Still quite a bit of scurfuffle about HR 875′s Food Safety Modernization Act mentioned in my last entry. To be fair, [...]]]>

• Still quite a bit of scurfuffle about HR 875′s Food Safety Modernization Act mentioned in my last entry. To be fair, here is a debunking of the Monsanto/Big Brother fears from FactCheck.org. At Reality Sandwich’s article Organic Outlaws a commenter also attempts to allay the panic, citing a couple of interesting links to a blog about the recent Congressional hearings on topic. However, another commenter asks not to ‘sell out our children’s health’ and links to eye-opening instructions on how to register one’s farm with the FDA, and who is exempt: unless ALL your homegrown food is consumed ON PROPERTY you’re supposed to ‘register’. Huh. Does that include sharing your tomatoes with your neighbors??

• Monsanto GM-corn harvest fails massively in South Africa

• Do GM Crops Increase Yield? The Answer is No

• First GMOs, now nano-bots in our food? Standards under scrutiny as food giants explore nanotechnology

• Codex Alimentarius lecture by Ian R. Crane (YouTube, Part 1 of 9) – “never heard of it? That’s exactly what they want!”

• HR 1388 “GIVE” Act Could Force Mandatory Service Requirement on All Young Americans

• From Rolling Stone, a surprisingly blatant article: The Big Takeover: The global economic crisis isn’t about money – it’s about power. How Wall Street insiders are using the bailout to stage a revolution

• David Icke is on target here: Please Don’t Riot…it’s Just What ‘They’ Want

• Think or Be Eaten: The Coup Will Not Be Televised

• Hmm: John Whitehead: Speak Truth to Power

• UK: Spy database to monitor your every move on Facebook and MySpace

• Electronic Mind Control

• Obama Opens Secret Laboratories to Germany

• New wisdom from Neil Kramer at The Cleaver: Becoming the Primal

• Fascinating discovery coming to light in Turkey: Do these mysterious stones mark the site of the Garden of Eden? And here’s a great video on that…could these discoveries change what archaeologists think they know about the history of human civilization on our planet?

• Interesting ancient technology? The Wands of Horus

• All kinds of interesting stuff from Reality Sandwich:

Chaos, Collapse and Synchronicity

Christ & the Maya Calendar: 2012 & the Coming of the Antichrist

What Now, America?

A Brief Confession

• Double hmm: UFO-alien abduction sleuth spots Christian ‘smoking gun’, and Part II

• Another intriguing chapter from Soundlessdawn over at Labyrinth of the Psychonaut, who incidentally is starting up his own podcast called Balmy Weather, perhaps a nod to recently-retired Stormy Weather: Steganography, Musical Biofeedback, and The Psychology of Occult Holophonic Cues

• Whoa! Yellowstone, the 44, the 111 & the Gen-X Vanguard

Imagine my surprise to see Michelle Obama actually breaking ground the other day, to the [...]]]> As I was gathering information for my recent post Our Contaminated World: Making Nature Illegal, I ran across and bookmarked this website, The Who Farm, which hoped to encourage the White House to plan an organic garden.

Imagine my surprise to see Michelle Obama actually breaking ground the other day, to the delight of the media, a class of 5^th graders and a lot of well-meaning folks out there.

Frankly the timing is suspicious considering the very hot current topic of bill HR 875. This bill, otherwise known as The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009, was introduced by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., in February. Her husband is Stanley Greenburg, who works for Monsanto, wouldntcha know. This bill threatens the very legality of organic farming, and the outcry is far and loud across the less mainstream Internet. Here is one typical discussion, but one can find raised hackles all over the place.

So is this Obama family garden plot a little publicity aimed to steer the public away from the truth about the administration’s apparent position on big ag? It raised an eyebrow over at Cryptogon, and forums are quickly picking up on the hypocrisy. It seems outrageous to clamor over the wonderfulness of a White House organic garden without at least mentioning the pending bill and its surrounding controversy.

This bill is sought by the current administration in response to recent food safety issues. The tragic problem of tainted food – spinach, peanut butter, etc – is creating quite a convenient ‘solution’. Could it be just another thing to add to the list of the dialectical chess game currently being played by the Oligarchy and the powers-that-be, in order to further consolidate and empower a centralized control mechanism? Namely, and likely, the The Codex Alimentarius and its current offshoots. An interesting podcast about the Codex can be found over at Red Ice Creations with Scott Tips of the National Health Federation, which seeks to protect individual rights to use dietary supplements and alternative health therapies without government restriction. Dad 2059 has been talking about it for awhile now, and has some interesting links and discussion.

It reminds me of another recent issue of contaminated toys from China, which led to, of course, The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which now requires rigorous, and expensive, testing of all materials in children’s products. While some large American toy manufacturers are seeing their sales improve due to the new regulations, smaller crafters and second hand stores are going out of business by the dozen.

The Oligarchy is slowly but surely wiping out the little guys, all in the name of safety. Wonder how it got to be that way in the first place?

One wonders about Mrs. Obama’s position on HR 875, and whether she has discussed it with the hubby. Perhaps, as Cryptogon tentatively hopes, it’s her way of speaking out against HR 875. Maybe there are some interesting discussions going on in the White House living quarters at night.

Or, perhaps it’s just a ruse. One certainly wonders what she thinks about the monster likely behind the bill, Monsanto, their terminator seed technology and the suicides of thousands of farmers around the world.

“Organic” doesn’t necessarily mean not genetically modified. Therefore one naturally also wonders if the White House will be using heirloom non-GMO seeds, and if so, whether they plan on also saving the seeds they harvest themselves, which is the irreplaceable link in the chain to true sustainable living and survival. Teaching organic farming to 5^th graders without mentioning this is like leaving fractions out of math class.

And if the White House IS growing heirloom tomatoes and saving seeds, for example, I reiterate: how now, brown cow??

While the White House garden is a good thing to see, as it may encourage others to go out there and grow a few veggies themselves, it sure would be extra-refreshing to see someone there speak out on the issue of non-GMO seeds and the seemingly hypocritical bill which is well on its way to further controlling and restricting the choices and freedoms of our natural heritage.

When taxes are too high, people go hungry.

When the government is too intrusive, people lose their spirit.

Act for the people’s benefit.

Trust them; leave them alone.

Tao Te Ching # 75

Last but certainly not least in this series is the long list of questionable practices undertaken by our pharmaceutical industry, and supported by our government. Now don’t get me wrong – certainly many medicines have been proven to be [...]]]> This is the final of three articles.

Last but certainly not least in this series is the long list of questionable practices undertaken by our pharmaceutical industry, and supported by our government. Now don’t get me wrong – certainly many medicines have been proven to be life-saving, and invaluable for people with serious conditions that become treatable with these medical innovations. I’m not here to argue that modern medicine is a complete flop by any means.

However many argue that doctors are often too quick to prescribe a drug before investigating other safer, alternative therapies such as nutrition and natural supplements. For example, behavioral problems and grades improved in schools that changed their menus to healthy foods. But these days, so many people, including children, are being prescribed drugs which later have been proven harmful to many people. Particularly of note here is the increasing rate at which doctors recommend pharmaceuticals for such symptoms as obesity, ADHD, ED, depression and fatigue. More studies certainly need to be done on the multitude of interactions between all the various toxins we face in our environment (see Part II of this series). Likely as not, they, as well as the quality of the foods we eat, could be affecting these types of conditions in the first place. In many cases, a pill is given to treat a symptom instead of truly rooting out the cause of the dis-ease. However, as also indicated by the previous article in this series, big pharma seems to be winning out over natural solutions.

When sanity and reason seem to have vanished, it begins to smell like…money. A friend told me recently about someone who was prescribed an antidepressant by a doctor and ended up sicker than before – and addicted. Later it became evident that the doctor had received compensation from the drug manufacturer to do so. After some investigation my friend learned that pharmaceutical companies regularly bribe doctors to prescribe their drugs. The more often doctors tout these often still-experimental wares to their unwitting patients, the more they get paid in kickbacks and what are called “spiffs”. The entire scenario is outrageous and criminal. The New York Times published an editorial about it in 2007 entitled, “Is Your Doctor Tied to Drug Makers?” And there is plenty more where that came from. Natural News has a page of articles on such bribery. It’s quite a rabbit hole.

Another subject to mention here is the entire vaccination controversy, which has reached a furor the past few years due to claims that vaccines which contain thimerosol, a mercury-based preservative, are causing autism and even death in a percentage of children. The war is still raging, and official studies so far claim there is no link, even though thousands of parents disagree.

I am aware that many people with autism, while perhaps different in various ways, carry their own brand of wisdom, ability, and genius, often with the capacity to contribute a lot to the world. I must also admit that the basic science behind vaccines changed the face of modern medicine and has saved untold millions of lives. However if a drug that is supposed to prevent future damage to an individual could be changing the personalities they were born with and causing an increase in medical costs and challenges for the families at home, then I begin to wonder. With all the knowledge and technology available today, I might imagine that someone could find a preservative that didn’t raise so many concerns. It arouses suspicion.

The vaccine controversy gets darker when one begins hearing of mandatory requirements, and no way to really know of any added “preservative”. In New Jersey, new laws requiring flu shots for children in day care have been met with protests from parents. Is this just the beginning? On that note, I found a startling article, Drugging America to death, about the true dark side of the pharmaceutical industry, including controls mandated during GW’s time which has made forced vaccinations and drugs a matter of national security,

“In combination with state laws titled Model Emergency Health Powers Act (MEHPA), the government is authorized to quarantine, isolate, imprison or fine anyone who refuses to take these untested drugs and vaccines.⁶ Detailed plans have already been drawn up by the Pentagon and Department of Defense to use the military to enforce these compulsory injections and medical treatments,⁷ and state public health departments have used portions of their bioterrorism budget to identity large sites such as stadiums, malls and cinemas to hold mass vaccinations.”^{8 [see article for references]}

Eli Lilly, one of the oldest and largest of the big pharma, is the company that developed thimerosol as well as Prozac and other powerful and controversial drugs. Its prominent board members have included George H.W. Bush, and one can find quite of bit of information online claiming links between Eli Lilly, eugenics, the Bush family and even the Nazis. Eli Lilly is known to have participated in MKULTRA, the CIA’s mind control and chemical interrogation research program, conducted in the 1950s and 1960s, for which Clinton publicly apologized while President.

Wrapped up in this is the subject of the military’s mandatory bioterrorism vaccines, testing drugs on our veterans and other groups of citizens over the years, often circumventing safety measures in the name of fighting bioterrorism. It’s a very deep and dark rabbit hole of unauthorized manipulation, experimentation and mind control. Enter at your own risk.

One area where most of us have no choice is our water supply, which in many, many communities is now known to contain antibiotics and traces of various pharmaceuticals. Bottled water is not necessarily any better, believe it or not. Those are all mainstream news links. Fluoridated water remains more of a controversial issue. FluorideAlert.org reports studies that claim it’s linked to lower IQs. Fluoride.info claims it’s beneficial. The typical dividing line here, as in many of these issues, is that big pharma and government claim it is safe, while smaller independent, natural and homeopathic sources claim it is not. Just as I was finalizing this article, it was announced that communities in the UK were going to begin fluoridating their water, even though many people objected. It’s possible that it might help strengthen teeth, but have a series of negative long-term side effects as well.

The air around us, while perhaps still free, is also not free from harm. Along with pollution from various chemicals and particulates, electromagnetic radiation from power lines, appliances, cell phones – and potentially HAARP – is also on the increase. People in communities with wi-fi are beginning to complain of symptoms. And there’s always the issues of chemtrails – the famously controversial topic relegated to the land of the conspiranoids, regardless of the evidence. See The Chemtrail Smoking Gun: Proof of global atmospheric geoengineering.

After taking a hard look at this various evidence, it becomes clear that the agenda of the powers-that-be may be considered to be motivated by greed rather than pure humanitarian concern. It has been acknowledged that many medical innovations were important milestones in our growth as a society. However one must regard with suspicion the mega-corporations which are consolidating their power with the support of the government, causing sickness and death in millions, while independent alternatives are routinely squelched. I recommend the reader do their own research, as there is much more to be uncovered and made aware of.

These topics, from GMOs, to illegal vitamins and natural cures, to drugs in our children and drinking water, are simply food for thought. They are not meant to create fear, but awareness. To take the next step in our walk on this planet, and beyond, we must not allow a corrupt system to contaminate our minds, or bodies or our spirits. Take the knowledge and find ways to grow beyond it. Be aware of the injustices; fight against them with small steps, each person finding their own Way.

Ultimately it is the revelation of the true nature of our spiritual selves which so many people struggle with. These various contaminants are blocking this work. While I was writing this, a new study revealed that Antidepressants may also suppress love and romance. This article shook me to my shoes, for its synchronistic timing and relevance to this series. Love is the key to survival on a level many people cannot yet begin to fathom. Without the capacity to love, many people may be left behind. If this is indeed the case, it is tragic beyond measure.

While many use globalism as a means to “protect” or even geoengineer the environment and take our world past the current crisis, Aristotle continues to remind us, absolute power corrupts absolutely. The irony is that the work of saving our planet, and thus ourselves, begins in our own back yards. I am not one to advocate violent rebellion. The revolution is one of free will, and it takes place within us. With information as ammunition, we can change how we think, act and react. We can, and will, change the world for the better.

In harmony with the Tao,

the sky is clear and spacious,

the earth is solid and full,

all creatures flourish together,

content with the way they are,

endlessly repeating themselves,

endlessly renewed.

When man interferes with the Tao,

the sky becomes filthy,

the earth becomes depleted,

the equilibrium crumbles,

creatures become extinct.

The Master views the parts with compassion,

because he understands the whole.

His constant practice is humility.

He doesn’t glitter like a jewel

but lets himself he shaped by the Tao,

as rugged and common as a stone.

-Tao Te Ching, #39

Due to the current economic crisis, people are going back to gardening in droves these days. Elizabeth Hart at Reality Sandwich recently posted Grow Your Own, quoting Thomas Jefferson as saying, “Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens…They are the [...]]]> This is the second of three articles.

Due to the current economic crisis, people are going back to gardening in droves these days. Elizabeth Hart at Reality Sandwich recently posted Grow Your Own, quoting Thomas Jefferson as saying, “Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens…They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bands.” She brings to our attention The Greenhorns, a new documentary about our next generation of young people who are returning to the land and a simpler life.

Our recent financial collapse has often been compared to the Great Depression, with one very important difference: many of our grandparents survived because they knew how to grow food; in today’s world, not only are there many more millions of people, but most wouldn’t know the first thing about farming. Here is a link to a list of some non-GMO seed stores. You don’t need much to get started – a few pots or a rooftop can create a viable garden even for urban dwellers.

Ironically, it’s becoming more and more difficult for smaller, local and organic farmers to survive, even as demand has skyrocketed. Originally published as an editorial in the New York Times last year, My Forbidden Fruits (and Vegetables) by local farmer Jack Hedin tells quite a story. Here’s another article recently from OpEd News: Organic farming booby trapped. The author encapsulates the issue and provides several links below, which lead to various articles on the dismantling of sustainable farming and USDA attacks on non-corporate farmers. In a nutshell, many claim that the government has been working to get rid of organic farming altogether by various means, including forcing farmers to use Monsanto seeds and even raiding small farms and co-ops.

Another similar issue is the increasing vigilance of the USDA, the FDA and other organizations around the world to legislate away our access to natural remedies. I wrote a long while back about Laetrile and the controversy surrounding “Vitamin B17” and its anti-cancerous properties. Some theorize that cancer is a actually a deficiency disease much like scurvy or pellagra, which could be easily cured with “B17”. The substance is found occurring naturally in various foods, including apple seeds and the kernels found inside apricot pits. According to some doctors, it’s of beneficial use, but it’s not legal to prescribe Laetrile for cancer treatment in the U.S. You have to go to Mexico or some other country to find a doctor who will prescribe it.

Also at Reality Sandwich, Laura Jane posted Endocrine Disruptors, Big Pharma, and BHRT, which explains that bioidentical hormones, naturally occurring substances that can make all the difference in the world for some people with deficiencies, could soon be banned. You can’t patent a naturally occurring substance, don’t you know.

It seems as if the FDA is working hard to protect the pharmaceutical companies, rather than ensuring that the populace as access to healthy options. It is currently illegal in the U.S. to claim that any natural substance can cure cancer. Cancer is big business these days for drug manufacturers. Many herbal remedies and even vitamins may soon be more difficult to access, and even become illegal, as may happen also in Canada. Just recently, Natural News reported on the news that the FDA Declares Form of Vitamin B6 a Drug, Effectively Banning Pyridoxamine from Dietary Supplements, and explained, “Now, any nutritional supplements containing pyridoxamine will be considered adulterated and illegal by the FDA, which may raid vitamin companies and seize such products. See the history of FDA raids on vitamin companies here.” This is regardless of the fact that pyridoxamine occurs naturally in various foods.

This will all likely soon become a matter of international law, along with our financial structures and trade agreements. From the Atlantic Free Press: “The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), based in Rome, Italy, is an international organization jointly created in 1962 by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) of the United Nations “allegedly” to protect the health of consumers with guidelines for food standards…Codex treats food as toxins.” They are controversially involved in the re-categorizing of herbs and dietary supplements as drugs, making them controlled substances.

Interesting that is so, when man-made chemicals with many known dangerous health effects are allowed to remain in our foods, including aspartame, high fructose corn syrup, MSG/autolyzed yeast, and other food additives and preservatives. I found an abstract for an intriguing scientific paper published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health entitled Persistent toxic chemicals in the US Food Supply. Toxic chemicals can be found in your laundry detergent, skin care products, and meat. The list is long, and it’s becoming difficult to afford organic/non-GMO food for many people. Tricky. How to Afford Eating Organic suggests it could be done, if we cut corners elsewhere and make it a priority.

It’s almost too much to comprehend. Before you know it, you’ll have to buy a license to grow that basil out on your porch. It is such a vital step for our civilization to return to local sustainability in terms of food and energy production. I am not suggesting to give up our global communications or other technologies. Personally I think if we did it right, we could have both. But so far, the government is still protecting large corporate interests over the common man. The revolution should come in the form of local sustainability, not rioting in the streets, which is already in the news around the world, along with a growing number of tent cities in the U.S.

Working together as neighbors, we might be able to avoid a total system collapse and the inevitable martial law that would follow, though some believe this is what They’re aiming for anyway. I’ll believe in the “change” if I see the new administration do something about this travesty. During these times in particular, sustainability, community-based, non-corporate farming, and healthy alternatives should be supported.  

Part III: Our Contaminated World: The Pharmaceutical Darkside coming soon

This is the first of three articles.

Among the variety of issues one should be aware of in today’s crazy, mixed up world is the increased manipulation and contamination of our air, food and water supply, as well as the continued pushing of often unnecessary and potentially dangerous [...]]]>

This is the first of three articles.

Among the variety of issues one should be aware of in today’s crazy, mixed up world is the increased manipulation and contamination of our air, food and water supply, as well as the continued pushing of often unnecessary and potentially dangerous prescription drugs on an unwitting population. This subject matter is intense, and though it has grown into a series of articles, they remain only a brief overview.

Why this is being done is a question that could take an entire book to answer, and even then, perhaps not to everyone’s satisfaction. I touched on why in my own book, to a certain extent. Why, is a question for the powers-that-be; the Oligarchy, which continues to allow such things to happen, regardless of any ‘change’ in administration. (At least so far as we can tell, to date.) Whether it’s being done on purpose, can be left up for discussion. Corporate greed run amok? Maybe. Satanic plot? Who knows. Subjects like “mind control” and “eugenics” make many people uncomfortable, though there has been plenty of evidence for both through the years.

GMOs, genetically modified organisms, are very controversial when it comes to food. Many claim they are for the benefit and betterment of humankind, because crops can be engineered to be resistant to weed killers or with more nutrients, and help improve and increase the food supply. On the whole, these are valid points. However one must reconsider when it becomes known that one company, Monsanto, controls nearly all of this technology to the point of engineering seeds to produce sterile crops which force farmers to purchase more seeds each season. The repercussions run deep; one tragic consequence is the thousands of farmers around the world who are committing suicide after having been forced to use Monsanto’s ‘Terminator’ seeds and seeing their farms fail. Suicide seeds indeed.

Additionally, there hasn’t been enough research to know for sure whether GM food poses any long-term health risks to humans. Rushing to allow them in our food supply – good luck finding a bag of corn chips at the grocery store without them nowadays – is questionable. The FDA does not require manufacturers to label their packaging with GMO warnings – only if a product does NOT contain any, one might see a non-GMO label, but they’re hard to find and you usually pay quite a bit more for them.

Estimates are that up to 70% of our manufactured food products contain GMOs, while in many other places around the world, including Europe, Japan, China and Australia, labeling is mandatory, and their foods therefore contain far less, though the controversy remains. In the news lately, British scientists condemn using children in GM food trials as unacceptable. As well, the European Union recently ruled that the public has a right to know where GM crops are located.

The state of Hawaii sees more than its fair share of modified crops. Last year, Scientific American published an article entitled, Genetically Modified Hawaii. Here on the Big Island, there has been quite a debate about whether to allow genetically modified coffee and taro, two treasured heirloom crops.

So far the ban has held, and a major reason for that leads to another problem with GM crops, which is the inevitable cross-fertilization. Eventually this presents legal challenges to neighboring farmers. It sounds nuts, but these non-participating farmers are being prosecuted for unknowingly yet illegally ‘cultivating’ patented seeds. Further, the controversial issue of GMOs invading wild crops has now been verified in Mexico: ‘Alien’ genes escape into wild corn‘. If it turned out GMOs in our food were killing us slowly, it would already be too late to turn back in many places around the world.

I’m not even going into the dangers of the chemicals which farmers have to use on Monsanto crops. There is enough information out there about GMOs and their potential dangers and injustices to write a series of books. But meanwhile check out the documentary film The World According to Monsanto (trailer). For a good overview and review go here.

GM proponents like to claim that crops can be engineered to survive during global warming. However, the following article, “Organic Farming Beats Genetically Engineered Corn as Response to Rising Global Temperatures,” discusses a new study published by Science. So it could be we’re not hearing the whole truth in terms of whose agenda GM foods are really serving. It would be easy to imagine the kind of power that will be wielded if the world’s food supply were controlled by one company (Monsanto, by the way, is also rumored to be funding the massive effort to store the world’s seeds in deep underground warehouses, “safe from global calamities”. See African Seed Bank Deposits Arrive in Norway, particularly the comments below.)

Part II – Our Contaminated World: Making Nature Illegal coming soon