Genetically Modified Seeds and India's Suicide Belt

I read the article and the comments... The comment from the person from India was thought provoking...

I am appalled that these good husbands and fathers would kill themselves and leave their families helpless....

I think that much more information is necessary before condemning the company that designed the seed... seed that apparently has allowed the cotton production to double in the last 5 years and kept millions of jobs viable in the textile industry... It seems that two years of drought have taken their toll and without doubt the farmers need help... financial help and education about farming practices... It appears that the government seed bank did not dispense adequate information about the seeds they were selling... and that the need to purchase seed every year is a financial hardship. If the farmers live in an area where cotton can be grown organically, that would be an ideal solution. But... not all areas are capable of that... especially if the boll weevil is a well established pest...

I think that rather than trying to stop Monsanto we should focus on helping the farmers into the modern age of farming...

Angel

--Alli wuz here--- (Clickin' like mad and leavin' a few comments) Thanks for posting!

I read the article and I thought the same thing: what father, knowing he would leave his family in such dire circumstances, would kill himself? Seems a very selfish act because if he lives, he can still try to support his family; reminds me of the men who took off and left their families during the Great Depression, before there was social security to provide for them.

There is something that is not being told here. Cannot put my finger on it but not everything is out in the open in this matter!

Terrible story - but why did the seed fail? That was the thing I was puzzled by. I agree Monsanto seems to have sold a bill of goods - at inflated prices - to these poor farmers. Thanks so much for drawing my attention to this.

The GM seed failed because of the two years of drought--the GM seed requires much more water than the 'traditional' seed.

Those who might not know...Prince Charles is a very strong proponent of organic farming, gardening, etc. He permitted a book to be published about the methods in use at one of his homes, where even the water and sewer treatment processes don't involve the use of chemicals. The Mail may have slanted to support his position somewhat, though if you have read any of the early organic protest materials, you won't find anything out of place in this story, other than the lack of an attempt at explaining the cultural attitude towards suicide. In some cultures, suicide is an honorable way out in order to spare the family the shame of whatever.

Thanks for posting this to Diet Recipes/Tips

So good to see you feeling well enough to get your blood pressure up over this (careful, please) Monsanto gave us RoundUp, so we already know who and what we are dealing with here. Third world farmers are the new fruit - ripe for the plucking.

Wow!

So horrible for a part of the world that already has so little, My heart aches for these farmers.

Genetically modyfied animals, and plants. Plants that do not reproduce viable seeds? Do we want to eat this? We are what we eat, I've heard.

Of course we re! It's why we need to eat as close to nature as possible!