Rain Forest in Trouble

The same friend who sent us the news of the GMO's in my previous blog sent this to us, also. I have been hearing so many say, "There is no deforestation of the rain forest. We shouldn't be concerned. It's being controlled." The content of this site should be read by everyone.

A B O U T

P A C H A M A M A

"In recent years concern over the destruction of the world's tropical rainforests has reached global proportions. Alarm about the extinction of species, the permanent loss of potentially life-saving medicinal plants, the irreversible damage to the delicate balance of the Earth's climate control system and the tragic disappearance of indigenous cultures has captured the attention of millions of people around the world.

Hundreds of organizations have formed and are doing important work addressing virtually every level of the problem. And yet, rainforests continue to fall, by some estimates at the rate of 10 million trees per day. Despite our best efforts, the disappearance of our tropical rainforests, like many other global economic, social and environmental crises, seems beyond our ability to control. Obviously something more is needed.

The destruction of the world's rainforests is driven by a complex web of social and economic forces, many of these a logical result of modern society's worldview -- a view that, although rich in technological insight, is often ignorant of the value of nature's apparently free and limitless services. It is a view guided by maximum short-term financial gain while disregarding the long-term costs of ecological degradation.

It is a worldview in which tropical forests can show up as a cash crop to be harvested rather than as an irreplaceable ecosystem to be protected. This is not, however, the only worldview. After centuries of living in harmony with their environment, indigenous cultures see things very differently. They are informed and guided by the knowledge and spirit imbedded in nature. Rather than viewing the natural world as a collection of separate elements from which humans are apart, they recognize all of creation as an interconnected web, and each of us as an integral element in this miraculous and fragile weave of life.

The Pachamama Alliance believes that our ability to meet the challenges that face humanity as we make the transition to the next millennium, depends on our ability to successfully combine the best elements of these two worldviews into a single global vision, an alloy that blends the intellectual and scientific prowess of the modern world, with the deep and ancient wisdom of traditional cultures. This is the commitment which underlies the work of The Pachamama Alliance...." Visit the site to read more.

Life on this planet is a delicate balance as the site discusses. The deforestation of the rainforests destroys or misplaces indigenious plants and animals, dangerously interrupting the natural cycle of life. Planting "other" trees, does not replace the life-long eco-system that preceded the new growth. That cannot be replaced. The local people are uprooted from their natural habitat and environment totally upsetting their culture, lifestyle, and heritage. If not taken care of, protected, and of concern to everyone, the demise of the natural environment in one place on Earth will eventually affect us all without exception.

Visit the site and become a member. The Earth is the only home we all have... Let's all take care of it together.

Live consciously aware,
Stephen

Help the Pachamama Alliance
"What affects them, eventually affects everyone!"

If You Don't Like GMO Promotion, Read This...

I wrote about GMO's, or Genetically Modified Organisms, back in April, and we recently got an email from a friend of ours with this information. If not promoting seeds from the corporations like Monsanto is something that you feel strongly about, read the following and visit this site. It states this...

"Tell your senators: Monsanto can't feed the world:

Last year's food riots in Haiti, India, Indonesia and elsewhere sounded the alarm bell for a painful level of global hunger that is only going to increase with a growing population and a changing climate. In a promising move, the G8 -- a group of the world's eight wealthiest nations -- has just announced a shift away from providing direct food aid to developing countries and towards helping farmers abroad produce and distribute their own food.

That's a laudable goal. But the Obama administration along with members of the U.S. Congress are using this singular moment to move their own agenda: propping up U.S. biotechnology companies like Monsanto. They hope to accomplish this by promoting genetically modified seeds and chemical inputs as tools to fight hunger through an exclusive focus on increasing crop yields. One powerful Senate committee has already passed a bill, sponsored by Senators Casey (D-PA) and Lugar (R-IN), that requires GMO technology to be part of the U.S. agricultural research agenda abroad. We need to tell them not to use our tax dollars to market Monsanto's products abroad!

Despite all the hype, GMOs have simply failed to deliver: there is no evidence that exporting this technology to the developing world will actually boost productivity. A recent analysis by the Union of Concerned Scientists found that GMOs have had almost no impact on crop yields in the United States. Further, GMOs have little to offer drought-prone regions like Africa. Simply put: there are no drought-tolerant GMOs currently on the market. The only two GMO seed traits available -- sold by the biotechnology giants Monsanto and Bayer CropScience -- are herbicide tolerance and pest resistance for a handful of commodity crops like corn, soy and cotton. And not only are the existing seeds expensive but the use of these seeds would also tether poor farmers to the synthetic pesticides and fertilizers GMOs require.

Dedicating millions of dollars in aid money to biotechnology companies also reduces the funding available for proven agro-ecological systems and infrastructure improvements that are more appropriate for small and limited-resource producers.

Sign this petition today to tell your Senators that the path out of poverty isn't through Monsanto's doors. Ask them to oppose Casey-Lugar and any development aid bill that promotes GMO technology." Click Here to visit the site.

You may or may not agree with the political viewpoints of the site, but with regards to GMO's in general, it appears that many countries around the world refuse to use GMO seeds, nor do they want GMO food imported into their country. That is how strongly they voice their opinion on the subject.

What do they know that we don't? One country will not use GMO seeds, I understand, for at least 20 years until they know for sure that long range effects have been thoroughly studied and using them has been verified to be safe for their populace. Sounds like a good idea? What do you think? Are we playing God by splicing and changing genetic structures? Is it the Dr. Moreau syndrome of H.G. Wells' story written in 1896?

Sometimes, we just don't know what we don't know... How may it affect future generations? IF we don't know for sure, is it really worth taking that chance? Or, don't we care? Think about it...

Till next time,
Stephen

Stop the Insanity: Stop Drinking Bottled Water!

The next few posts will be a series on drinking bottled water or any beverage found in plastic bottles. The count, some say, is 2,000,000 plastic bottles being disposed of every 5 minutes. Others say it is 2.5 million every hour. Either way, that's insane!

All that plastic just doesn't go away. Did you know that every bit of plastic that has ever been produced is still around and will be around for 1000 years? Staggering to think about, isn't it. Think about all the plastic that people use now and will be using on infinitum in the future. That includes the plastic water bottle you may be holding in your hand right now.

We have been told that we shouldn't be concerned about it: People recycle. Well, Captain Charles Moore, who discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch just above the Hawaiian islands that is twice the size of Texas and getting bigger every year, had a great comment on that in the following video. A teacher once told him how much was recycled. "Diddly.squash," she said.

The truth is, less than 5% of our refuse may be recycled. That is the refuse which is deliberately discarded at recycle depositories like you probably do. But, how many other people do you know do that? And, interestingly, bottle caps are another story. Just watch the following video by Captain Charles Moore. It makes a strong statement. More posts on this subject will follow soon.

There is a logical, healthful, eco-friendly answer to the problem, however. Visit our web site and see how you can very easily be a part of the solution to a very serious problem.

Have a great day
Stephen
http://www.be-alkaline.com/



Interesting to think about, isn't it? Please share this site with others! The future of our grandchildren and their future generations depend on what we do today. Thank you...