pesticides

I was prompted to write this article when a twitter contact of mine wondered whether some of my writings about the corpocracy amounted to a conspiracy theory.  Having been a behavioral scientist most of my adult life I know a thing or two about what’s theory and what’s not.  I don’t know how anyone, scientist or lay person, could mistake the corpocracy for a theory. I doubt if any readers of articles published in the alternative news media would confuse the two. Nevertheless, I want to tell you what I have learned over the years.

Last month Maryland’s Senate passed a partial ban on neonicotinoids, also known as neonics, a relatively new type of systemic pesticide which has been used to control sap-feeding insects, such as aphids and grubs.  Three different types of neonicotinoids were previously banned in the EU in 2013 because of the risk they posed to bees after large-scale field trials in Hungary, Germany and the UK have demonstrated a link between neonicotinoids and Colony Collapse Disorder.

Healthy soil contains billions of tiny microorganisms that help plants to thrive and our food supply to remain abundant. A paper, published in Nature Communications, used large-scale data comparisons of soil from 78 global drylands and from 179 locations across Scotland to study diversity of soil microbiota. The researchers found that diversity is absolutely imperative for supporting ecosystems.

Portland pesticides, medical errors and unhealthy headlines + this day in history w/Haymarket affair and our song of the day by Japancakes on your Morning Monarchy for May 4, 2016.

Nanofarms, certain crops and Mediterranean diets + this day in history w/'Paradise Lost' and our song of the day by Sun Club on your Morning Monarchy for April 27, 2016.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has rejected claims filed by 2 families in Boise, Idaho, who alleged the USDA’s pesticide treatment contaminated their crops and poisoned a cattle herd.
In a letter to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter called for a quick resolution to the tort claim filed by the 2 families. Otter defended the families, telling Sec. Thomas Vilsack that neither family was at fault for the damages and debts they have racked up by allowing the USDA to treat the fields.
Otter wrote:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) made an announcement just a few months ago concerning the loss of honeybees that will undoubtedly make environmentalists say “I told you so,” and for good reason. The agency says that a pesticide widely sprayed on grains, vegetables, fruit, and other crops across the United States is threatening honeybees. [3]
The announcement could bolster efforts to have imidacloprid, a nicotine-imitating chemical, banned nationwide.

Life expectancy, occasional treats and the clean fifteen + this day in history w/Deepwater and our song of the day by Brass Bed on your Morning Monarchy for April 20, 2016.

The world’s honeybees are in rapid decline. Due to pesticide exposure, disease, and more, there are 70% fewer of them now than there were just 70 years ago. A number of hotels in San Francisco are sympathetic to the plight of these vital pollinators, and have turned their rooftops into sanctuaries for the fuzzy, winged creatures.

Each year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) releases its “Dirty Dozen” list of the fruits and vegetables that rank highest in pesticide residues. This year, strawberries top the list.
For the first time, strawberries outrank apples, which previously headed the list for 5 years running.