Hightower writes: "Some people are too smart for your own good. Food geneticists, for example. These technicians have the smarts to tinker with the inner workings of Momma Nature's own good foods - but not the smarts to leave well enough alone."

Genetically modified tomatoes are a threat to our food supply. (photo: Ecowatch)

Beware of the Genetic Tomato Tamperers

By Jim Hightower, Creators Syndicate

12 July 12

ome people are too smart for your own good.

Food geneticists, for example. These technicians have the smarts to tinker with the inner workings of Momma Nature's own good foods — but not the smarts to leave well enough alone.

In fairness, much of their scientific tinkering has been beneficial. But during the past half-century, too much of their work devolved from tinkering into outright tampering with our food. This is mostly the result of money flowing to both private and public research centers from big agribusiness corporations that want nature's design altered in ways that fatten their bottom lines. Never mind that the alterations created by these smart people are frequently not good for you and me.

Take the tomato, truly a natural wonder. Agribusiness profiteers, however, wanted it to do unnatural things, so — voila! — the genetic tamperers in the 1960s and '70s dutifully produced the Amazing Industrial Tomato. It's a techno-marvel made to endure long-distance shipping, be harvested while green and then artificially ripened to appear tomato-y red and last an ungodly amount of time without rotting.

But taste? Forget it. There's more flavor in the carton. This led to the "Upchuck Rebellion" — a grassroots movement of consumers, small farmers and local food artisans. In the last couple of decades, they've spurred phenomenal growth in farmers markets and stores that offer nature's own locally produced and heirloom varieties untouched by the smart ones.

But, look out, the tomato tamperers are back in the lab! They've discovered that a mutated gene they had bred into the corporate tomato switches off other genes that would cause the fruit to develop flavor. The answer, they say, is not less technology, but more. By artificially re-engineering the DNA structure of the plant, they can bypass that naughty mutated gene and switch on some of the flavor genes. But do we really want to eat genetically engineered tomatoes?

Still, you can expect them to push the latest alteration of nature's marvel.

I can just see the agribusiness ad: "Buy our industrial tomatoes — Now genetically flavored!" Better yet, buy the local tomatoes, which don't need a smart geneticist or an ad to deliver real flavor.
Unfortunately, it's not just tomatoes they're tampering with. For instance, if you are parent you may be worried about the plethora of highly questionable bio-engineered organisms that the profiteers have quietly been slipping into everything from snack foods to school lunches.

Well, perhaps your own children can put your mind at ease, for science teachers around the country have been assigning a book called "Look Closer at Biotechnology" to the kiddos in their classes. It's filled with colorful images, friendly cartoon faces, puzzles and more!

The very first page makes clear that the scientific wonder of genetically engineered foods pose no worries at all. "Hi, kids," it begins. "This is an activity book for young people like you about ... a really neat topic." Why is it so neat? Because, say the authors, "as you work through the puzzles in this book, you will learn more about biotechnology and all the wonderful ways it can help people live better lives in a healthier world. Have fun!"

Fun? With genetically engineered food? That's not fun, it's serious business — and look who's behind this book of fairy tales: the Council for Biotechnology Information.

Exactly what and who is CBI? It's a PR and political front for the biotech industry, financed by such multibillion-dollar giants as Monsanto, Bayer, DuPont and Dow. It's also now funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars into the industry's deceitful political campaign to kill a California "Right to Know" ballot initiative that finally would require food giants to label all products containing genetically engineered organisms.

This raises an obvious question for those of us who prefer food from nature, not from engineering labs: What are we to do about corporate powers that are so avaricious and arrogant that they're willing to tamper with our food supply, our kids' minds and our basic consumer rights? Defeat them, that's what!

Here are three good sources for information and action: JustLabelIt.org, NonGMOShoppingGuide.com and OrganicConsumers.org.

Comments

We are concerned about a recent drift towards vitriol in the RSN Reader comments section. There is a fine line between moderation and censorship. No one likes a harsh or confrontational forum atmosphere. At the same time everyone wants to be able to express themselves freely. We'll start by encouraging good judgment. If that doesn't work we'll have to ramp up the moderation.

General guidelines: Avoid personal attacks on other forum members; Avoid remarks that are ethnically derogatory; Do not advocate violence, or any illegal activity.

Remember that making the world better begins with responsible action.

- The RSN Team

+26 # bluepilgrim 2012-07-12 13:26

There are many foods, tomatoes included, I never or hardly ever eat any more. The stuff is horrible. It tastes bad, the feel is wrong, and they won't digest properly. And it's expensive too. It's no wonder so many people are badly nourished.

+4 # Lolanne 2012-07-13 12:47

Quoting bluepilgrim:

There are many foods, tomatoes included, I never or hardly ever eat any more. The stuff is horrible. ...

I'm with you, blue, especially re tomatoes -- I never buy tomatoes from a supermarket nowadays, only eat them when I can get locally grown ones from a farmer's market.

Reminds me of an old John Denver song. You ever hear his "Home Grown Tomatoes"?

Lyrics to the chorus:
"Home grown tomatoes, home grown tomatoes
What would life be without home grown tomatoes?
Only two things that money can't buy
That's true love and home grown tomatoes"

http://www.metrolyrics.com/home-grown-tomatoes-lyrics-john-denver.html#ixzz20XO4BoJf
Copied from MetroLyrics.com

Boy knew what he was talking about!

+3 # newsmom 2012-07-15 12:50

Quoting bluepilgrim:

There are many foods, tomatoes included, I never or hardly ever eat any more. The stuff is horrible. It tastes bad, the feel is wrong, and they won't digest properly. And it's expensive too. It's no wonder so many people are badly nourished.

do what so many others are doing these days --grow your own. my touch with anything other than cactus borders on pathetic, but my friend with a green thumb gives me some of her wonderfully sweet garden tomatoes in exchange for compost for her garden. a reputable garden store will sell you crap-free plants you can grow in a tub. just a thought.

+51 # brux 2012-07-12 13:26

GMOs need to be labelled - PERIOD.

I demand to be able to exercise my option to VOTE IN THE MARKETPLACE and refuse to buy or support this effort that I do not believe in.

+21 # Tippitc 2012-07-12 19:06

May I suggest that the best way to 'vote in the marketplace', is to avoid it. Grow a small garden, buy from Farmers Markets or your local farmer. These actions will require more effort but expecting the marketplace to change for the better will happen about the time I see a 'flying pig'!

+24 # patmonk 2012-07-12 19:58

LABEL GMOS.
We have placed PROPOSITION 37 on the November ballot in California, this measure simply requires that all GMO food sold in the state be labelled as such. This movement was started by PAMM LARRY, a grandmother from Chico. Her original website was
www.labelgmos.org
As the word spread and support grew it was decided that a larger site was needed.
The official site for the California campaign is
www.carighttoknow.org
Please visit and support us in any way you can. If we can succeed in California it will create a powerful precedent.
Other states, including Washington, Oregon, Texas, are also in the process of mounting similar campaigns, check your local listings.
Thank you.
Patrick Monk.RN. SF. Ca.

+8 # Bigfella 2012-07-12 22:15

I went off them long ago when I did a few experiments with them'
1. How long can they last. oh over a month but they rot not from the outside first but turn black in the center 1st then expand out.
2. Diffent gm type lasted 6 weeks before spruting on the inside ie all the seeds gerninated while the fruit was still looking good and solid....wooh..
I now grow my tamotos 12 months of the years in the temperate zone using seed from around the world most is "Heritage" for winter I have Black russians and summer heaps from berry to monster beef hearts which can wiegh 500gms or 1 pound what I cant get my mind around is the classing of natural tomatos as "organic or handcrafted" hello they are all out of South Americia and are natural.
Keep your own seed or become a seed/food slave!

-12 # Holmes 2012-07-13 00:24

Not so sure that a blanket ban on the use of advanced genetic is wise. If you wish to remain hardline absolutely not to use any genetics in managing tomatoes or any other plant/animal etc. Please define exactly where the boundaries between so called classical breeding and using genetic based tools exist? So of which assist in the identification what genes have been included in the crosses.

Personally, I feel that your attitudes are only harmless until we have a major out break of disease which takes out many of the current varieties. What then, use more fungicides? This happened to hybrid corn in the 70's when resistance to a disease broke down in one of the parents of the hybrid.

Sure the product GMO breeding system like any breeding system needs extensive testing to ensure that the new varieties are good.
How would you class the development of bread wheat by our ancestors? As a GMO? It is the hybrid of 3 grasses, with the number chromosomes doubled to allow the setting of viable seed.

Other wise, red flags in front of horseless carriages?

+18 # Kootenay Coyote 2012-07-13 06:20

Selective breeding joins genetic information at the cellular level & is natjural. GM manipulates genetic information in the Chromosomes & is technical. The core issue is the unknown multiple functions & interactions of many parts of the DNA code. Just high-school biology can tell you this.

+19 # jwb110 2012-07-13 09:10

Quoting Holmes:

Not so sure that a blanket ban on the use of advanced genetic is wise. If you wish to remain hardline absolutely not to use any genetics in managing tomatoes or any other plant/animal etc. Please define exactly where the boundaries between so called classical breeding and using genetic based tools exist? So of which assist in the identification what genes have been included in the crosses.

Personally, I feel that your attitudes are only harmless until we have a major out break of disease which takes out many of the current varieties. What then, use more fungicides? This happened to hybrid corn in the 70's when resistance to a disease broke down in one of the parents of the hybrid.

Sure the product GMO breeding system like any breeding system needs extensive testing to ensure that the new varieties are good.
How would you class the development of bread wheat by our ancestors? As a GMO? It is the hybrid of 3 grasses, with the number chromosomes doubled to allow the setting of viable seed.

Other wise, red flags in front of horseless carriages?

This isn't about hardline. It is about labeling that allows consumers to have a choice to buy as they see fit.

+17 # RMDC 2012-07-13 02:59

"In fairness, much of their scientific tinkering has been beneficial."

This is not really true. It is the industry public relations line. GM crops, mono-cropping, and the heavy use of chemicals do not produce more food per acre. This claim has been studied extensively by Vandana Shiva and others.

What GM crops do is destroy small farmers. It dramatically increases their cost to plant and forces them into debt to plant crops. when there is a bad harvest, they are ruined, cannot pay their debt, and lose their land.

There's also a great loss in the lower nutritional value of GM crops and mono-cropping. Trace minerals are depleted from the soil. Foods like wheat, rice, soy beans have lower protein content than natural species.

Industrial farming does not really produce food. It produces industrial raw materials like starch, oil, sugar, protein that are then used in industrially produced food-like products. That's what American eat. And that is a great loss. Whatever taste such food has comes from additives like salt and sugar.

There are really no benefits to people from GM food research. The only benefits are for the corporations who control the patents on these industrial products.

+6 # Holmes 2012-07-13 06:25

"This is not really true. It is the industry public relations line. GM crops, mono-cropping, and the heavy use of chemicals do not produce more food per acre. This claim has been studied extensively by Vandana Shiva and others. "

This does not apply to all systems. Not when we switched to minimum tillage systems and increased the average yield of wheat by 2.5 times to approach the climatic limits for the area. I among others ran the trials!

No Gm's used though, just better use of rainfall as we did not lose water when cultivating for weed control.

Re trace elements, you leaf test to check what you crop has, and then apply as needed. The system here is short of Cu, Zn, Mn, and sometimes Fe, Mo, Co, Ca, Se as well as the usual suspects P, S, and K. N can be supplied by legumes and or bought is as N fertilizers. Where you have an absolute lack of trace elements, trace elements your crop will not grow no matter much fertilizer you add. Your animals will not be much good as well.

+9 # economagic 2012-07-13 04:03

Bluepilgrim, get thee to a farmers' market! Then read Woody Tasch, "Inquiries Into the Nature of Slow Money" (slowmoney.org; see also slowfood.org). This IS the "New Economy" (http://neweconomicsinstitute.org), and it is happening now, and here.

+6 # bluepilgrim 2012-07-13 06:30

There isn't much available here and it's very expensive so I can't afford it -- I can barely afford even the supermarket garbage I buy now and then. And money gets tighter all the time. Most farming here is for industrial purposes. The phony government inflation rate they post is pure fiction. A lot of food is now half again more than it was a few years ago.

I'm also living in a 'food desert', with little variety. It's all part of the corporate takeovers and change to industrial 'food products' instead of decent agriculture and real food.

+7 # michelle 2012-07-13 12:43

Sigh, those are the sad truths facing many folks today. I've been depressed about the circumstances in our culture for some time but recently I discovered something amazing. My husband sells tomato plants--heirloo m varieties along with peppers and some groups of other veggies. That's only important because it was the reason he found himself invited to a local party by a twenty something customer. Really I thought, but we went. The age span was incredible but more importantly there was a group of people involved in farming and dedicated to making the culture a better place. One young woman without a job after college started a food bank. She was signing people up to donate extra garden produce from those backyard gardens. She wanted good, healthy organic food for people. What a great idea. A small, local movement of food to people who need it. Others too, were taking charge. One woman tired of NCLB in schools started her own preschool for special needs kids. She knew her stuff, was designing good lesson plans that included parents. She said she was seeing more progress, more parent involvement. There are many more examples but you get the picture. The up and coming generation isn't tied to the corporate world. They work but understand it is only work. Real jobs are the ones they make. They diversify their income, consume less and work toward sustainability. Most optimistic I've been in a long time.

+19 # walt 2012-07-13 05:01

Corporate greed is dominating the world scene and especially in the USA, the "land of the free (taxes)."

If we can make a billion, let's try for two billion, even if it hurts people.

Isn't it high time people stood up to it all? Or are we a nation of wimps?

+10 # Glen 2012-07-13 05:02

Wherever folks live, they must find a way to grow at least a little of their own food, whether in pots, hanging pots, roof gardens, whatever. Rather a bit of a jungle in the house/apartment than to allow a slow poison. Folks must become clever in their food decisions and whatever they eat in the future.

+7 # bluepilgrim 2012-07-13 08:39

Personally, I can't grow food. I have no knowledge or skill, resources, or am healthy enough to handle the work.

Really, though, this is almost like blaming the victims of mortgage fraud, or those who can't find decent jobs. The whole point of having a society and country is to organize things so they work efficiently and everyone is not thrown into an 'every man for himself' absurdity.

Yeah -- there are problems with clothing, so we should all make our own, and problems with health care, so we should learn self-doctoring, and we all learn to do some road repair to keep up the street in front of where we live, etc. etc.? No -- that's not a solution, and there is no end to that. It's OK to organize locally and have some community grown food, but it's a dead end if we don't take the country back -- there is no way of getting out of that. We need to live in a functioning society.

+6 # Glen 2012-07-13 09:35

Who are we taking the country back, from? Corporations? Corrupt government? The wealthy? Foreign investors? You name it, they own us.

During the time of our grandparents and great grandparents, the country was considered to be functioning, yet there were country herbalists, folks did make their own clothing, they had gardens of all sizes, took care of their own horses and cars, helped with roads, yes, and so much more. They did not consider themselves victims. In many rural areas that is still the case, and many people maintain older vehicles so just they may take care of them on their own.

When times get rough, folks HAVE to look after themselves and each other. We don't have that much control over gas prices or much else, for that matter, just as we don't have control over tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, ice storms, and so on. Better to prepare than expect someone else to take care of you.

And yes, we just might be driving on dirt roads again if everything continues downhill. Of course, where I live we already drive on dirt roads. Hell, some counties can't even afford law enforcement in many states. And how about schools. The problems are huge.

+4 # bluepilgrim 2012-07-13 16:09

My relatives of those generations did not grow their own food, except maybe for a small garden by some of them -- they had jobs, such analytical chemist, wood carver, architect, sales person, cowboy, plumber. They didn't do pickling or canning either.

That was true of most everyone who lived in cities, as most people do. They didn't have horses or cars -- they took buses, subways and cabs, went to doctors, and did not repair streets, and dirt roads can't handle a large volume of traffic.

I'm talking about enough food to feed oneself, with a food growing and distribution system, and specialized work -- not subsistence farming.

How could you grow enough? Carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, turnips, potatoes, celery, onions, corn, wheat, oats other grains, peas and beans, fruits and berries, herbs and spices -- we eat many different things and they won't all grow in the same conditions and soil. Do you have an acre to grow flax or barley on?

I'm talking about an advanced nation, not the third world where people struggle full time for a few essentials.

Make you own clothes? What?, spinning wheels and looms? This is the 21st century. Post industrial, not 19th century rural towns, or scattered medieval villages -- but even in the dark ages people were specialized and they had farming and food distribution systems.

Don't give up civilization; fix society.

+4 # Glen 2012-07-14 04:55

It has only been since WWII that the U.S. became mostly urbanized. Certainly, those living in a city had certain conveniences - brought in by those living in the country. Many highways and county roads were not paved until the sixties, except in the city. We know all that.

What I am referring to is not the myth of America, but the reality of America. Certainly, I also expected more from the U.S. and the government, until realizing the truth, and the truth is not taught in schools. The truth is that there has always been poverty and it is much worse now, once the U.S. plunged heavily into capitalism and globalization, the country began to fail, assisted by all those corporations and the government. There are internal structure failures, too. It isn't just food, but that is huge in a world with so many people.

Monster corporations such as Monsanto have more power than most folks realize and there is little we can do about it. They are not the only one, either. It has nothing to do with society. We must all learn to deal with it rather than wish we could return to the good ole days of yesteryear. If supplementing our diet with home grown foods assists our daily lives, then so be it.

There might be worse to come and it has nothing to do with fixing society. Better prepare for that future while fighting the good fight.

+5 # michelle 2012-07-14 06:06

Check out Urban Farming in Cuba. Cuba hit post peak oil when the USSR collapsed. Most industrial farming uses oil in fertilizer, hence the term petrol-chemical fertilizer. Add to the fertilizer problem it was difficult to transport food from the country to city with the oil shortages. Cuba got really creative with farming in the big cities and transporting food with bikes and carts. Of course, they could not grow it all but they managed to grow quite a bit. I agree we can't grow wheat or raise our own cattle but with a small patch of land or even a piece in a community garden you can grow plenty of food. Rent the old film "The Garden" about a community garden in Los Angeles. Very sad about a 1%er who manages to shut it down when he discovers people are selling their surplus food. Sorry you aren't close. I have enough zucchini to feed all of New Delhi right now and the tomatoes and eggplants aren't far behind. I always share.

+1 # bluepilgrim 2012-07-14 08:06

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/census_issues/archives/metropolitan_planning/cps2k.cfm

Total U.S. Population 285,230,516 100
Population living in Urban Areas 2 3,629 225,956,060 79.219
Population living in Rural Areas 59,274,456 20.781

http://www.census.gov/population/censusdata/urpop0090.txt

1930
urban population 69,160,599 56.1%
rural population 54,042,025 43.9%

-----------------------

Cuba survived the oil problem because it was Socialist.

-----------

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Delhi
Population (2012)
• National Capital 249,998
• Density 5,854.7 /km2 (15,164/sq mi)
• Metro 13,850,507

------------

Man does not live by zuchinni alone, and it's very seasonal -- you have to preserve it somehow, which is why people who grow it keep giving it away.

I chatted with a local farmer at the food store the other day, and had trouble getting decent food too, and he grew only a few things for his own use. That's trues of most people, farmers or not, living in the city here or on a farm, even though this is a rural area. Farmers here don't do subsistence farming -- they specialize and do farming as a business.

The problem is society: the way it's structured, the economy, the political and business systems, educational system, manufacturing. That's what needs to be fixed.

+3 # michelle 2012-07-14 09:43

Most food is seasonal. I'm not suggesting we can grow it all but we can grow some. Society and the culture need to be fixed but in the meantime we should do what we can. There is the possibility the culture will not be fixed with so many people believing in the rightwing agenda.

+2 # bluepilgrim 2012-07-14 10:18

Yes, we can grow some, and that's good, but I don't see most people being able to survive doing that, and that's my point. If the culture and system are not fixed an awful lot of people are going to die.

The corporations and politicians get away with these deadly dances because the people allow it -- but people can stop it if enough of them decide to, and organize to do it.
(Frankly, I'm more likely to be successful helping to organize people than to grow something to eat -- I've tried both. I have trouble growing weeds.)

+2 # michelle 2012-07-14 11:14

"The corporations and politicians get away with these deadly dances because the people allow it "

That thought crossed my mind last time I was flying. The whole notion of 1st class and peasant seating on the plane exists because we allow it. The new age steerage.

If organization works for you and you can make some progress, do it. I think there is a great deal of learned helplessness among voters and nonvoters out there to overcome. I think people are dying already but they can't connect the dots to find the cause. I've stopped spending as much as possible to fight back. Probably futile but it is easy enough to do. Like many on this site I've worked elections, registered voters, made the phone calls and believe we have to keep trying but I am no longer sure it works. My own community has reactivated the Grange and is working on a sustainable city. I hope it turns out to be more than a noble gesture. These are frustrating times when the electorate not only allow the 'politicans to get away with these deadly dances' they join in the dance. Watching Romney dog whistle at the NAACP convention was horrifying especially knowing it was tailored for a specific segment of the population.

+2 # Glen 2012-07-14 17:16

Bluepilgrim, it is time to do some serious thinking and research. Thousands of folks grew/and grow food and did/do a lot of canning. Why is it so difficult for you to understand the simple technique of preserving food. Many, including myself, canned close to a thousand jars of vegetables every summer. Why is that such an obstacle? How about drying food? Salting down meats? And so many other methods of preservation. If it has been done before it can be done again. Even in a city.

I refuse to be a victim when it comes to overall survival. There is always a way, and especially if we all work together. IT HAS BEEN DONE BEFORE. Time to stop wishing for a revival of the myth of America and start planning for the future.

There is no shame in accepting what we might be forced to do to survive. Some things in this country are not going to be fixed. Face it.

+2 # Eliza D 2012-07-15 14:19

Those in control are already destroying our civilization-Fu kushima,BP oil spill, Hanford leaking nuclear waste site,the terminator gene in genetically modified food and on and on ad nauseum. Most people I know are not interested in hearing about these topics, let alone doing anything about them. That's why we have the government we do. We may be forced to start over. Start with potatoes, blue pilgrim. Get the organic ones and cut them into quarters. Plant them,eyes up, in buckets,a small terraced or raised garden bed, whatever you have, if you have a bad back or knees. They are relatively high in nutrition and calories and can sustain you. Learn and teach your children too.

+5 # paloda8705 2012-07-13 08:27

I HATE THESE COMPANIES. AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED LEARNING WHAT I NOW KNOW, IF THESE COMPANIES HAD NEVER EXISTED WE WOULD BE MUCH BETTER OFF. THEY ARE COMPLETELY AND UTTERABLY UNCONSCIONABLE.
THE FOOD SCIENTISTS ARE TOO SMART FOR THEIR OWN GOOD.

TOMATOES TO ME ARE THE FRUIT OF THE GODS AND SOON HERE IN NJ WE SHALL BE ABLE TO ENJOY THE LOCAL HOMEGROWN VARIETY FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT TWO (2) MONTHS. DOING ANYTHING TO TAMPER WITH THESE WONDERFUL TOMATOES IS A SIN AGAINST MOTHER NATURE.

+7 # T4D 2012-07-13 09:02

It would seem that now that meat has been thoroughly pink-slimed into permanent disgrace we now need to green-slime everything else the farmer grows. If you can't trust the meat become a vegan, everyone knows that's a healthy choice. If you can't trust the vegetables grow and process your own, but be careful how you do it. If none of these suits your style of life be cautious about of what you buy, and where you buy it.

-9 # happycamper690 2012-07-13 10:34

I'm sorry. This article is devoid of evidence that genetically engineered food is in any way bad for us (except aesthetically). Unless we can confine our discussion to real scientific data and not by emotion, we are acting foolishly. Genetic modification of food is OUR ONLY WAY WE WILL FEED ALL OF US 50 YEARS FROM NOW when population nearly doubles and our planet will be unrecognizably hot. Our children and grandchildren will depend on engineered food.
For the moment, if you do not like tasteless tomatoes, grow your own. Note that if no one was buying engineered tomatoes, they would not be on the market.

+6 # MindDoc 2012-07-13 10:55

Flash forward, 12 years: The United Koch Emirates of America announces that we have plenty of 'food' available , even for what Shteyngart (novelist) called "low net worth individuals".
They can still eat cake, though the 'flour' bears little resemblance to actual wheat. And of course there are specially engineered flavor enhancers for 'food' which isn't already genetically modified to undo effects of the inbred no-flavor seeds. As for 'pink slime' protections or anything resembling 'consumer protection', as they say, 'fuh-get-about- it'! The (corporate) 'people' are happy to just to see some crumbs.

Thus is one possible vision ... (Koch/Rove/Romney's)

We the People must SPEAK! And act. And vote out anyone in any branch who is not acting on behalf of living, breathing, (human) citizens of this country. We can begin in November, en masse!

Repeal & Replace the Corporate Party of lies and greed (TP/GOP), in Congress, where they allegedly serve "We the People".

Meanwhile (as reported today/Huffingto n) Romney was caught lying (nothing new), but under oath, swearing he *did* sit on the board and play an active role at Bain while they were busy soaking up wealth and displacing $ (and workers) offshore.

Dangerous times! We need to pay attention - and speak out - and demand representation from representatives - or "fire" them!

Refresh comments list
RSS feed for comments to this post

THE NEW STREAMLINED RSN LOGIN PROCESS: Register once, then login and you are ready to comment. All you need is a Username and a Password of your choosing and you are free to comment whenever you like! Welcome to the Reader Supported News community.