Are GMO's actually bad?

[Jade]

Here's my take:

When we spray our plants with pesticide, or imbue them with genes meant to destroy other living beings, that has ripple effects throughout the ecosystem, including in our own ecosystems: our guts. So many studies are coming out now that say things like autism spectrum disorders are associated with improper (extremely low) gut bacteria levels. I personally believe that this is because of pesticides and our conventional food system (they kills bugs, why wouldn't it kill bacteria? They aren't that specialized). GMO, at this point in time, are mostly specifically made to withstand as much pesticides as possible at this point. Again, if we analogize it with the human body - the pesticides are supplanting the plants' own immune systems. So "organically" grown plants are healthier, in that they have developed their own immune systems, and weaker plants in the gene pool are allowed to die and be consumed by pests, if necessary, and the stronger ones live, with much better nutrient systems in tact.

In fact, most people who are "gluten sensitive" are actually Round-Up sensitive - wheat is harvested when the plant has dried completely and died. Wheat plants are genetically modified to withstand and then are sprayed with Round-Up NOT because it kills the bugs, but it hastens the death and therefore harvest of the wheat crop. They are doused at the very end of their life cycle and then harvested, and then people eat whole meals with the backbone being conventional wheat - and this makes some people very sick! And then, cutting out gluten DOES make them feel better - but it isn't celiac, it's Round-Up.

Not to mention, GMO patents on seeds are a huge scam - if your neighbor uses GMO, and those genes cross-pollinate into your crop, and your crop tests positive for the patented genes, the patenter (Monsanto) owns them and your profits. Also, farmers aren't allowed to replant their seeds from year to year - it goes against whatever laws they have set up to scam the farmers as much as possible - each year you must buy new seeds from Monsanto. The freedom for farmers to save and trade seeds has been stifled.

Right now, the GMO movement is an attempt for a few companies to control the food supply more and more in the future. As Van said, companies that used to make chemicals of destruction - Agent Orange, et al. The "it could feed the world!" argument is OK, except that we could already feed the world with the food we grow, we just waste it. And most gmo crops do go to feed cows/chickens/etc, so we are consuming them en masse that way, as well. Anyway. If anything tips me off, it's the "pro-GMO" movement - if you want to see paid shills in action, go somewhere like Reddit and make an anti-GMO thread or statement, and watch them come out of the woodwork. They do have a lot of decent pro-GMO propaganda. I'm not anti-GMO per se, but I am anti-chemical pesticide and anti-gene patents.

If you need any more convincing about what side of the aisle groups like Monsanto and Dow are on, there are documentaries you can watch about what has happened in some rural areas of other countries where they have been basically sold the equivalent of "magic beans" - I watched one from PBS on India - 'oh, no crops will grow? Here, buy are relatively expensive seeds, and this magic chemical potion, and EVERYTHING will grow' - well, GMOs don't supplant a drought or poor land quality, so many farmers lose their livelihood in this "investment", and farmer suicide is a large problem in some of these communities that have been swindled.