© Hernando Rivera
Eruption at Colima volcano this morning.
An eruption at 03:08 am local time produced fountaining of lava several hundred meters high and appears to have caused a small pyroclastic flow.
Webcam image of same eruption
© purelymoms.com
It is my understanding that no one's figured out how much glyphosate we consume on a daily basis as yet.
Why should we know how much glyphosate we are ingesting?
Well, on March 20, 2015 the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) produced a monograph, Evaluation of five organophosphate insecticides and herbicides, wherein as a result of IARC's research, the herbicide glyphosate [the major component in Monsanto's Roundup®] has been "classified as probably carcinogenic to humans (Group A)."
According to IARC's monograph,
For the herbicide glyphosate, there was limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The evidence in humans is from studies of exposures, mostly agricultural, in the USA, Canada, and Sweden published since 2001. In addition, there is convincing evidence that glyphosate also can cause cancer in laboratory animals. On the basis of tumours in mice, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) originally classified glyphosate as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group C) in 1985. After a re- evaluation of that mouse study, the US EPA changed its classification to evidence of non- carcinogenicity in humans (Group E) in 1991. The US EPA Scientific Advisory Panel noted that the re-evaluated glyphosate results were still significant using two statistical tests recommended in the IARC Preamble. The IARC Working Group that conducted the evaluation considered the significant findings from the US EPA report and several more recent positive results in concluding that there is sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals. Glyphosate also caused DNA and chromosomal damage in human cells, although it gave negative results in tests using bacteria. One study in community residents reported increases in blood markers of chromosomal damage (micronuclei) after glyphosate formulations were sprayed nearby. [pg. 1] [CJF emphasis added]
Glyphosate currently has the highest global production volume of all herbicides.The largest use worldwide is in agriculture. The agricultural use of glyphosate has increased sharply since the development of crops that have been genetically modified to make them resistant to glyphosate. Glyphosate is also used in forestry, urban, and home applications. Glyphosate has been detected in the air during spraying, in water, and in food. The general population is exposed primarily through residence near sprayed areas, home use, and diet, and the level that has been observed is generally low. [pg.2] [CJF emphasis added]
Answer: As residues remaining on genetically modified food crops, then eaten as fresh food or prepared packaged foods, which typically have many other processing ingredients added that contain additional glyphosate residues from such staples as soy, corn, sugar beets, or canola oil. Those four crops, in some form, are ubiquitous in packaged foods. They are used for all sorts of production reasons from seasonings to taste enhancers to being components of food processing chemicals, additives and/or preservatives.
Just to give readers an idea of some other chemicals used in the manufacture of processed foods, I've included the Encyclopedia Britannica's "Food Additives/Food Processing" [1] in the Reference section at the end. Those chemicals add to, and compound, the total chemical loads found in processed food.
Genetically modified or genetically engineered food crops have the ability to withstand excessive applications of the herbicide Roundup®, especially since Monsanto's Roundup Ready® GMO seeds allow crops to resist glyphosate, the toxic ingredient in Roundup, which is sprayed to kill weeds during growing season, but also sprayed on some cereal/grain/legume crops [wheat, feed barley, oats, canola, flax, peas, lentils, dry beans, and soy] at the end of their growing season, and before harvest, to act as a desiccant. [2, 8]
I have been a wheat farmer for 50 yrs and one wheat production practice that is very common is applying the herbicide Roundup (glyposate) [sic] just prior to harvest. Roundup is licensed for preharvest weed control. Monsanto, the manufacturer of Roundup claims that application to plants at over 30% kernel moisture result in roundup uptake by the plant into the kernels.
Farmers like this practice because Roundup kills the wheat plant allowing an earlier harvest.
A wheat field often ripens unevenly, thus applying Roundup preharvest evens up the greener parts of the field with the more mature.
The result is on the less mature areas Roundup is translocated into the kernels and eventually harvested as such.This practice is not licensed. Farmers mistakenly call it "dessication." [sic] Consumers eating products made from wheat flour are undoubtedly consuming minute amounts of Roundup. An interesting aside, malt barley which is made into beer is not acceptable in the marketplace if it has been sprayed with preharvest Roundup. Lentils and peas are not accepted in the market place if it was sprayed with preharvest roundup..... but wheat is ok.. This farming practice greatly concerns me and it should further concern consumers of wheat products. [7]
© gmoinside.org
Worldwide, 8 GMO crops have been approved for commercial production; soy, cotton, corn, canola, sugarbeet, papaya, squash or yellow zucchini, and alfalfa, and the biotech industry is in the process of pushing forward additionally modified foods such as rice, apples, and salmon. The four major crops that account for virtually all of the biotech output are soy, cotton, corn, and canola. The remaining GMO crops are exclusively grown in the United States with the exception being papaya which is grown in China in addition to US cultivation.
The use of low doses of antibiotics by the modern food animal industry is responsible for drug- resistant bacteria emerging on farms which reach the general population through human or animal carriers, and through the food consumers eat. [3]
The London Daily Mail reported,
When Prince Charles claimed thousands of Indian farmers were killing themselves after using GM crops, he was branded a scaremonger. In fact, as this chilling dispatch reveals, it's even WORSE than he feared. [4]
Furthermore, herbicide use has increased 26 percent between 2001 and 2010 due to the spread of herbicide-resistant weeds. Also, there's real concern that herbicides are killing off pollinator insects, especially bees. Genetic engineering agriculture also reduces the amount of bee forage plants. Here's an interesting site about bees and GMOs.
So, how much glyphosate is sprayed on crop acreage? Well, Understanding Glyphosate to Increase Performance, Purdue Knowledge to Go (1-888-EXT-INFO) provides some information. Probably the exact glyphosate use is difficult to define since there are numerous parameters and measures involved, e.g., desired volume and the percentages of glyphosate [1/2%, 1%, 1 ½ %, 2%, 5%, and 10%], depending upon the number of gallons of water used as the carrier/spray.
According to Monsanto's 2013 Annual Report, it had net sales totaling $14,861 Million with net sales for GMO seeds and Genomics Segment coming in at $10,341 Million. That Annual Report ended with this quotation, "The first essential component of social justice is adequate food for all mankind." Adequate? Shouldn't consumers expect healthful, nutritious, and not super-saturated with chemicals?
Basically, there are ten companies [5] that control the world's seed supply.
They include:
© The Cornucopia Institute
The last issue I'd like to fly by readers is this: Do you believe the advertising spin about glyphosate that it's harmless? Well, there is some concern that glyphosate and gluten intolerance are associated. Martin Michener, PhD, explains the relationship in Gluten Intolerance and the Herbicide Glyphosate: A National Epidemic. Several medical doctors have weighed in on the association with glyphosate and celiac disease [9], poor gastrointestinal health [10], and gastroparesis [11].
Additionally, I think a similar connection can be made regarding canola oil, since many people I know experience gastrointestinal distress after eating that highly-touted oil. The Cornucopia Institute's Gut-Wrenching: New Studies Reveal the Insidious Effects of Glyphosate is something every person ought to read and seriously consider, I think. And, believe it or not, but glyphosate has been found in human urine!
However and unbelievably, in 2013, the U.S. EPA increased the allowable limits of glyphosate in food crops from 200 ppm to 6,000 ppm—a 30-fold increase from its original allowable limits! [6] What does that tell you?
What's in your food? Do you really want to know? Then, here's a just-published-book, Altered Genes Twisted Truth: How the Venture to Genetically Engineer Our Food Has Subverted Science, Corrupted Government, and Systematically Deceived the Public . Please READ it!
References
[1]britannica.com
[2]Preharvest Staging Guide
[3]sustainabletable.org
[4]dailymail.co.uk
[5]nationofchange.org
[6]rt.com
[7]wheatbellyblog.com
[8]washingtonsblog.com
[9]mercola.com
[10]wheatbellyblog.com
[11]bioportfolio.com
Resources
Antibiotic Resistance and The Case for Organic Meat and Poultry
Good Questions: Einkorn, Spelt, Emmer, Farro and Heirloom Wheat
By 'Editing' Plant Genes, Companies Avoid Regulation
About the author
Catherine J Frompovich (website ) is a retired natural nutritionist who earned advanced degrees in Nutrition and Holistic Health Sciences, Certification in Orthomolecular Theory and Practice plus Paralegal Studies. Her work has been published in national and airline magazines since the early 1980s. Catherine authored numerous books on health issues along with co-authoring papers and monographs with physicians, nurses, and holistic healthcare professionals. She has been a consumer healthcare researcher 35 years and counting.
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© AP/Andina, Carlos Lezema
In this photo provide by government's Andina news agency, rescue personnel work in the debris of a house destroyed by a mudslide caused by heavy rains in Chosica, Peru, Tuesday, March 24, 2015. According to authorities the mudslide blocked a major road to Lima, destroyed more than 60 homes and killed several residents.
The central highway remained blocked by debris on Tuesday from the previous night's catastrophe.
Boulders loosed by two hours of heavy rains smashed through brick walls and floodwaters carried cars, animals and furniture through Chosica's streets.
© AP/Andina, Carlos Lezema
© Reuters/Mariana Bazo
A man stands inside his destroyed house after a massive landslide in Chosica, March 24, 2015.
A 1987 mudslide in Chosica killed 64 people.
Peru's weather service predicts heavy coastal rains through the rest of March.
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© Facebook
Image from Friends of West Wind Acres Facebook Page.
Police initially visited Rockwood's property on February 25th to investigate reports of unlicensed working dogs, weeks before the raid. Unfortunately, Rockwood voluntarily showed local police around his property, which he had not yet tended to that day because of their unexpected interruption. After showing them around, they began to critically assess every aspect of the farm, writing a number of citations for arbitrary offenses.
The very next day, Rockwood had a veterinarian visit the farm to check on the animals to confirm that they were well taken care of and in good health. According to numerous reports, the vet said that the animals were just fine, and did not seem to share the concerns that the officers alleged during their walk-through.
A second veterinarian was also called in to verify the health of the animals and they also found them to be in perfect health.
A week later, police returned again to notify Rockwood that he was to appear in court the next Thursday on a number of charges relating to the animal's food and shelter. In total, 12 different charges were brought against Rockwood, but he has posted a number of photos to a Facebook support page, which shows the animals with sufficient housing, and plenty of food.
© Free Thought Project
Rockwood treats his animals better than most factory farms do, but since he uses traditional farming methods, his farm will fail regulatory inspections, while factory farms will pass.
Meanwhile, New York is one of many states that are currently considering "ag-gag" laws, which place criminal penalties on activists who expose animal abuse at factory farms.
The controversial ag-gag laws prohibit "recording an image or sound without the operator's permission; gaining 'access to an agricultural operation under false pretenses;' asking for a job at a place for the purpose of making recordings; and making a recording while trespassing."
The irony here is that the state will lock you in a cage for filming the horrific atrocities at a factory farm while simultaneously trumping up ridiculous and petty violations if you aren't a factory farm. Just who does the state "protect" by doing these things?
© Free Thought Project
Because of his caring and generous customers and supporters they are almost halfway to that goal.
© Reuters/Jonathan Ernst
House lawmakers Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) are co-sponsoring bill H.R.1466 , which was introduced on Tuesday and would repeal the 2001 Patriot Act, limit powers of the FISA Amendments Act, and prohibit retaliation against federal national security whistleblowers, according to The Hill.
"The Patriot Act contains many provisions that violate the Fourth Amendment and have led to a dramatic expansion of our domestic surveillance state," said Rep. Massie in a statement. "Our Founding Fathers fought and died to stop the kind of warrantless spying and searches that the Patriot Act and the FISA Amendments Act authorize. It is long past time to repeal the Patriot Act and reassert the constitutional rights of all Americans."
As it looks right now, this is HUGE!!!! If this is what it appears to be, we have to fight like animals for it! - http://bit.ly/1EUaLYk
— Wade Biery (@WadeBiery) March 24, 2015
It would repeal provisions of the FISA Amendments Act to ensure surveillance of email data only occurs with a valid warrant based on probable cause. The bill would also prohibit the government from mandating that manufacturers build mechanisms allowing the government to bypass encryption in order to conduct surveillance.
Additionally, the bill would protect a federal whistleblower's efforts to expose mismanagement, waste, fraud, abuse, or criminal behavior. It would also make retaliation against anyone interfering with those efforts - such as threatening them with punishment or termination - illegal.
"Really, what we need are new whistleblower protections so that the next Edward Snowden doesn't have to go to Russia or Hong Kong or whatever the case may be just for disclosing this," Massie said.
Introduced a bill w/@RepThomasMassie, which would repeal PATRIOT Act and end #NSAdragnet #surveillance practices. http://bit.ly/1GmAKKd
— U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (@repmarkpocan) March 24, 2015
"The warrantless collection of millions of personal communications from innocent Americans is a direct violation of our constitutional right to privacy," said Rep. Pocan in a statement.
"Revelations about the NSA's programs reveal the extraordinary extent to which the program has invaded Americans' privacy. I reject the notion that we must sacrifice liberty for security - we can live in a secure nation which also upholds a strong commitment to civil liberties. This legislation ends the NSA's dragnet surveillance practices, while putting provisions in place to protect the privacy of American citizens through real and lasting change."
Portions of the Patriot Act are due for renewal on June 1.
© AFP Photo / Timothy A. Clary
Members of the public with a reason to study anatomy will be eligible for the day-long workshops, which will cost £100 each. Edinburgh University will offer six classes beginning next month with a dissection of the "upper limb."
Tom Gillingwater, professor of neuroanatomy, said the university is taking advantage of changes in the law to enable the public to "get under the skin of the real flesh and bones of anatomy."
He said in a statement: "If you go back to the early 1800s, the public were more clued up on anatomy than they are now. Back then, dissection was done publicly. You could buy tickets."
"For some it was entertainment, but for others it was a way of feeding curiosity and finding out what was going on."
Gillingwater added: "We want people who have a reason to learn more anatomy to do so legally, safely and with the right level of instruction, in an expert environment with access to actual human material."
The workshops, which begin in April, will be the first public human anatomy lectures since a scandal featuring notorious murderers Burke and Hare caused the outlawing of public dissections.
William Burke and William Hare were two Irish immigrants who killed 16 people in the Scottish capital before they were caught in 1828.
The pair sold their victims' corpses to Dr Robert Knox, a surgeon who was a popular lecturer in anatomy.
Following the scandal, legislation was passed to expand the legal supply of medical cadavers and outlaw the public dissection of human bodies.
Professor Gillingwater said aspiring medical students, massage therapists and artists have already signed up for the lectures.
He said: "The cadaveric material allows you to see bones with ligaments attached or the muscles all around it, the nerves supply, the blood vessels, to see the whole functioning upper limb."
"People will be looking at and handling arms. They won't be expected to physically dissect. Anatomy education is about so much more than learning facts. It is, for example, about dealing with death."
Gillingwater went on to say applicants will be carefully vetted.
"If you are having to handle a body, this is someone who was a living, breathing person, perhaps a relative of someone who lived locally. You need to show respect and the level of emotional awareness and maturity to handle that," he said.
Herbicides are used to kill plants. They can be tested for killing bacteria, too, as part of the process of reviewing their approval for use. However, they have never been tested for other effects on bacteria, University of Canterbury's Professor Jack Heinemann says.
This is the first study of its kind in the world. While other substances such as aspirin have been shown to change bacteria's tolerance to antibiotics herbicides have never been tested. The team at the University of Canterbury investigated what happens to species of disease-causing bacteria when they are exposed to common herbicides such as Roundup, Kamba and 2,4-D.
"We found that exposure to some very common herbicides can cause bacteria to change their response to antibiotics. They often become antibiotic resistant, but we also saw increased susceptibility or no effect. In most cases, we saw increased resistance even to important clinical antibiotics," Professor Heinemann says.
"We were so surprised by what we were seeing. We wanted to be sure it wasn't an artefact of conditions in our laboratory or some kind of contamination. So we enlisted a fellow researcher at Massey who conducted the same experiments but without knowing what she was adding to the bacteria. She got the same results."
Antibiotic resistance is a serious and growing problem for human and animal health. New antibiotics are hard to find and can take decades to become available. Effects of chemicals such as herbicides could conflict with measures taken to slow the spread of antibiotic resistance.
The research team included researchers from Mexico, Lincoln University and Massey University.
Read the full study here