Importation of foodstuffs doesn't raise any of the IP issues. There is very strong anti-GM sentiment in most of western Europe, especially France (for obvious reasons) and Germany. Brussels has taken a position that is politically popular, but not necessarily scientifically correct.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

20. I'm sure there are.

However, whenever I ask for them I get stuff not far removed from chemtrails.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

23. Well...

you've just gotta go for the organic chemtrails. Then everything'll be fine.

:evilgrin:

[Nikki Stone1]

18. Surely there must be some decent research in refereed academic journals out there

yes?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

21. Yes.

And in my opinion, it's in the best interest of the anti-GM crowd to find it and tout it.

[Nikki Stone1]

22. As an amateur in this area, it would be helpful to know what those journals might be

Anyone feel free to jump in here

[irislake]

24. Absolutely

There's tons of crap you have to wade through. It takes hours of wading though stuff and following links. I hope I know how to research. I took quite a bit of psychology which helps. Some sites look more crappy than they are. The major site that attacks Aspartame is pretty sensational and unprofessional looking. Gives the impression of hysteria and bad science. (www.dorway.com) But Aspartame IS dangerous. The story of how Rumsfeld got it approved by removing the head of the FDA when Reagan got in is well known. He put his own man in as head and the FDA is now little more than a corporate tool. Big Pharma gets away with murder now. Rummy made ten million dollars out of that deal. Health Canada rubber stamped the Aspartame ruling in 1983. My ex-husband, who was a doctor, warned us not to touch anything containing Aspertame and freaked out if one of our kids had a diet coke. No doctors in our circle of friends would touch it. Ditto friends who were pharmacists. Years later I did end up drinking a huge quantity of diet pepsi and eating lots of fruit yogurt with Aspartame. I am blind in one eye as a result. My Opthamologist said it was "most likely" the Aspartame since it attacks the optic nerve. It's very dismaying to know that the FDA and Health Canada don't protect us any more. You really have to check out any medicine your doctor prescribes. My present doctor believes all the hype of the drug companies. After 10 years of being on Lipitor I have muscle damage. That was the straw that broke the camel's back. When she tried to prescribe a Beta Blocker for hypertension I googled and learned it is now banned by the National Health Service in England. By researching I learned the best medicine is a diuretic. She didn't even suggest diet and exercise. Medical friends tell me you cannot passively accept doctor's orders any more. You have to be an enlightened patient. As for GM foods -- if I recall I got most of the negative information on the subject from British scientist's articles. I read enough to make me decide, "No thanks." Plus -- as I said before Monsanto has a reputation for being very unethical.

[irislake]

27. I'd like to suggest a book

THE TRUTH ABOUT DRUG COMPANIES. Dr. Marcia Angell, medical ethics lecturer at Harvard Medical school. She resigned as editor of the American Medical Journal because BigPharma was winning the battle to force scientific journals to publish biased research. (Funded by and conducted by drug company scientists).Recently in Canada three editors of a medical journal resigned to protest the same interference. A few years back a University of Toronto researcher had to put up the fight of her life to put out bad news about a drug that was killing children. She had signed an agreement not to talk and felt it was too unethical not to do so. As U of T like most univeristies now is funded by BigPharma she was fired and her reputation was almost destroyed. Because male researchers on staff attacked her feminists took up her cause and she got so much publicity that ultimately she won. A male colleage who stood up against the drug company and the university with her said, "You realize we are going to lose our houses standing up for this, don't you?" Whistle-blowers don't have an easy time of it. If you want to be skeptical about anything be skeptical about the drugs the pharmaceuticals are allowed to advertise on TV etc to ordinary consumers. Check this as an example of how many psychiatrists have sold out. <www.psychsearch.net/teenscreen.html>
Unfortunately I am a little old lady with few computer skills and will have to get one of my daughters to teach me how to cut and paste and all that. I wish I knew how to post articles. That is why I have so few posts though I have been reading DU daily for years.

[BringEmOn]

25. What do biotches eat?

[Selatius]

26. I find it upsetting few Democrats state they want to withdraw from the WTO

I am against the WTO because is nothing but a tool of corporate exploitation. Rather than unregulated free-trade, I favor fair trade instead that protects the interests of everybody, not just the biggest corporations on the planet seeking greater profit.

[Vidar]

28. The WTO needs to be shut down. I hope the EU resigns en masse.