As much as it pains me I must build a collection of shock and horror that may leave you feeling sick to your stomach. It sort of feel like a waste of time to focus on the bad. It is not required to know evil in order to do good but the day has come when it is difficult to safely navigate this world in ignorance.
Intro:
Thanks to an insatiable appetite for advancing technology, humanity is no stranger to self harm. Discovery is inherently dangerous but, we learn as we go. Bayer commercially manufactured and marketed Heroin (derived from the word hero) from 1897 to 1910 as an allegedly less addictive cough suppressant for children. Today we know better. Although it takes decades, we do learn… eventually. Some developments are too valuable to regulate. William Huskisson was the first man killed by the amazing invention of the train. Harry bliss was the first killed by the invention of the street car. Lyon, France, was the first killed by man’s electricity after touching a 250-volt stage wire. Technology proves to increase numbers of casualties most especially with each passing war. War proves to mobilize huge amounts of commerce putting brilliant minds to work developing disruptive technologies that end up the death of some but the convenience of others.
Convenient technologies developed during wartime that transformed our lives include GPS, nuclear energy, the internet & MRI machines to name a few. They have huge impact on agriculture, energy generation, global connectivity, and medical diagnostics. Is it worth it? Each year now, 1.3M people die from road traffic injuries, 122K from drug use not including prescriptions (third biggest killer next to heart disease) and over 200,000 globally from exposure to pesticides. These numbers are not shrinking. When looking back over history, it is tempting to feel depressed by how ignorant and reckless man can be. A large majority of Germans believed Hitler was building the ideal model of society for the future. Today we know how history played out but we still learn so awful slow. Part of the reason is because we must raise and teach a new generation every 20 years.
Humanity is incredibly resilient. Millions die yet we move on. The human spirit is more powerful than death. To me this is evidence that this life is not all there is. We all continue on afterwards, but I digress…
While the human race continues to brave the battle front of discovery, blatant disrespect for nature and human health is an ongoing reality motivated my money and greed. Call it conspiracy or ignorance, industries will always continue to push harmful substances until society says “enough!” As of September 2022, the EPA withdrew from its interim registration review for glyphosate. Products containing glyphosate will legally remain on the market and be used according to the product labels. But while this insidious chemical diverts our gaze, other far more concerning lab chemicals earmarked for agriculture fly in under sleight of hand.
People really are smart. Honestly! Coal miners began taking canaries into mines in 1911 which became a metaphor for warning signs. With cars we got seatbelts and for a drug overdose we discovered naloxone. For every problem there eventually comes a solution. Nevertheless, some things simply should not exist. An increasing complex world means it is easier for accidents to happen especially to children who love discovery. I believe chemical and food science is responsible for the increase rate of autism and other development deformities and disorders. It’s sad that right in the safety of ones own home it can be so difficult to avoid dangers. The FDA and the EPA are supposed to look out for us but most warning labels only indicate that dangerous chemicals should only be used according to label. This is mostly to protect manufacture companies from lawsuits because chemicals are big business. Nothing changes the fact these chemicals are harmful, if not deadly. They are used in the garden, around the house, in cleaning, laundering, and the very lining of clothes and cooking utensils themselves. They are used in amounts considered safe. Safe according to who? If a chemical can kill in only one fatal dose. what can they do after 40 years of micro exposure? We know people are smart enough to lock chemicals away from children but how do you lock away small doses that build in soils, plants and consumer products you use every day? When it comes to technology, we all willingly risk a little danger in exchange for comfortable. I love having a vehicle that shortens my commute, I assume the risk with a resolve to drive safe and follow traffic laws, but when it comes to food, IT HAS GONE TOO FAR!
The rate of scientific development is only increasing in speed. Food science is the number one driver of laboratory funding. How to make the next best ship, candy, or drink. millions of dollars research are utilized to discover ways to utilize an otherwise useless industry waste byproduct such as Sulfites, sodium Nitrates, titanium dioxide, color dyes, potassium bromate, propylparaben, brominated vegetable oil.
by the time we have figured out how to avoid one chemical a lab comes out with three others. Herbicides containing chloropyridine or any thing in the “-pyridine” category are persistent meaning that if you spread compost made from manure from animals that grazed on pastures treated with this herbicide, your garden will not grow. chloropyridines even resist composting leaving you scratching your head believing you don’t know beans about your “organic” garden. As that nature of chemicals unfold, we are pinched tighter into a corner unable to trust or glean resources from neighbors. In order to grow truly organic foods you need to grow your own pastures, raise your own crops and bake your own bread off the grid. It’s frustrating.
I could take this topic any one of several branching directions including the myths surrounding organic foods, the cost reduction of true organic farming or (as Gabe Brown put it) Eco Farming. Instead I am going to leave this page as a collection vessel for all the crazy things I find concerning our reckless use of chemicals.
Let’s begin with this little gem (discretion advised for sensitive viewers)