intangible child

What would a world without farms and ranches look like? You might think of processed food devoid of flavor and nutrition or sprawling development stretching for miles - stamping out a countryside dotted with cows. Maybe some of this is already happening in your town.

But what about our water, and the air we breathe? Nearly half of the U.S. is working agriculture land, and farms and ranches provide critical environmental benefits like water filtration, flood control, air quality improvements, carbon sequestration, renewable energy and wildlife habitat.

Our farms and ranches are threatened - making the scenario above not so unrealistic - but we have a once-in-a-generation chance to make a change.

The 2007 farm policy debate is heating up, but it's not just a battle to be fought on Capitol Hill. It affects the availability and cost of fresh, healthy food both in the U.S. and worldwide. It impacts how farmers manage their land and their ability to be good stewards of our air, water and wildlife. And it shapes what tools are available for communities to fight sprawl and protect local farms and ranches.

Instead of subsidizing overproduction on marginal lands, let's support America's farmers and ranchers to provide fresh and healthy food and protect our environment.

Tell Congress to focus on farm and food policies that meet the needs of farmers and ranchers, the environment, and the public!
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takea...ltl=1176852363

Spread it on , We the People rule!

Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906

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Live the Light, Give the Light,
Bring Heaven to Earth Every Day!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=jBcwAJZGX...=john%20denver


The ancient Greeks used to say, "You shall know a man by the friends that he keeps." Given the nature of his friends and advisors, what are we to conclude about George W. Bush:
Stop the madness before us it stops!
Σταματήστε την τρέλα προτού να μας σταματήσεϊ Greek

teethandclaws

Soon we'll be getting all of our food from nations where "cheap labor" is the only labor, and crops can be grown year-round. We were a nation founded on farming communites, now it's rare to see vegetables growing in someone's back yard, and when there is one, the seeds planted in it are sterilized.

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Our Task must be to free ourselves... by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures, the whole of nature, and its beauty.
Albert Einstein

Hans Küng: "There will be peace on earth when there is peace among the world religions."

chrisg967

Can't this be avoided if we "vote" with our dollars and buy locally grown foods? Last time I looked, there were still farmers' markets in my town, and in towns around me.

tyreay

Unfourtunately, what Teeth said is true. All seeds, sold over the counter, are sterile.

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Politics, it seems to me, for years, or all too long, has been concerned with right or left instead of right or wrong. ~Richard Armour

There are many men of principle in both parties in America, but there is no party of principle. ~Alexis de Tocqueville

tyreay

Dear Dept. of Agriculture,

I understand you pay farmers to not raise cows. I would like to apply to not grow cows too. I won't grow 10,000 cows. Please pay me accordingly.
I understand you pay farmers to not grow crops. I will not need to grow corn, too feed the cows I am not raising, so I would also like to apply to not grow crops. I am not sure how many crops I will need to not grow, as I have never officially not raised cows. However, I think I will not need to grow 100,000 acres.
Please start sending me money as soon as you can because I am currently not engaged in raising cows or growing crops to not feed the cows.

Thank you. tyreay

__________________
Politics, it seems to me, for years, or all too long, has been concerned with right or left instead of right or wrong. ~Richard Armour

There are many men of principle in both parties in America, but there is no party of principle. ~Alexis de Tocqueville

teethandclaws

Do I get to be a partner?

__________________
Our Task must be to free ourselves... by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures, the whole of nature, and its beauty.
Albert Einstein

Hans Küng: "There will be peace on earth when there is peace among the world religions."

chrisg967

Am I understanding this right? You mean that seeds sold today in America have been altered so they will grow seedless melons, corn, broccoli, and the like?

teethandclaws

Not seedless, unable to reproduce. If you try to plant seeds from the foods available, they won't grow unless they are grown from hierloom seeds, which are not what most farms grow. They are more expensive, so less cost productive. Some are not as resistant to disease, like genetically altered seed plants.

__________________
Our Task must be to free ourselves... by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures, the whole of nature, and its beauty.
Albert Einstein

Hans Küng: "There will be peace on earth when there is peace among the world religions."

teethandclaws

here's a few sites with info on genetically altered foods

EarthSave International

The introduction of genetically altered (GA) food is part of a powerful series of interlocking political, economic and scientific mechanisms in our society wherein large corporations such as St. Louis-based Monsanto and Swiss-based Novartis have developed techniques to alter or disrupt the genetic blueprints of living organisms - plants, animals, humans and microorganisms - in order to secure patent and intellectual property rights. These firms then formally 'own' these new creations, the resulting 'transgene' foods, seeds, or other products, and then sell them for profit.

This is of great concern to EarthSave members, not only because of the health and environmental consequences of these technologies, but also because of their social and political ramifications. We understand that in order to have a healthy and sustainable plant-based diet, we need to radically democratize the food and agricultural policy of our society. We need to change these policies so that they are not based not on the needs of business with its constant need for profit, market share and growth, but rather on the health and environmental needs of all the planet's citizens.


The problem of food shortages is a political and economic problem.
Food shortages and hunger are -- and will be -- experienced by the poorer nations.
GE Food is an expensive technology that the farmers of the developing nations would not be able to afford easily.
Patenting laws go against the poor around the world and allow biotech companies to benefit from patenting indigenous knowledge often without consent.
This is a very young and untested technology and may not be the answer just yet.
Crop uniformity, which the biotech firms are promoting, will reduce genetic diversity making them more vulnerable to disease and pests. This furthers the need for pesticides (often created by the same companies creating and promoting genetically engineered crops).Genetically Engineered Food - Global Issues

__________________
Our Task must be to free ourselves... by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures, the whole of nature, and its beauty.
Albert Einstein

Hans Küng: "There will be peace on earth when there is peace among the world religions."

tyreay

It is getting harder and harder to actually find seeds that aren't sterile. Most seeds sold over the counter theses days are.

__________________
Politics, it seems to me, for years, or all too long, has been concerned with right or left instead of right or wrong. ~Richard Armour

There are many men of principle in both parties in America, but there is no party of principle. ~Alexis de Tocqueville