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Starving Nation Turns Down Bioengineered Corn

The Washington Post has a story about Zimbabwe turning down shipments of genetically engineered corn, even though the country is experiencing a severe drought and starvation. Zimbabwe is afraid some of the corn will end up planted instead of eaten -- and growing patented corn is a no-no, of course! If the corn is planted even once, it may contaminate all future crops grown in those fields or any fields nearby, leading to huge lawsuits - and then the fields are contaminated, exacerbating the food shortage. So, starve or be bankrupted, and Zimbabwe appears to be choosing, "starve". Tons of ethical issues here, which have hardly been touched upon in the U.S. press.

5 of 798 comments (clear)

  1. Stop pushing GE on other countries by yuri+benjamin · · Score: 2, Flamebait

    I really wish US multinationals would stop pushing GE onto other countries.
    If they wanted to be nice they could have given normal corn.

    --
    You make the mistake of thinking you can educate the fundamental stupidity out of people. You can't.
  2. Re:Also not fertile... by YuppieScum · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    Yah, big deal.

    So the G7/8 governments conspire to destroy a native crop in an African country at the behest of Western-world-agri-business-interests.

    After all, when they get spectacularly in debt they can sell off their surplus population - "every home should have one!"

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    This sig left unintentionally blank.
  3. Re:There is an alternative method by bmajik · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    It's too bad you got modded as flamebait.

    It's a point worth considering. And its a low hanging fruit in political discourse, given how oftwen americans are bombarded with "give money to this random charity that spends 90% of your money on administrative fees and sends the other 10% to the dictatorship in power in some random country"

    I'm sick of hearing of africas problems. I'm also sick of people criticizing america when it doesn't bail someone out, and then critcizing america again when we _do_ bail someone out.

    Fuck off, world.

    --
    My opinions are my own, and do not necessarily represent those of my employer.
  4. Re:Slashdot misses the point by Malcontent · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    "inner city folks" was a euphomism for "nigger".

    Sometimes they also use the word "urban" to indicate "nigger" as in "Troubled urban youth".

    --

    War is necrophilia.

  5. USA == Iraq? by Moritz+Moeller+-+Her · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    OK, so basically you are equating the USA with Iraq. Both are bullies by your own words.

    Iraq does not have the right to complain about being attacked because it _WAS_ a bully in the past.

    By your logic Panama could launch an attack on the USA any day.

    But obviously American have become so selfcentered in their view of the worls, that you don't notice how many people are starting to hate your foreign policy.

    --
    Moritz