In 2008 “Monsanto’s Harvest of Fear” was published in Vanity Fair. Penned by Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, this exposition presents acts by Monsanto that may be considered questionable. Acts such as possessing a “shadowy army of private investigators” and the production of “two of the most toxic substances ever known”. The company was established in 1901 as Monsanto Chemical Works. Through endeavors they transformed from making exclusively an artificial sweetener to more diverse products. Following the original founders death his son grew Monsanto Chemical Works into an empire creating more chemicals including, herbicides, pesticides, and industrial fluid. 1949, a pressure valve breaks in a factory neighboring a small town dusting
Sondra Simpson’s article “Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.: Strategy with a Higher Mission or Farmed and Dangerous?” alludes to portraying a controversy involving the popular Mexican fast food chain Chipotle and the agricultural industry, but it reads more as a testament to the restaurant’s environmental and marketing achievements. The introductory paragraphs lead us right into a brief explanation of the issue at hand, as well as Chipotle’s intentions and opposition. Simpson hooks her readers with inciting blog titles illustrating the overall feelings of Chipotle’s offended adversaries, such as, “Boycott Chipotle: My Farm is Not Dangerous” and “Chipotle Unnecessarily Tears Down Agriculture to Build a Brand” (qtd by Simpson p 38). These blog posts describe the agricultural industry’s reaction to Chipotle’s latest attempt at spreading their corporate message through a series of webisodes titled “Farmed and Dangerous.”
Although things such as the amount of GMO’s (genetically modified organism) in the food is worse today than it was in the turn of the twentieth century, the
Sam Roberts in the article A Decade of Fear argues that McCarthyism turned Americans against each other. Roberts supports his claim by illustrating fear, describing betrayal, and comparing it to other United States internal conflicts. The author’s purpose is to point out a vulnerable period of American history in order to demonstrate that Americans felt prey to McCarthy’s negative propaganda. The author writes in a cynical tone for an educated audience. I strongly agree with Robert’s claim.
The best arguments for my position are that Monsanto produces higher yielding crops. For example, “In 1970 the average corn harvest yielded approximately 70 bushels an acre. With the introduction of biotech crops, the average corn harvest increased to roughly 150 bushels an acre” (Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell 384). The reason I find this statistic important is because it doubles crops yield, which means more people get to eat. As we know our population is expanding at an enormous rate, which causes the demand of food to go up.
In a news article published during the Red Scare, the author describes the Communist red flag as symbolizing “defiance of law, order, and constitutional government. It is an insult to the stars and stripes.” It also states, “There is no room in this country for any flag but our own.” (source) The article goes on to say that the federal government must do whatever it takes to eradicate any forms of communism.
In the article entitled Monsanto's Harvest of Fear, Donald L. Barley and James B. Steele demonstrate that Monsanto already dominates the United States food chain with their genetically modified seeds. They are currently targeting milk production which is just as scary as the corporation's legal battles against the small farmers. This situation leads to a history of toxic infections or diseases. There were many disagreements between Gary Rinehart and a stranger about the innovative seeds. They were under surveillance and an investigator came in the picture.
The three essays assigned this week had several common threads running through them. The strongest core theme is the rapid change in the food cycle in America and the vast changes that have taken place in the way by which we grow, produce, and process the food that average Americans eat. The food we eat now is drastically different from what our grandparents grew up eating and the three essays each examine that in a different way. Another theme is the loss of knowledge by the average consumer about where their food comes from, what it is composed of, and what, if any, danger it might pose to them. “Monsanto’s Harvest of Fear” by Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele is a harsh look at the realities of food production in a country where large corporations, like Monsanto, have been allowed to exploit laws and loopholes to bend farmers and consumers to their
Blacked Out Most Americans are afraid of African Americans. Why, we ask? Most of us don’t know why we do, is it their physical appearance or is it the fact that they have a different skin tone? In Chapter 5: Black Men of The Culture of Fear by Barry Glassner, Glassner argues that the media exaggerates the excessive attention paid to African-Americans (Glassner 109). Throughout the chapter, Glassner exposes us to secrets and truths about how the media makes us fear African-Americans, they feed us irrelevant information that make it seem like blacks are still a lower class and therefore treating them like they are still slaves.
A powerful example of pathos is exhibited in the scene in which Seifert takes his sons to a cornfield to run and play among the rows and rows of vegetation like he had when he was a child. Viewers are swept into the nostalgia of older and simpler times only to become horrified to see Seifert take out gas masks, body suits, and duct tape and begin covering his kids from head to toe. Dressed in apparel fit for a nuclear or radiation site, Seifert and the boys run through the genetically modified field, protected from the pesticide and herbicide the plants are saturated in. This scene sends a striking message of the threat GMO’s pose to the memory of natural farming and food
California’s environment Ecology of Fear by Mike Davis gives us a very real and perhaps over the top view at the trouble California’s environment is in but they provide interesting parallels to other issues in California. Arguments provided in Ecology of Fear are very fascinating for example is theory that Los Angeles being destroyed could be a metaphor to humans actually destroying the city and state. Mike Davis describes in his book how a woman describes animals like cougars as “serial killers” who’s numbers should be cut down but do not stop living or walking through their territory.
A corporatist markets off what they know would put them in financial ruin if people found out the truth behind what they claim is bettering the world. Once gathering enough positive claims, they proceed anyway. This is the quintessence of GMO marketing. Now, as the newest generation, millennials are likely to have been fed these genetically modified foods growing up, but have the technology to research and make their own intelligent and informed decision on whether these foods should be continued to be produced and distributed throughout the world. It is not being overly suspicious to not believe a corporation such as Monsanto, the leading agrochemical company, when with minimal research they publicize that GMOs are safe to consume.
New regulations, an enforced code of ethics and striving to be more socially responsible has led Monsanto to enhance their relationships with stakeholders. Monsanto wrote a pledge to inform all of their
Monsanto in Mexico Monsanto is a multinational company based in the State of Missouri in the US. It mainly deals in agribusiness, that is agrochemicals and agricultural biotechnology. The company has locations in over 67 countries with 404 facilities all aimed at providing sustainable agricultural products for all farmers worldwide. These agricultural products include seeds for a wide variety of produce like cotton, fruits, vegetables and field corn.
Monsanto’s low levels of charitable giving and history of ethical lapses do not help the company’s case that it is seeking to improve the lives of the people of the world. However, Monsanto