Mutant Seeds For Mesopotamia

From the article:

One would think that Iraqi farmers, now prospering under "freedom" and "democracy," would be able to plant the seeds of their choosing, but that choice, under little-known Order 81, would be illegal.

But first, it is important to set the context. Most people have never heard of the infamous "100 Orders," but they help explain why the majority of Iraqis remain opposed to foreign occupation. The 100 Orders allow multinational corporations to basically privatize an entire nation, and this degree of foreign and private control has not been witnessed since the days of the British East India Company and its extraterritoriality treaties.

A few examples of the 100 Orders are illuminating:

Order 39 allows for the tax-free remittance of all corporate profits.
Order 17 grants foreign contractors, including private security firms, immunity from Iraq's laws.
Orders 57 and 77 ensure the implementation of the orders by placing U.S.-appointed auditors and inspector general in every government ministry, with five-year terms and with sweeping authority over contracts, programs, employees and regulations. (1)
Back to one of the most blatant orders of all: Order 81. Under this mandate, Iraq's commercial farmers must now buy "registered seeds." These are normally imported by Monsanto, Cargill and the World Wide Wheat Company. Unfortunately, these registered seeds are "terminator" seeds, meaning "sterile." Imagine if all human men were infertile, and in order to reproduce women needed to buy sperm cells at a sperm bank. In agricultural terms, terminator seeds represent the same kind of sterility.

Terminator seeds have no agricultural value other than creating corporate monopolies. The Sierra Club, more of a mainstream "conservation" organization than a radical "environmentalist" one, makes the exact same case:

"This technology would protect the intellectual property interests of the seed company by making the seeds from a genetically engineered crop plant sterile, unable to germinate. Terminator would make it impossible for farmers to save seed from a crop for planting the next year, and would force them to buy seed from the supplier. In the third world, this inability to save seed could be a major, perhaps fatal, burden on poor farmers." (2)

What makes this Order 81 even more outrageous is that Iraqi farmers have been saving wheat and barley seeds since at least 4000 BC, when irrigated agriculture first emerged, and probably even to about 8000 BC, when wheat was first domesticated. Mesopotamia's farmers have now been trumped by white-smocked, corporate bio-engineers from Florida who strive to replace hundreds of natural varieties with a handful of genetically scrambled hybrids.

Where does such hubris come from? It comes from the entire mission surrounding the invasion of Iraq, which, upon closer inspection, had been planned years in advance by a faction of "neo-cons" who adopted Leon Trotsky's glorification of the state, his theory "permanent revolution," and his goal of exporting revolution worldwide. The neo-con revolution aims to alter the economic, political and cultural foundations of nations on the other side of the planet (rejecting old-fashioned notions of self-determination, popular sovereignty and even the nation-state system). This mission includes the transformation of agriculture and the establishment of "food control" over local populations.

Order 81 fits into this revolutionary program, and it is quite diabolical upon closer inspection. First, it forces Iraq's commercial farmers to use registered terminator seeds (the "protected variety"). Then it defines natural seeds as illegal (the "infringing variety"), in a classic Orwellian turn of language.

This is so incredible that it must be re-stated: the exotic genetically scrambled seeds are the "protected variety" and the indigenous seeds are the "infringing variety."

The FDA needs to be de-loused from the bogus appointments of Clinton and Bush. The industry lobbyists have to go! Put some decent kick ass public servants in there for goodness sake!

I agree. Iraq has been made into a corporate playground and it is despicable. It is obvious we will always have a presence in Iraq in some form. Monsanto has now made sure to plant those seeds. And why this was voted down the way it was is honestly ridiculous. People here claim they want to discuss real issues then dismiss those who do.

And from my research I have read that the USDA and the Mississippi-based Delta & Pine Land Company acquired by Monsanto jointly hold the Terminator patent. Monsanto is currently negotiating with USDA for an exclusive license on the Terminator technology. So is that why Obama and all presidents before him look to appoint a Monsanto puppet to the head of USDA? Is that one reason why we will continue to have a presence in Iraq? We didn't build that resort city for diplomats in Baghdad for nothing.

So when Obama or any socalled president states they are taking troops out, it only means to send them somewhere else (and in this case it's Afghanistan.) HMM, I wonder if Monsanto will go there next or is already there. It seems they have been in EVERY war started selling their poisons. I don't understand why people aren't outraged by that after the last eight years of lies. And now Monsanto is going to take their biocrap food to Vietnam... can you imagine this after Agent Orange? Where is the damn outrage? This is our global food supply we are talking about!

AHHH..I see!! Afghanistan. It makes sense, now !! They're starving now and then Monsanto comes to save the day...NOT!!!

Holy ****. Monsanto IS in Afghanistan spraying their glyphosate poison on poppies! Just like they are doing in Columbia regarding 'coca plants.'

http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/afghanistan/joint-command.html

Thanks for the link...it is dumbfounding to see all the tricks of Monsanto and the USA in Afghanistan. It sickens me.

I wonder if Mr. Obama realizes what is going on with Monsanto and Carlyle? All the good ole boys are totally invested in Carlyle? Is he going to give a damn either after we bombard him with the facts? Will he make any effort to thwart GMO foods, and seed/food manipulation, or will he invest his money with them like all the other political crooks?

Only his appointments will give us that answer. Based on them so far I would have to say no.

This is what I was talking about! It's ashame they can monopolize somthing as vital as food. GM crops have not been tested for more then 100 years. They could just stop producing seed eventually. Better keep a handful of those rice seeds in your vault!

Or else you may have to pay for food like gas! Depending on derivatives and speculation.........

This is no joke!

Down with Monsanto!

why are they spraying it there?