Actually, in my experience in community organizing, this is absolutely false. Public institutions respond to the people who are pressuring them, and ignore those who are not. It may or may not be just or fair, but it is.
If we want the rec department to stop applying toxic chemicals to Clark Park, we can get that to happen. It would not be that hard. Kimm On 6/16/11 9:24 PM, "Margie Politzer" <m.polit...@verizon.net> wrote: > Tony said below: > "There will never be a situation in which Parks & Rec employs one herbicide in > a project in Park X and another in Park Y, based on local input." > > Tony, how do you know this? > > Margie > > > > > On Jun 16, 2011, at 7:08 PM, Anthony West wrote: > >> >> Mary, >> >> I appreciate your research on this topic! But you seem still to step >> around two key facts in Frank Chance's report on Roundup. First, most of >> the malign findings in human beings occur with agribusiness applications, >> which can be up to 20 times more concentrated than dilute commercial >> solutions. Second, while the half-life of glyphosate, the active >> ingredient in Roundup, varies widely in the soil, it does usually break >> down swiftly. That's why most harmful effects are associated with its >> handlers, not with food consumers or bypassers in a treated field months >> later. There was a reason, in other words, why this construction site was >> fenced off from the public for 75 days after this soil treatment, which >> was applied early, before the new sod was laid down. >> >> You are certainly right that further consideration should be paid to >> research into potential risks of glyphosate and other pesticides, and >> society should not rely on research paid for by manufacturers alone. >> >> You are also right that neither Friends of Clark Park nor UC-list has >> any scientific authority to judge these issues or make decisions on >> application. This is a consideration that rests on the contracting >> agencies -- in this case, the Dept. of Parks & Recreation, and perhaps >> Capital Projects as well. It is a citywide issue which has nothing in >> particular to do with Clark Park. There will never be a situation in which >> Parks & Rec employs one herbicide in a project in Park X and another in >> Park Y, based on local input. >> >> So readers with a (commendable, in my eye) concern about this subject >> should direct the fruits of their research toward people who write >> contracts for the City of Philadelphia. In the end, it is the City that >> must decide which construction practices are safe and which construction >> practices are affordable. >> >> --Tony West >> >> >> >> On 6/16/2011 1:55 AM, mcget...@aol.com wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Frank Chase's reassurances that the pesticide >>> Roundup is safe to humans and animals, are, I am >>> sure, well-intentioned. But the very latest >>> research, done by independent, university-based >>> scientists, makes a strong argument that the >>> dangers of this product have been grossly >>> underestimated . Numerous studies have now >>> demonstrated the toxicity of Roundup (not just its >>> main ingredient glyphosate) to amphibians, mammals >>> and humans. >>> >>> In Ontario, a dramatic increase in >>> miscarriages and premature births occurred in farm >>> families where the farmer fathers were using >>> Roundup. In Argentina, a region newly-planted in >>> RoundupReady soy and frequently sprayed with >>> Roundup saw a significant increase in certain birth >>> defects. Researchers in France and Argentina, >>> alarmed at this association between Roundup use and >>> harm to humans, undertook research aimed at testing >>> whether there was a cause and effect relationship >>> at work. They concluded that Roundup, at >>> concentrations well below those commonly employed >>> in agriculture, produced birth defects in >>> amphibians, reduced fertility in rodents, and was >>> lethal to human fetal, embryonic and placental >>> cells. Other researchers have observed an >>> association between exposure to Roundup and >>> increases in lymphoma in humans. >>> >>> Apparently, the position that Roundup is >>> harmless is based largely on research that 1) was >>> performed by scientists in the employ of its >>> manufacturer, much of it never published in any >>> peer-reviewed journals, and with evidence that >>> negative findings were suppressed and 2) >>> investigated the toxicity of glyphosate alone, >>> ignoring the fact that the additives in the Roundup >>> compound greatly increase the toxic effect. >>> >>> Two just-published reports address the >>> relationship between Roundup and birth defects and >>> the safety of crops genetically modified to >>> tolerate spraying with Roundup (the plants store >>> Roundup, which thus enters the food supply either >>> directly through human consumption, or indirectly, >>> as animal feed that then is stored by the animals, >>> eventually consumed by humans). They are both >>> excellent reviews of the status of research on >>> Roundup and a good source for the most important >>> scientific literature on the topic. >>> >>> >>> http://www.scribd.com/doc/57277946/RoundupandBirthDefectsv5 >>> >>> http://www.gmwatch.org/files/GMsoy_SustainableResponsible_Sept2010_Summary.p >>> df, >>> >>> Reading these reviews, as well as articles on >>> the toxic effects of incredibly small doses of >>> Roundup on human fetal and placental cells, >>> certainly shakes one's faith in Monsanto's claims >>> of its being harmless. >>> >>> In any case, neither Frank Chance nor the FOCP >>> are the pesticide police. They are not responsible >>> for its application in Clark Park, nor are they >>> scientists equipped to judge its safety. Clearly, >>> the responsibility lies with the city and its >>> agents (UCD, landscape contractors, etc). How much >>> Roundup was used in Clark Park is only part of the >>> story. How much of this pesticide has been spread >>> around the city at large? Perhaps that question >>> should be posed to the Parks and Rec people. I >>> don't think it's unreasonable to suggest that this >>> is a potential public health concern. After all, >>> the city of Boulder, CO has banned its use. >>> >>> Roundup and the crops genetically modified to >>> tolerate it are now hugely controversial in Europe >>> and it is likely that the debate about its safety >>> will go on for some time - there is billions at >>> stake. At this point, I don't think any one can >>> say definitively whether the application of Roundup >>> in Clark Park does or does not pose a risk to >>> children, to pregnant women, or to couples hoping >>> to become parents. For now, people will have to >>> decide for themselves, I guess, how much >>> uncertainty they can tolerate when it comes to >>> their health and their children's. >>> >>> Mary >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >> >> >> > >
