OMG GMOs

Ok, so we haven’t quite reached the level of “Soylent Green is people!”, but still, there’s a problem. GMOs, or Genetically Modified Organisms, are crops that have been tinkered with in a lab to make them “better.” Whether that means that they produce more crop yield or are resistant to something environmental or whatever, the term better is applied pretty loosely here. When it started, GMOs were touted as the way to end world hunger. The claim was that with the ability to “improve” crops, we’d increase crop yield, produce more food, and decrease famine and starvation.

If you’ve watched late night TV lately and seen a “Save the Children” commercial, you know that’s not the case.

Personally, I don’t feel good about the idea of GMOs for the same reason that I make my own cleaning products instead of buying chemicals – there are certain things that were not intended to exist. That’s why human scientists had to invent them. Nature (in her infinite wisdom) gave us everything that we needed to allow our species (and our predecessors) to survive for millions of years. Humans, because we are stupid and curious and can’t leave well enough alone, decided to “improve” on the nature’s design, and have (to quote Weeds), dug ourselves a hole a mile deep and foot wide, and now we’re looking back up at a pinhole. Fuck, right?

Even if you don’t agree with me and see no problem with GMOs as an unnatural blight on the earth, I think we can all agree that we have a right to know what we’re eating. Have you looked at the ingredients on the back of, say, a box of cereal lately? I’ll wager that 90% of us don’t know what a third of those things are. What the fuck is “soy lecithin?” Why am I eating it? What exactly is it bringing to the party?

What scares me is not so much that humans have created these Franken-foods, but the fact that not everyone is even aware of what GMOs are. The fact that GMOs aren’t labeled. The fact that Monsanto (the most evil corporation in the world in my mind as well as the champion of GMOs) is taking active legislative and legal steps to make damn sure we never know where or what GMOs are. It scares me that so few people are paying active attention to this. Seriously, take some time to Google Monsanto, and if you stumble upon the right blogs, you’ll find the data on the tests Monsanto did to prove that their GMO corn was safe for human consumption. For 90 days, Monsanto paid scientists fed GMO corn to lab rats. After 90 days, the rats were fine, and somehow that convinced the FDA to greenlight the production of GMO corn for human consumption (fun fact, approximately 90% of the items in your local grocery store contain corn). Scientists not being paid by Monsanto did their own trial. They fed lab rats GMO corn for 120, 150, 180 days. The rats were not fine. The rats grew gigantic tumors, tumors so large that the rats could not walk, and no longer looked like rats anymore. We are eating this stuff every single day without even knowing it.

I consider the actions of Monsanto a serious issue, and I try and make a conscious effort not to buy anything that supports them. Here’s where things get legitimately terrifying. I found a list of companies not to purchase from to avoid supporting Monsanto and GMOs in general:

Aunt Jemima

Quaker

Betty Crocker

General Mills

Bisquick

Duncan Hines

Hungry Jack

Jiffy

Ms. Butterworths

Peppridge farms

Campbells

Aurora foods

Kraft/Phillip Morris

Post cereals

Hershey’s Nestle

Carnation

Holsum

Interstate bakeries

Best foods

Knorr

Kelloggs

Nature Valley

Nabisco

Pillsbury

Heinz

Hellmans

Hunts

KC Masterpiece

Frito-lay/Pepsi

Delicious brand cookies

Famous Amos

Keebler/Flowers Industries

Banquet

Green Giant

Healthy Choice

ConAgra

Kid Cuisine

Stouffers

Lean Cuisine

Marie Callenders

Ore-ida

Smart ones

Power Bar Brand

Chef Boyardee

Hormel

Loma Linda

Morningstar

Lipton

Unilever

Uncle Ben’s

Rice-a-roni/Pasta-roni

Tombstone Pizza

Totinos

Orville Redenbacher

Pop Secret

Pringles

Proctor and Gamble

Coca Cola

Minute Made

Pepsi

Cadbury/Sweppes

Capri-Sun

Kool-Aid

Ocean Spray

V-8

Prego Pasta Sauce

Ragu Sauce

Ridiculous, right? So, what do we do?

First of all, let me just say that I know that not everyone is as passionate about or as interested in this stuff as I am. But let me also say this: human bodies were designed to eat food, not chemicals. And I’m not saying that Doritos and Oreos aren’t fucking delcious, because they are – but I find it hard to believe that those things couldn’t be made at least similar to their current status without incorporating GMOs and chemical, lab-created bullshit that doesn’t influence the taste anyway.  What I am saying is that we have a right to know what we’re eating, we have a right to be told what it is that we are putting into our bodies. Let’s just say, there’s absolutely a reason that cancer rates have risen in conjunction with the prevalence of processed foods.

We forget that as common people, we have power. You decide where to spend your money, and how. I’m not saying that you should buy organic or 100% natural or only shop at Whole Foods. We all know that that is just not economically feasible for the vast majority of Americans. But, you do have options, even if you can’t afford to spend a fortune. Always try and choose real food – that means opting for more vegetables and fruits, for fresh food rather than processed foods whenever possible. Farmers markets are incredibly affordable. Take up the practice of Meatless Mondays. If this issue or any of the satellite issues surrounding it are important, download the Buycott app. That magical app will scan the barcode of any product and tell you who made it and who owns them and who owns the company that owns them, etc. That app will help you figure out what’s really important to you, and assist you in not providing economic support to things that you’re diametrically opposed to.

We aren’t being held dietarily hostage by what’s available on the Wal-Mart shelves. By virtue of having money, we have options and we have power. And, even if you don’t, remember that in 2002, Zambia, on the verge of a legitimate famine, turned down food aid because it was GMO maize. Even the starving don’t want that crap. Fight for your right to be knowledgeable about your food.

If things stay the way they are, Soylent Green is our future. I promise you that.

(BTW, as you can tell, I’m making  a greater effort to actually put thought and research into these posts instead of just ranting. My apologies – sometimes I get a little riled up about things)

Damn it, Janet...

The GOP just fucked us in the ass again -- did anyone notice?

Congress voted on a bill to make the interest rates on student loan debt .75%. GOP said no. Instead, they've been working on pushing through a bill to DOUBLE the interest rate, and make it variable. Basically, unless you're rich, wrap your college acceptance letter around a dildo and shove it up your ass (too graphic of a metaphor?).

I have approximately $80,000 in student loan debt. Partly, because I tuition alone for my Masters degree was $40,000 (plus living costs, since I could only work 15 hours a week due to the work load). As an added bonus, my passion is not something that pays well. I spent about three times what I can ever hope to make in a year.

God forbid the government do anything to help me.

I've asked it before, and I'll ask it repeatedly: why on earth would you be a Republican unless you are next level rich, white, and a man. Seriously.

Sallie Mae officially owns my ass for the rest of my life.... Guess I'll go ahead and get lubed up.

My New Personal Hero

Proving once again how totally out of it I’ve been for the last few years (in my defense, I was in graduate school and current events just weren’t a priority for a while), I only just heard about this:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/05/world/europe/turkey-rape-beheading

But I suspect I’m not alone. 

Officially, this is the only honor killing I have ever or will ever endorsed. Get it, girl!

About a year ago, I got into a pretty intense discussion/debate/fight with a Christian friend of mine about the nature of feminism and its relationship with Christianity. I maintain that Christianity and feminism are mutually exclusive – the entire function, philosophy, theory and purpose of feminism is the idea of equality, systemic viewpoints, open-mindedness. The entire function, philosophy, theory, and purpose of Christianity is to control the masses. Best ways to control the masses

1. Define a group of people (any group, doesn’t matter, really, Christianity has used Muslims, blacks, and gays) as inferior or sinful to create a class system.  
2.  Foster a culture of accepting what you’ve been told and avoid and speak against critical thinking (see: Texas). 
3.  Brainwash the shit out of your followers.

It was always baffling to me as a child that when people prayed, they used the word “just” about 50 billion times. I remember being 11 and thinking this was stupid – think about what you’re going to say before you say it, and avoid using so many damn filler words. It wasn’t until a few years ago, attending a conference for and by atheists, that I learned this psychological theory put into practice by pastors/ministers/prayer leaders to use a “hypnotic word” to aid in the brainwashing of the masses.

Let us not doubt that the Christian church is damn good at what they do.

Anyway, point of this whole thing: rational thought involves hearing all of the facts, making a decision, and allowing that decision to be open to re-evaluation and change in the future should the available evidence be adjusted. Christianity involves doing what your told without asking too many questions, oh, and feel free to ignore any parts of the book that you don’t like and emphasize the bejesus out of the parts that serve your purpose. 

So, as I told my friend during that discussion/debate/argument, “Good luck being a feminist Christian.” 

I realize this post meandered a bit, but here's the point that I'm making (and will continue to make for the rest of forever): Religion, be it Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, or Rastafarianism (or the 50 million other options I'm not listing here because I'm tired and don't feel like it) have absolutely no place in the modern world. The problems that we face physically (climate change, diminishing resources, etc.) and socially (abortion, crime, drugs, mental illness, and the general madness involved in being a human and living in proximity to other humans) require rational thought, careful research, attention to detail and real data. Any attempts that we make to improve any of these issues are not only not helped but actively hindered by the existence and position of the church -- both in America and abroad.

Just say "no" to religion -- it's not helping us anymore. 

Picking a Villain: Feminism

A couple of weeks ago, I found myself in a debate with a friend about women’s liberation and its effect on the modern world, particularly American society. Now, this friend is kind of a chauvinistic douche, but he does tend to have good ideas. After a fair amount of back and forth, this is the agreement we came to: overall, women’s liberation = awesome. 

The problem, as he and I see it, is the way that we have responded to this movement. You’ll notice that America (particularly in areas regarding the family and parenting) struggles in ways that most other modern Western nations do not. The difference, we decided, is that when women’s liberation became a fact of life, most European nations adjusted their social and cultural values to accommodate this change. America didn’t. 

In most European nations, maternity leave is fully paid (either by the government or the employer or some combination of both), and lasts at minimum six months to one year. In America, it’s maybe paid (if you’re lucky and have a good job), but only lasts 12 weeks. 

For those of you not familiar with child development, what’s the most important developmental time period in a child’s life? Birth to one year. European mothers and fathers have the opportunity to spend this important, formative time with their children. American mothers find themselves dropping their infants off at day care about 15 minutes after their C-Section scars heal. 

Now, raise your hand if you’re surprised that we have such rates of gun violence, mental illness, suicide, unwanted births, and crime in general.

Once again, way to go, America.

the forecast...

That line from The Dark Knight Rises is perhaps the most apt description of where we, as Americans (and, frankly, humans) legitimately are. "There's a storm coming, Mr. Wayne. You and your friends better batten down the hatches, because when it hits, you're all gonna wonder how you ever thought you could live so large and leave so little for the rest of us"

I believe that a storm is coming. I feel it building. There are far too many areas of society and the physical earth rumbling, too many pockets of discontent for them not to come to the forefront. A storm is coming, friends.