Thought some of you would be interested in this press release by the
National Center for Public Policy. I trust some culpable sources will
pick this editorializing up as news. From the U.S. Newswire service
(at least this one is carefully headered so one can check out the
source).
http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/Current_Releases/1123-101.htm
Here is the Web site of the "National Center for Public Policy":
http://www.nationalcenter.org/NCPPRHist.html
Do note that Amy Ridenour is their president, as well as contact
person for the attached press release. I believe that David A.
Ridenour, their vice president, is her husband. He's the perennial
ultra-conservative headlines grabber who asserts that raising mileage
for SUVs is wrong because it'll kill people, doesn't believe in
global warming, hates Al Gore with what appears to be a rather
intense passion, is a favorite of Steven Milloy ("The Junkman" whose
"junk science" Web site offers ample exercises in confused thinking
suitable for any introductory high school logic or critical thinking
class), is a supporter of the "wise use" movement, and believes that
unbridled consolidation of telecommunications is a hunky-dory thing.
Note that the National Center for Public Policy lists as its
credentials the media that have published their stuff:
"The National Center is a proven success in today's competitive media
environment, garnering over 1,392 media interviews and citations in
1998,
excluding published op/eds, while opinion pieces by National Center
staff were published by newspapers over 576 times. Among those
covering The National Center are the AP, UPI and Reuters, The
Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time
,Newsweek and U.S. News and World Report, ABC's World News Tonight,
NBC News, CBS News, ABC Radio News, Good Morning America, 20/20,
C-Span, PBS, NPR, Fox, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC and others. Talk radio
coverage has been particularly newsworthy, with coverage by industry
leaders Rush Limbaugh, Michael Reagan, G. Gordon Liddy, Jim Bohannon,
Oliver North, Gil Gross, Barry Farber and many others."
Source: http://www.nationalcenter.org/NCPPRHist.html
peace
misha
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Activists Attack Bio-Engineered Food Despite Benefits
U.S. Newswire
23 Nov 6:30
Activists Attack Bio-Engineered Food Despite Benefits to the Poor and Sick
To: National Desk
Contact: Amy Ridenour of the National Center for Public Policy
Research, 202-371-1400, ext. 107;
Web site: http://www.nationalcenter.org
WASHINGTON, Nov. 23 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The following was released
today by the National Center for Public Policy Research:
At a time when Americans should be giving thanks for the benefits
new biotechnologies offer the developing world, the environment and
health, a coalition of environmental groups, Members of Congress and
anti-technology Luddites are protesting these benefits and
threatening their future.
The protestors largely reside in rich European nations and the
U.S., where, unlike in the developing world, the benefits of
biotechnology are more a matter of convenience and health than one of
life and death. The activists are seeking restrictions and increased
government regulations upon the use of biotechnology, despite its
many benefits.
Activists are protesting public biotechnology meetings of the Food
and Drug Administration, taking place in Chicago, Washington, D.C.,
and Oakland, Calif., this November and December, and are expected to
be present in force at the World Trade Organization meeting in
Seattle November 30-December 3. Led by Minority Whip David Bonior
(D-Mich.), 50 Members of Congress sent a letter to the FDA calling
for more restrictions on biotechnology.
Among the acknowledged benefits of biotechnology:
-- Elimination of starvation: Biotechnology can increase
agricultural productivity in the developing world. For instance, the
1997 World Bank and Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research estimates that biotechnology will increase food production
in the developing world by 25 percent.
-- Health: Bioengineering can reduce the amount of saturated fats
in foods, and increase nutrients. According to U.S. Senator Richard
Lugar (R-Ind.) in Senate testimony, 500,000 children in developing
nations go blind as a result of Vitamin A deficiency. Biotechnology
can fortify rice, wheat, and corn with extra Vitamin A to stop this
blindness in children. All in all, 250 million children currently
suffer from Vitamin A deficiency worldwide, which can cause learning
disabilities and, for girls, childbearing problems once they become
adults.
Biotechnology can also reduce allergens in foods. Presently, food
allergies are the cause of 2,500 emergency room visits and 135 deaths
annually in the U.S.; 1 percent to 3 percent of older children and
adults suffer from food allergies, as do 5 percent to 8 percent of
infants and toddlers.
-- Environment: Biotechnology has already led to an 80 percent
reduction in insecticide use in U.S. cotton crops and U.S. Department
of Agriculture statistics show a 30 percent to 40 percent reduction
in herbicide use. Biotechnology can reduce the amount of water needed
to grow foods, and soil erosion as a result of agriculture.
-- Family economy: Bioengineered baked goods, fruits and
vegetables can have a longer shelf life, reducing waste and spoilage.
"Currently, all U.S. food improved by biotechnology must pass
stringent FDA and U.S. Department of Agriculture Safety Tests," said
Amy Ridenour, president of The National Center for Public Policy
Research. "They must be labeled if a portion of a known allergen has
been introduced into a product, and they must contain a label if
biotechnology has created a 'material difference' in the food. In
short, allergy, health and safety issues are already being addressed
by the U.S. government, but this is not enough for those activists
who look upon all technological progress with suspicion, even when
progress is helping the poor and the sick."
------
The National Center for Public Policy Research is a non-partisan,
non-profit educational foundation based in Washington, D.C. Contact
Amy Ridenour at 202-371-1400, ext. 110, or
aridenour@nationalcenter.org
-0-
/U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/
11/23 06:30
Copyright 1999, U.S. Newswire
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michele Gale-Sinex
Communications manager
Center for Integrated Ag Systems, UW-Madison
http://www.wisc.edu
UW voice mail: 608-262-8018
Home office: 415-504-6474 (504-MISH)
Home office fax: Same as above, phone first for enabling
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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