What is the short of this?

I read it and it seems to say that the UN condems terminator seed but they will allow hearing on the possiblity of case by case evaluation of the seeds?

What are the dangers of these seeds?

Greg

Hi Jennifer,
Makes me unhappy too.
The seed giants are already tying up the food supply of the World now without this happening.
Theres only 4 major seed companies left. All the other big players have been gobbled up. Any that were producing open pollinated varieties have gone. Clause a French seed co that specialised in F2 "cheaper" varieties was purchased by Sakata a major Japanese corperation who immediately disbanded all F2 research and laid off the specialists concerned with that.
Terminator Seeds would fit into their philsophy.

Here is a link that might be useful: Terminator seed and the UN.

Terminator Technology will ensure absolute dependence of farmers, and the people they feed, on multinational corporations like Sakata and Monsanto for their seed and food. Dependence does not foster freedom. On the contrary, dependence fosters a loss of freedom. Dependence does not increase personal power, it diminishes it. When you are dependent, you relinquish control. History is full of examples of peoples and cultures who lost fundamental freedoms, who were controlled by their need for food. This shouldn't happen to farmers. Water and Food are the new "oil wells" of the future. Could you really trust any boardmember of a multinational with the ultimate power of controlling
our genetic diversity and therefore our food.
Suicide seeds should have no place in this world. It is an afront to nature!

I was explaining this to my wife last night and we were both trying to figure out how this would affect small farmers world wide.

I have never heard it explained but I have tried to guess. My assumption would be that if the new seed were more productive it would cause small farmer to have to use it to compete. If this was not the case then small farmers could simply continue to save their own seed and compete successfully with that.

What do you folks envision?

Greg

My concern would be that terminator seed would contaminate ordinary seed through cross-pollination.

reginak,

I have heard that. Apparently this is especially a big deal with corn. Perhaps if individual countries illegalized it the effect of this would be minimized. Fact is though that corrupt 3rd world governments go where the money is.

Greg

It is very sad, but lawfully following the path that everything else on the planet is following. Nothing has been untouched by this careless attitude toward life. Money has become more important than the idea of the sacred. Life has become cheap our lives not seen as part of the whole of nature. Big business will turn what was a life force on this planet into an empty world lacking essence. Nature manipulated to the point of losing any soul of possibility. Science Fiction is now Reality.. So as some Sci Fi tales go, will there be the few who continue to follow and not give in, no matter how difficult? Will our planet survive as a life force? I can only live my small life, now, and try not to get swept into the vortex..martha/zucchini

" Fact is though that corrupt 3rd world governments go where the money is."

Looks like 1st world myopia to me.
Lets face it....Small countries like small companies are under pressure to oblige. 1st world multinationals aren't innocent in this. Neither are their governments. Power corrupts at all levels.

Glenn,

My emphisis on third world coruption is valid in the sense that third world leaders are usually not elected democratically and are therefore are not beholden to their subjects. They often don't care much for their own people and take money offered by first world groups in exchange for whatever intrests those groups may have.

Certainly you may say that Democratic countries could elect leaders that after reaching office don't listen to their constituents and then do whatever they please but I would say the difference in corruption via money is profound.

To your point though I would agree that it is first world businesses pressuring folks to buy the seed. If it is dangerous and they realize this then this is corruption. Further if congressmen take money from businesses to push a dangerous product then this is also coruption.

Greg

Greg, I understand where you're coming from about corrupt 3rd world govts. It's also true that the US government very very actively supports its Monsantos. E.g. in the U.N., WTO, NAFTA, etc.