Mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from GM crops
mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from GM crops *Pro-Agro shows the gate to its research staff [For a copy of the full report http://www.jrc.es/gmoreview.pdf] GM Crops: Industry 0 - Protesters 1 Severin Carrell reports on the mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from genetically modified crops The Independent on Sunday, 23 March 2003 Europe's biotech firms have cancelled millions of pounds worth of research into genetically modified crops, sending the industry into a steep slump, a new study has found. The European Commission has admitted that nearly two thirds of the EU's biotech companies have cancelled GM research projects over the past four years, mainly because of the controversy over the safety and labelling of GM crops, and continuing consumer resistance. The Commission also found that the number of GM field trial applications fell by 76 per cent last year, from the 250 submitted in 1998 to a level not seen since 1992. By comparison, US field trial bids have remained relatively stable at about 1,000 a year. The Commission's gloom deepened after an opinion poll of 16,500 people showed deep-rooted disquiet about GM crops. Although 44 per cent of Europeans believed medical biotechnology would improve their lives, only 36 per cent supported GM foods. Philippe Busquin, the European Research Commissioner, complained that "unjustified fears and prejudice" were severely damaging the EU's economic prospects. "The increasingly sceptical climate is scaring European biotech companies and research centres away," he claimed. "If we do not reverse the trend now, we will be dependent on technologies developed elsewhere." In a bid to counter this problem, he is ploughing another 2.25bn (?1.52bn) into life sciences research. The survey also underlined the public sector's increasingly leading role in biotech RD in Europe. Only 22 per cent of research institutes and 25 per cent of university institutes abandoned GM projects, compared to 68 per cent of the big biotech firms. Anti-GM groups said Mr Busquin appeared to have ignored evidence that investors were nervous about the viability of biotech companies. One study by the London-based Institute for Science in Society said share values in leading US biotech firms dropped 43 per cent last year. Sue Mayer, of campaign group Genewatch, said the sector had failed to justify claims it could quickly produce GM crops with improved nutritional or health properties, and had suppressed damaging results from trials.
Re: an inspiring tid bit
Hi Lance, No, but I would love to, where might he be coming in the US? Thanks, Christy - Original Message - From: Lance Howard To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, March 21, 2003 12:28 AM Subject: Re: an inspiring tid bit Speaking of Slovenia, I've been reading Marko Pogacnik, a communer with nature spirits and a practitioner of lithopuncture or earth healing. From what I have read he works on a smaller scale than necessary for what is apparantly needed in SE Australia (according to James Hedley). He has been resuscitating landscapes in Europe. His experiences concur with Steiner's description of the hierarchy of nature spirits. I'm particularly interested in how he has described fairies and devas "of place" and how such understandings might help define "farm organisms." He gives workshops (mostly in Europe) but may visit the US in Oct. 2003. Has anyone met or heard of him? Lance [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from GM crops
Sounds like a bit of good sense is getting through at last. Those who miss out will not need to catch up, they will just have less mess to clean afterwards. Peter. - Original Message - From: Alberto Machado To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2003 12:30 AM Subject: Mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from GM crops mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from GM crops *Pro-Agro shows the gate to its research staff [For a copy of the full report http://www.jrc.es/gmoreview.pdf] GM Crops: Industry 0 - Protesters 1 Severin Carrell reports on the mass exodus of Europe's biotech companies from genetically modified crops The Independent on Sunday, 23 March 2003 Europe's biotech firms have cancelled millions of pounds worth of research into genetically modified crops, sending the industry into a steep slump, a new study has found. The European Commission has admitted that nearly two thirds of the EU's biotech companies have cancelled GM research projects over the past four years, mainly because of the controversy over the safety and labelling of GM crops, and continuing consumer resistance. The Commission also found that the number of GM field trial applications fell by 76 per cent last year, from the 250 submitted in 1998 to a level not seen since 1992. By comparison, US field trial bids have remained relatively stable at about 1,000 a year. The Commission's gloom deepened after an opinion poll of 16,500 people showed deep-rooted disquiet about GM crops. Although 44 per cent of Europeans believed medical biotechnology would improve their lives, only 36 per cent supported GM foods. Philippe Busquin, the European Research Commissioner, complained that "unjustified fears and prejudice" were severely damaging the EU's economic prospects. "The increasingly sceptical climate is scaring European biotech companies and research centres away," he claimed. "If we do not reverse the trend now, we will be dependent on technologies developed elsewhere." In a bid to counter this problem, he is ploughing another 2.25bn (?1.52bn) into life sciences research. The survey also underlined the public sector's increasingly leading role in biotech RD in Europe. Only 22 per cent of research institutes and 25 per cent of university institutes abandoned GM projects, compared to 68 per cent of the big biotech firms. Anti-GM groups said Mr Busquin appeared to have ignored evidence that investors were nervous about the viability of biotech companies. One study by the London-based Institute for Science in Society said share values in leading US biotech firms dropped 43 per cent last year. Sue Mayer, of campaign group Genewatch, said the sector had failed to justify claims it could quickly produce GM crops with improved nutritional or health properties, and had suppressed damaging results from trials.
Chembusters/Organite
Dear Readers, A week or so ago on this list there was some discussion about the cloudbusters being made willy-nilly, pointed at the sky and left there. I indicated I wanted to see the design and how it was built, because if these were cloudbusters as designed by Wilhelm Reich they were almost certainly very dangerous. In fact, if such things were left in operation continuously we should have heard about the disasterous results on the news. (and we haven't) First I got an e-mail with a web address and downloaded the plans. Clearly it was NOT a cloudbuster, though it appeared to work in a somewhat similar, though far safer, manner with the ether--the living sorganizational energies in the environment. Then yesterday Don Croft, the guru of these new developments, visited me, along with Tim O'Donnel,l on his way back to Idaho from Florida. It turns out he lives in Moscow, Idaho where I have my closest relatives outside of my immediate family. It was an interesting visit. The device he left with me amounted to a two gallon plastic paint bucket with an array of pipes with crystals mounted at their bases and tghe bucket filled with metal shavings and polyester resin, such as yoyu might find sold to boatmakers. This model, which he called a mini-cloudbuster, was only about 5 feet tall and would fit in the trunk of a car. I talked with Don about calling this a cloudbuster when it was so different from the Reich type cloudbuster it really deserved a different name so people wouldn't be confused. I got the impression he really listened to me, usually a good sign of being in a healthy emotional state. I suggested we call these things chembusters, and he allowed as how he would look for some term that would evoke concensus. Certainly he and Tim appeared to be healthy and energetic. I shared some sushi I was making--the usual nori and sticky rice with flax seeds, shredded rape greens and chinese radish slivers (from my garden) carrot slivers, dulse, marinated lightly sauteed shrimp and avocado--great stuff. It was a heavily overcast day, and as Don predicted it started clearing. It was clear all night and today is the clearest and prettyest I've seen it in several months. Seems like we've been needing this. Random happenstance? However, something else came to light as well. Back in early April '74 I was painting the ceiling in a beauty parlour in Downtown Toronto on Bloor street. As it approached midnight I went down the street to a KFC chicken place that closed at the stroke of 12 and ordered the smallest possible box of chicken. I knew they had to keep a stock of chicken up to closing time, and if they had any left over, what could they do with it? So I told the guy I had very little money, but if he had left over chicken I'd appreciate some. He gave me about 7 or 8 pieces. I looked behind me and there was another American who was doing the same thing, so I talked to him. He looked like he might be living on the street, so I invited him to come inside where it was warm and help me paint. He was telling me that he used to be a janitor for Bell Laboratories, and there were two scientists there who had a theory that the human nervous system would act as an antenna. They calculated the number of miles of nerve fibre in the human body according to measurments of the cranium and spinal column, and they came out with a (very long) wavelength of between 7.8 and 8 Hertz. After building a transmitter (in the late sixties this meant so many miles of coils the transmitter filled a space the size of a small house) they got a volunteer off the street. They put him in a room full of junk where they had placed two pennies under a couch cushion, photographed them and replaced the cushion, and they put him in the room in a chair with the instruction not to get out of the chair under any circumstances. Then they beamed him with the picture and a verbal instruction to go pick up the pennies. After 30 minutes or so of increasing agitation, he jumped up, went over, flipped up the cushion and picked up the pennies. The scientists. rushed in and asked what was he doing. I don't know. said the volunteer, I just HAD to do it! The guy telling me the story then said the scientists dismantled their transmitter and wrote up their experiment as a failure. Why'd they do that? I asked. Because they realized they had found the basis for mind control. said my informant. I guess they didn't want the government getting ahold of it. Over the years since then, however, I have thought about this discovery and about the government getting ahold of it. And I've thought how common it is for a discovery to be made in two or more places with near simultaneity. So I've watched for signs that the government is doing just the kind of thing these two scientists feared. Do you remember how John Lennon's assassin allowed he didn't have anything against Lennon. He only did it because he had a voice in his head that wouldn't go away that told him to do it?
