The ONLY good thing to come out of this Warren pick

[Taverner]

At least it takes the heat off of Vilsack, whom was derided as a 'Monsanto Whore' up until the Warren fiasco.

[villager]

1. But you're saying Vilsack is, in fact, a guru of sustainable agricultural practices?

n/t

[Taverner]

2. No I'm saying hes the bridge between family famrs and big agra

Big Agra is here to stay. Vilsack wants the family farms to stay too.

[villager]

3. well, I don't know that big agra is sustainable, especially without industrial inputs

Thus, if other parts of the infrastructure collapse, it will too, as far as food "production systems," etc...

[Taverner]

5. No but you know how corporations are

There are still energy companies, even though Enron imploded

[villager]

13. Good overview of "lukewarm" environmental reaction to Vilsack here:

http://blog.eatwellguide.org/2008/12/what-does-vilsacks-appointment-mean-for-the-future-of-organic-food-and-public-lands/


"Obama could have picked worse," seems to be the over-arching verdict. Which is where it will have to stand until we see actual policy.

[Buzz Clik]

16. You're clearly a corporate whore and mouthpiece of all that's evil in the world

:evilgrin:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

4. Anti-science loons in 5... 4... 3... 2...

[Taverner]

6. Oh yeah, isn't there some kind of homeopathic group that thinks Vilsack is the Devil Incarnate?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

8. He's secretly designing bioweapons to wipe out ethnic minorities.

He'll dispatch them using chemtrails.

[Buzz Clik]

17. Oh, my. I wouldn't like that. Vilsac is now dead to me.

VILSAAAAAAAAAC!

[HEyHEY]

7. That and I've learned new swear words.

[leftofthedial]

9. and that's good because...

[Taverner]

10. Vilsack was being derided by Science-phobic types here

And hes a good pick

[leftofthedial]

21. you're okay with continuing having all our agricultural eggs in the corporate basket?

You like GM crops and cozy links between ag giants and pharmaceutical and biotech giants?

No problem there?

[Taverner]

22. No problem with GM crops - but we do need more data.

Vilsack would know where to look

He works for Obama now, not Monsanto

He also knows what Monsanto does, and how they lobby

[leftofthedial]

25. yeah, he oughtta know!

[grantcart]

11. Well the guy that was kissing the Clinton cutout is doing sommersaults

[backscatter712]

12. Is Vilsack for Monsanto suing farmers who have Monsanto seed blow on their fields?

Yep, some of you have heard this story. Farmer tries to do his crops with old-fashioned seeds - seeds he's saved from his last harvest like farmers have done since the beginning of time. Unknown to him, one of his neighbors is using Monsanto's genetically engineered frankenseeds, and the wind blows a few of them on his field. Monsanto sends goons to take samples of farmer's crops, test them in the lab, gets their DNA fingerprint. Monsanto then sues the small farmer out of business, claiming he's using their patented seed without paying the zillions of dollars of royalties. Farmer can't afford lawyers and can't take the time to go to a court hundreds of miles away, so he's forced to go bankrupt and lose his farm. Monsanto seizes his farm and auctions it to another frankenfarmer.

If Vilsack isn't interested in putting an end to this crap, fuck him.

[Taverner]

15. Here's something you might not know about that case - Monsanto was suing Monsanto

There was a legal branch of Monsanto who was being sued over that....

Goofy Dysfunctional Corporations :silly:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

18. What commonly gets left out of the story...

is that Schmeisers a tort-happy loon, who planted Monsanto seed on purpose and lied about it being "blown by the wind," and has sued Monsanto for all sorts of loony reasons, like for preventing his right to free speech.

What's Vilsack's take? Who cares. The case is from Canada.

[boppers]

24. How many "family farms" were put out of business?

Is this kind of like the "family farms" that were lost over US estate taxes? Statistically close to zero?

[FrenchieCat]

14. Multi-tasking requirements need to be enforced.

We still have time!

[LWolf]

19. He's still a Monsanto whore,

and Obama's cabinet still sucks.

:shrug:

[democrattotheend]

20. Plus, maybe fewer people will come to DC for the inauguration

Since more people are planning to come than the city has the capacity for, and it's going to be a nightmare.

[ecstatic]

23. I think it has opened up a good dialogue

Dialogging is always good. (is that a word?)