ayakiawe

these jerks are really going crazy! what about making Thailand a clean safe environmently great place to live and grow for the next 3000 years?

Get your priorites straight!

Or the cock roaches (malang sap) really will take over!

this part of the publication I think is pure trash and a total waste of interent time for me. Consider dropping it please!

Sorry folks my brain can not go to that place.

It would have to get too small and useless.

"Can Asians Think" is the question and a title of a book in fact

I did not have to read the book to answer.

I have seen it all now and I know what the answer is sadly enough.

This book was written by an Asian though.

so maybe there is hope!

Lets hope so!

Money and their "face" are the two most important ideas here.

And right next to that the almighty hand phone and TV.

I think this is true what about you?

The hand phone in fact replaced the baby here by in large.

Just look at the way the woman hold and carry their handphones. Recall a mother with her baby?

Looks to me the way they took care of a baby before.

New values for Asia. Come and get it while its hot!

They threw the real baby out with the bath water mostly here by now.

Look around you and say it aint so?

Thai orang-utans feared dead

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3548600.stm

Police halted controversial orang-utan boxing bouts last week

Bangkok police are investigating the apparent deaths of 41 orang-utans at the city's Safari World wildlife park.

Park officials said the animals died from natural causes, but police suspect they may have been killed or moved elsewhere to avoid DNA tests.

The park is already under investigation for allegedly smuggling orang-utans from Indonesia and Malaysia.

Last week it was forced to suspend its controversial orang-utan kick-boxing fights due to international pressure.

When police went to the park in July with an order to seize all the orang-utans, officers found only 69 of the animals, despite records showing that there should have been 110.

Safari World claimed the 41 missing animals were cremated after they died of diarrhoea and respiratory diseases.

"We had to burn them to prevent the spread of the disease, but we have their photos and documented every one of the animals' symptoms before their disposal," a park employee told the Associated Press.

But police spokesman Vijit Nantawong told the French news agency AFP: "We don't believe they have died. We believe they have been moved somewhere else."

"We want to investigate whether it is true that they were cremated," he said.

Police suspect that the park may be trying to cover its tracks, after allegations were made that it illegally smuggled the endangered animals into Thailand.

But Safari World officials claimed their orang-utans were not smuggled, but the fruits of a successful captive breeding programme.

The park has been the target of animal rights campaigners for some time.

Last week, the Thai authorities forced Safari World to suspend its orang-utan fights while they investigated claims of cruelty and exploitation.

The orang-utans, in boxing gloves and brightly-coloured shorts, have featured at the park for decades.

wake up bird brains! this is real news!

http://www.newswithviews.com/Smith/jeffrey2.htm

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOODS MAY POSE NATIONAL HEALTH RISK

By Jeffrey Smith

August 1, 2004

NewsWithViews.com

In a study in the early 1990’s rats were fed genetically modified (GM) tomatoes. Well actually, the rats refused to eat them. They were force-fed. Several of the rats developed stomach lesions and seven out of forty died within two weeks. Scientists at the FDA who reviewed the study agreed that it did not provide a “demonstration of reasonable certainty of no harm.” In fact, agency scientists warned that GM foods in general might create unpredicted allergies, toxins, antibiotic resistant diseases, and nutritional problems. Internal FDA memos made public from a lawsuit reveal that the scientists urged their superiors to require long-term safety testing to catch these hard-to-detect side effects. But FDA political appointees, including a former attorney for Monsanto in charge of policy, ignored the scientists’ warnings. The FDA does not require safety studies. Instead, if the makers of the GM foods claim that they are safe, the agency has no further questions. The GM tomato was approved in 1994.

According to a July 27th report from the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the current system of blanket approval of GM foods by the FDA might not detect “unintended changes in the composition of the food.” The process of gene insertion, according to the NAS, could damage the host’s DNA with unpredicted consequences. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which released its findings a few days earlier, identified a long list of potentially dangerous side effects from GM foods that are not being evaluated. The ICMR called for a complete overhaul of existing regulations.

The safety studies conducted by the biotech industry are often dismissed by critics as superficial and designed to avoid finding problems. Tragically, scientists who voice their criticism, and those who have discovered incriminating evidence, have been threatened, stripped of responsibilities, denied funding or tenure, or fired. For example, a UK government-funded study demonstrated that rats fed a GM potato developed potentially pre-cancerous cell growth, damaged immune systems, partial atrophy of the liver, and inhibited development of their brains, livers and testicles. When the lead scientist went public with his concerns, he was promptly fired from his job after 35 years and silenced with threats of a lawsuit.

Americans eat genetically modified foods everyday. Although the GM tomato has been taken off the market, millions of acres of soy, corn, canola, and cotton have had foreign genes inserted into their DNA. The new genes allow the crops to survive applications of herbicide, create their own pesticide, or both. While there are only a handful of published animal safety studies, mounting evidence, which needs to be followed up, suggests that these foods are not safe.

Rats fed GM corn had problems with blood cell formation. Those fed GM soy had problems with liver cell formation, and the livers of rats fed GM canola were heavier. Pigs fed GM corn on several Midwest farms developed false pregnancies or sterility. Cows fed GM corn in Germany died mysteriously. And twice the number of chickens died when fed GM corn compared to those fed natural corn.

Soon after GM soy was introduced to the UK, soy allergies skyrocketed by 50 percent. Without follow-up tests, we can’t be sure if genetic engineering was the cause, but there are plenty of ways in which genetic manipulation can boost allergies.

A gene from a Brazil nut inserted into soybeans made the soy allergenic to those who normally react to Brazil nuts.

GM soy currently consumed in the US contains a gene from bacteria. The inserted gene creates a protein that was never before part of the human food supply, and might be allergenic.

Sections of that protein are identical to those found in shrimp and dust mite allergens. According to criteria recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), this fact should have disqualified GM soy from approval.

The sequence of the gene that was inserted into soy has inexplicably rearranged over time. The protein it creates is likely to be different than the one intended, and was never subject to any safety studies. It may be allergenic or toxic.

The process of inserting the foreign gene damaged a section of the soy’s own DNA, scrambling its genetic code. This mutation might interfere with DNA expression or create a new, potentially dangerous protein.

The most common allergen in soy is called trypsin inhibitor. GM soy contains significantly more of this compared with natural soy.

The only human feeding study ever conducted showed that the gene inserted into soybeans spontaneously transferred out of food and into the DNA of gut bacteria. This has several serious implications. First, it means that the bacteria inside our intestines, newly equipped with this foreign gene, may create the novel protein inside of us. If it is allergenic or toxic, it may affect us for the long term, even if we give up eating GM soy.

The same study verified that the promoter, which scientists attach to the inserted gene to permanently switch it on, also transferred to gut bacteria. Research on this promoter suggests that it might unintentionally switch on other genes in the DNA—permanently. This could create an overproduction of allergens, toxins, carcinogens, or antinutrients. Scientists also theorize that the promoter might switch on dormant viruses embedded in the DNA or generate mutations.

Unfortunately, gene transfer from GM food might not be limited to our gut bacteria. Preliminary results show that the promoter also transferred into rat organs, after they were fed only a single GM meal.

This is only a partial list of what may go wrong with a single GM food crop. The list for others may be longer. Take for example, the corn inserted with a gene that creates its own pesticide. We eat that pesticide, and plenty of evidence suggests that it is not as benign as the biotech proponents would have us believe. Preliminary evidence, for example, shows that thirty-nine Philippinos living next to a pesticide-producing cornfield developed skin, intestinal, and respiratory reactions while the corn was pollinating. Tests of their blood also showed an immune response to the pesticide. Consider what might happen if the gene that produces the pesticide were to transfer from the corn we eat into our gut bacteria. It could theoretically transform our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories.

GM corn and most GM crops are also inserted with antibiotic resistant genes. The ICMR, along with the American Medical Association, the WHO, and organizations worldwide, have expressed concern about the possibility that these might transfer to pathogenic bacteria inside our gut. They are afraid that it might create new, antibiotic resistant super-diseases. The defense that the biotech industry used to counter these fears was that the DNA was fully destroyed during digestion and therefore no such transfer of genes was possible. The human feeding study described above, published in February 2004, overturned this baseless assumption.

No one monitors human health impacts of GM foods. If the foods were creating health problems in the US population, it might take years or decades before we identified the cause. One epidemic in the1980’s provides a chilling example. A new disease was caused by a brand of the food supplement L-tryptophan, which had been created through genetic modification and contained tiny traces of contaminants. The disease killed about 100 Americans and caused sickness or disability in about 5-10,000 others. The only reason that doctors were able to identify that an epidemic was occurring, was because the disease had three simultaneous characteristics: it was rare, acute, and fast acting. Even then it was nearly missed entirely.

Studies show that the more people learn about GM foods, the less they trust them. In Europe, Japan, and other regions, the press has been far more open about the potential dangers of genetic manipulation. Consequently, consumers there demand that their food supply be GM-free and manufacturers comply. But in the US, most people believe they have never eaten a GM food in their lives (even though they consume them daily). Lacking awareness, complacent consumers have been the key asset for the biotech industry in the US. As a result, millions of Americans are exposed to the potential dangers, and children are most at risk. Perhaps the revelations in the reports released on opposite sides of the planet will awaken consumers as well as regulators, and GM foods on the market will be withdrawn.

To become more informed of the dangers of GM foods, to download a letter to food manufacturers, and to learn how to avoid buying and eating GM foods, see www.seedsofdeception.com. Order The Seeds of Deception.

This is the first in a regular column about genetically modified foods by Jeffrey M. Smith. He is the author of Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies about the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You’re Eating, and the Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology.

© 2004 Jeffrey M. Smith- All Rights Reserved

Sign Up For Free E-Mail Alerts

E-Mails are used strictly for NWVs alerts, not for sale

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

Jeffrey M. Smith has been involved with genetically modified (GM) foods for nearly a decade. He worked for non-profit and political groups on the issue and in 1998, ran for U.S. Congress to raise public awareness of the health and environmental impacts. To protect children-who are most at risk from the potential health effects of GM foods-Smith proposed legislation to remove the foods from school meals. He also proposed legislation to help protect farmers from cross-pollination by GM crops. Later, he was vice president of marketing for a GMO detection laboratory.

Smith has lectured widely, spoken at conferences, and has been quoted in articles around the world. Prior to working in this field, he was a writer, educator, and public speaker for non-profit groups, advancing the causes of health, environment, and personal development. This book Seeds of Deception, researched and written after he left the industry, combines Smith's passion for these causes with his extensive knowledge of the risks and cover-ups behind genetically modified foods.

Smith is the founding director of the Institute for Responsible Technology, a member of the Sierra Club Genetic Engineering Committee, and a member of the advisory board of the Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods. He has a master's degree in business administration and lives with his wife in Iowa, surrounded by genetically modified corn and soybeans. Website: www.seedsofdeception.com E:Mail: [email protected]

wake up bird brains!

http://www.newswithviews.com/Smith/jeffrey2.htm

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOODS MAY POSE NATIONAL HEALTH RISK

By Jeffrey Smith

August 1, 2004

NewsWithViews.com

In a study in the early 1990’s rats were fed genetically modified (GM) tomatoes. Well actually, the rats refused to eat them. They were force-fed. Several of the rats developed stomach lesions and seven out of forty died within two weeks. Scientists at the FDA who reviewed the study agreed that it did not provide a “demonstration of reasonable certainty of no harm.” In fact, agency scientists warned that GM foods in general might create unpredicted allergies, toxins, antibiotic resistant diseases, and nutritional problems. Internal FDA memos made public from a lawsuit reveal that the scientists urged their superiors to require long-term safety testing to catch these hard-to-detect side effects. But FDA political appointees, including a former attorney for Monsanto in charge of policy, ignored the scientists’ warnings. The FDA does not require safety studies. Instead, if the makers of the GM foods claim that they are safe, the agency has no further questions. The GM tomato was approved in 1994.

According to a July 27th report from the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the current system of blanket approval of GM foods by the FDA might not detect “unintended changes in the composition of the food.” The process of gene insertion, according to the NAS, could damage the host’s DNA with unpredicted consequences. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which released its findings a few days earlier, identified a long list of potentially dangerous side effects from GM foods that are not being evaluated. The ICMR called for a complete overhaul of existing regulations.

The safety studies conducted by the biotech industry are often dismissed by critics as superficial and designed to avoid finding problems. Tragically, scientists who voice their criticism, and those who have discovered incriminating evidence, have been threatened, stripped of responsibilities, denied funding or tenure, or fired. For example, a UK government-funded study demonstrated that rats fed a GM potato developed potentially pre-cancerous cell growth, damaged immune systems, partial atrophy of the liver, and inhibited development of their brains, livers and testicles. When the lead scientist went public with his concerns, he was promptly fired from his job after 35 years and silenced with threats of a lawsuit.

Americans eat genetically modified foods everyday. Although the GM tomato has been taken off the market, millions of acres of soy, corn, canola, and cotton have had foreign genes inserted into their DNA. The new genes allow the crops to survive applications of herbicide, create their own pesticide, or both. While there are only a handful of published animal safety studies, mounting evidence, which needs to be followed up, suggests that these foods are not safe.

Rats fed GM corn had problems with blood cell formation. Those fed GM soy had problems with liver cell formation, and the livers of rats fed GM canola were heavier. Pigs fed GM corn on several Midwest farms developed false pregnancies or sterility. Cows fed GM corn in Germany died mysteriously. And twice the number of chickens died when fed GM corn compared to those fed natural corn.

Soon after GM soy was introduced to the UK, soy allergies skyrocketed by 50 percent. Without follow-up tests, we can’t be sure if genetic engineering was the cause, but there are plenty of ways in which genetic manipulation can boost allergies.

A gene from a Brazil nut inserted into soybeans made the soy allergenic to those who normally react to Brazil nuts.

GM soy currently consumed in the US contains a gene from bacteria. The inserted gene creates a protein that was never before part of the human food supply, and might be allergenic.

Sections of that protein are identical to those found in shrimp and dust mite allergens. According to criteria recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), this fact should have disqualified GM soy from approval.

The sequence of the gene that was inserted into soy has inexplicably rearranged over time. The protein it creates is likely to be different than the one intended, and was never subject to any safety studies. It may be allergenic or toxic.

The process of inserting the foreign gene damaged a section of the soy’s own DNA, scrambling its genetic code. This mutation might interfere with DNA expression or create a new, potentially dangerous protein.

The most common allergen in soy is called trypsin inhibitor. GM soy contains significantly more of this compared with natural soy.

The only human feeding study ever conducted showed that the gene inserted into soybeans spontaneously transferred out of food and into the DNA of gut bacteria. This has several serious implications. First, it means that the bacteria inside our intestines, newly equipped with this foreign gene, may create the novel protein inside of us. If it is allergenic or toxic, it may affect us for the long term, even if we give up eating GM soy.

The same study verified that the promoter, which scientists attach to the inserted gene to permanently switch it on, also transferred to gut bacteria. Research on this promoter suggests that it might unintentionally switch on other genes in the DNA—permanently. This could create an overproduction of allergens, toxins, carcinogens, or antinutrients. Scientists also theorize that the promoter might switch on dormant viruses embedded in the DNA or generate mutations.

Unfortunately, gene transfer from GM food might not be limited to our gut bacteria. Preliminary results show that the promoter also transferred into rat organs, after they were fed only a single GM meal.

This is only a partial list of what may go wrong with a single GM food crop. The list for others may be longer. Take for example, the corn inserted with a gene that creates its own pesticide. We eat that pesticide, and plenty of evidence suggests that it is not as benign as the biotech proponents would have us believe. Preliminary evidence, for example, shows that thirty-nine Philippinos living next to a pesticide-producing cornfield developed skin, intestinal, and respiratory reactions while the corn was pollinating. Tests of their blood also showed an immune response to the pesticide. Consider what might happen if the gene that produces the pesticide were to transfer from the corn we eat into our gut bacteria. It could theoretically transform our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories.

GM corn and most GM crops are also inserted with antibiotic resistant genes. The ICMR, along with the American Medical Association, the WHO, and organizations worldwide, have expressed concern about the possibility that these might transfer to pathogenic bacteria inside our gut. They are afraid that it might create new, antibiotic resistant super-diseases. The defense that the biotech industry used to counter these fears was that the DNA was fully destroyed during digestion and therefore no such transfer of genes was possible. The human feeding study described above, published in February 2004, overturned this baseless assumption.

No one monitors human health impacts of GM foods. If the foods were creating health problems in the US population, it might take years or decades before we identified the cause. One epidemic in the1980’s provides a chilling example. A new disease was caused by a brand of the food supplement L-tryptophan, which had been created through genetic modification and contained tiny traces of contaminants. The disease killed about 100 Americans and caused sickness or disability in about 5-10,000 others. The only reason that doctors were able to identify that an epidemic was occurring, was because the disease had three simultaneous characteristics: it was rare, acute, and fast acting. Even then it was nearly missed entirely.

Studies show that the more people learn about GM foods, the less they trust them. In Europe, Japan, and other regions, the press has been far more open about the potential dangers of genetic manipulation. Consequently, consumers there demand that their food supply be GM-free and manufacturers comply. But in the US, most people believe they have never eaten a GM food in their lives (even though they consume them daily). Lacking awareness, complacent consumers have been the key asset for the biotech industry in the US. As a result, millions of Americans are exposed to the potential dangers, and children are most at risk. Perhaps the revelations in the reports released on opposite sides of the planet will awaken consumers as well as regulators, and GM foods on the market will be withdrawn.

To become more informed of the dangers of GM foods, to download a letter to food manufacturers, and to learn how to avoid buying and eating GM foods, see www.seedsofdeception.com. Order The Seeds of Deception.

This is the first in a regular column about genetically modified foods by Jeffrey M. Smith. He is the author of Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies about the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You’re Eating, and the Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology.

© 2004 Jeffrey M. Smith- All Rights Reserved

Sign Up For Free E-Mail Alerts

E-Mails are used strictly for NWVs alerts, not for sale

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

Jeffrey M. Smith has been involved with genetically modified (GM) foods for nearly a decade. He worked for non-profit and political groups on the issue and in 1998, ran for U.S. Congress to raise public awareness of the health and environmental impacts. To protect children-who are most at risk from the potential health effects of GM foods-Smith proposed legislation to remove the foods from school meals. He also proposed legislation to help protect farmers from cross-pollination by GM crops. Later, he was vice president of marketing for a GMO detection laboratory.

Smith has lectured widely, spoken at conferences, and has been quoted in articles around the world. Prior to working in this field, he was a writer, educator, and public speaker for non-profit groups, advancing the causes of health, environment, and personal development. This book Seeds of Deception, researched and written after he left the industry, combines Smith's passion for these causes with his extensive knowledge of the risks and cover-ups behind genetically modified foods.

Smith is the founding director of the Institute for Responsible Technology, a member of the Sierra Club Genetic Engineering Committee, and a member of the advisory board of the Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods. He has a master's degree in business administration and lives with his wife in Iowa, surrounded by genetically modified corn and soybeans. Website: www.seedsofdeception.com E:Mail: [email protected]

sorry for the bad copy!

Important news for Thailand

To: [email protected]

Subject: [gefreehi] Greenpeace in Thailand revealed GM papaya grown

for at least 12 months GM WATCH daily http://www.gmwatch.org

FOCUS ON ASIA

Greenpeace campaigners in Thailand recently revealed that GM papaya have been grown for at least 12 months on a farm in the province of Khon Kaen in a widening GM contamination scandal. It was grown from papaya seeds purchased from a Thai government research station in June 2003. Testing shows the seeds they are selling have become contaminated - almost certainly by GM field trials.

To see a map showing the spread of contamination in Thailand: http://weblog.greenpeace.org/ge/archives/M...ntamination.jpg

"The purpose of the ban on field trials imposed in 2001 was to prevent GE contamination. But we now have proof that not only has this ban failed, but the Department of Agriculture itself has committed a crime that threatens an essential food with widespread contamination," said Svangsopakul. "Last year we warned the Thai public of the environmental and health risks posed by GE papaya and called on the government to stop all planting of the crop anywhere in the country. We also pointed to Hawaii as an example of GE papaya gone wrong. "When GE papaya was introduced into Hawaii the biotech industry said it was a 'solution' to the papaya ringspot virus problem. But instead it has caused serious environmental and economic problems for farmers. The selling price of GE papaya has fallen to 30-40 percent below production costs, and the price that farmers get for their GE papaya is 600 percent lower than the price for organic papaya." (item 3)

For more of the background on the GM papaya scandal see item 3.

1.Activists prompt GMO probe

2.NGOs threaten to sue over "GMO seeds"

3.GM papaya scandal in Thailand

---

1.Activists prompt GMO probe by Sirinart Sirisunthorn and Dussadee Ngarmlua The Nation, 4 Aug 2004

The agriculture Department yesterday ordered a halt to the distribution of papaya seeds from its research station in Khon Kaen (Thailand) in an effort to disprove claims by environmentalists that genetically modified papaya seeds slipped through to farmers.

Chakan Saengraksawong, the directorgeneral of the department, said the halt would allow his department to investigate whether farmers possessed genetically modified papaya seeds, as alleged by Greenpeace Southeast Asia.

Last week, Greenpeace raided and destroyed plants on an experimental papaya plantation at the Khon Kaen station. The organisation then accused the station of distributing GMO papaya seeds to farmers. Some nongovernmental organisations threatened to sue over the alleged distribution.

The station is the largest supplier of the popular Khaek Dam Thaphra strain of papaya seeds.

Chakan insisted yesterday that while his station was researching GMO papaya, it had not distributed any GMO seeds.

"So, current distribution has to be stopped to check whether GMO seeds have really slipped out as some have alleged," Chakan said. He said farmers who suspected their papaya came from GMO seeds could alert his department, which would check and then confirm where the seeds originated.

Turning the tables, Chakan said he suspected Greenpeace Southeast Asia of allowing GMOs out of the research station. "That day, when Greenpeace raided the station, its staff took some papaya fruit with them," he said, adding that the station would continue experimenting with GMO papaya. --- 2.NGOs threaten to sue over "GMO seeds" by Sirinart Sirisunthorn and Yossawadee Hongthong The Nation, 30 July 2004

A group of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) yesterday threatened to sue a senior government official if relevant agencies fail to stop the distribution of alleged genetically engineered papaya seeds within 15 days.

Their ultimatum followed Tuesday's raid by environmentalists on an agricultural research station in Khon Kaen where genetically modified seeds are alleged to originate.

The station is considered the country's largest supplier of papaya seeds.

"We will lodge complaints with police and the Administrative Court against the Agriculture Department's director-general for dereliction of duty if the government doesn't heed our demands," said Witoon Lianjamroon of Biothai yesterday.

NGOs demanded the Agriculture Ministry immediately stop the distribution of genetically modified papaya seeds and seedlings. They also called on Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to order a neutral fact-finding committee to probe whether some of the seeds and seedlings originating from the Khon Kaen agricultural station were genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

"The committee must complete its investigation in 15 days. We also expect immediate elimination of GMOs outside of research farms if the results indicate such a scenario exists," Witoon said.

He said papaya was a major staple of the country and the consumption of genetically engineered papaya could be harmful to consumers.

The Assembly of the Poor, Green Net Cooperative and many consumer groups supported Witoon's move. Witoon said his alliance would today submit its demands to Thaksin.

Democrat Party deputy leader Khunying Kallaya Soponpanich said the government should not allow people to consume genetically engineered papaya as it remained unclear whether GMOs are safe for consumption.

"People should not be allowed to eat GMOs until they are proven safe," she said.

Meanwhile, the agricultural station's senior official, Wilai Prasartsri, insisted the station had never allowed GMOs outside of its compound, since such an act would be against the law.

"We just distribute non-GMO papaya," she said, adding she welcomed an investigation. She also condemned Greenpeace Southeast Asia's raid on her research station. "We have to lodge complaints with police to set a precedent that establishes such actions are not acceptable," Wilai said. --- 3.GE papaya scandal in Thailand Illegal GE seeds found in packages sold by Tue 27 July 2004

http://www.greenpeace.org/international_en...?item_id=547563

THAILAND/Khon Kaen

[image caption: Greenpeace Thai activists seal off the GE papaya at the Khon Kaen agricultural research station of the Department of Agriculture.]

We warned the Thai government over a year ago not to play with genetically engineered (GE) papaya but they didn't listen. Although trials of the engineered food crop are banned, it seems they couldn't resist having a go themselves. Now they have left the whole country's papaya crop wide open to contamination. Independent laboratory tests carried out in Hong Kong showed that packages of papaya seeds being sold by the Department of Agriculture's research station in the province of Khon Kaen contained GE seeds. We identified one of the fields at the research station as the source of the GE seeds. It turns out that the experimental field was only segregated from the other papaya by barbed wire and banana trees. "This is potentially one of the worst cases of genetic contamination of a major food crop in Asia as this station is one of the largest suppliers of papaya seeds in the country," said Varoonvarn Svangsopakul, our GE campaigner in Southeast Asia. "This is the hard evidence we needed to prove that GE contamination has broken in Thailand."

Thai activists sealed off the GE papaya at the agricultural research station of the Department of Agriculture. Dressed in protective suits they removed the GE papaya fruit from the trees then secured them in hazardous material containers. They also demanded that the government complete this process and immediately destroy all papaya trees, fruit, seedlings, and seeds in the Khon Kaen research station to prevent further contamination.

"The purpose of the ban on field trials imposed in 2001 was to prevent GE contamination. But we now have proof that not only has this ban failed, but the Department of Agriculture itself has committed a crime that threatens an essential food with widespread contamination," said Svangsopakul. Last year we warned the Thai public of the environmental and health risks posed by GE papaya and called on the government to stop all planting of the crop anywhere in the country. We also pointed to Hawaii as an example of GE papaya gone wrong. When GE papaya was introduced into Hawaii the biotech industry said it was a 'solution' to the papaya ringspot virus problem. But instead it has caused serious environmental and economic problems for farmers. The selling price of GE papaya has fallen to 30-40 percent below production costs, and the price that farmers get for their GE papaya is 600 percent lower than the price for organic papaya.

The consequences of growing GE papaya in Thailand are feared to be even more serious than Hawaii. Not only is green papaya eaten as a daily staple food, it is also grown everywhere - in farmers' fields, schoolyards and gardens. "We've been calling for an end to this genetic experiment on the grounds that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are uncontrollable. There can no longer be any doubt that this is true. And the government must take action to stop this experiment now," said Jiragorn Gajaseni, Executive Director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia.

"The government must act now to impose a total ban on GE field trials, including those in government restricted areas and experimental stations, and must launch an investigation into this environmental crime."

"chicken brain" my friend calls this!

I think they have it over the Indonesians but not by much.

Owak ca ca ca ca!

Oh you didn’t hear now they are saying all this sun block crap is just that, crap and toxic.

The blocks themselves cause cancer!

Look at the graphs which proves this. The more that’s being used the higher the cancer rates climb.

The cosmetic industry had a bunch of left over chemicals from their production of make up and such.

What to do? So they produced a new hype about this sun blocking skin/ saving system and used these left over (trash before) chemicals.

Walla…… a new products for your skin!

Now lets make some sense here! Not big bucks for the big boys!

If you burn easy cover up.

If you want to experiment try eating more raw quality oils and fats.

I in fact can sunbath for hours in full mid day, high noon sun and not burn. I think because of these raw nutrients. remember for most of us, sunshine is very important for our health.

Dont go a day without it if you can help it!

Not to sensitive to air pollution!

What about the food! Too much salt, MSG, sugar, chilies! No sensitivity at all it appears!

Going on an aircon bus, did you bring your down winter jacket?

Go to a concert or to a party at the Wat; the lights are too bright, music too loud (and bad normally), plastic trash all over the place. They say no problem they will burn all the plastic the next day if it doesn’t blow away first!

Or try a super store! How many different stereos and TVs all playing different music etc can you listen too all at once.

Sensitive is not a word I would use to describe these folks I’m sorry , really sorry about that!

This lack there of will in the end destroy them. Sad to say.

When a people understand the diffence between a plastic bag and a banana leaf maybe there will be a chance. Until then...........kiss it good bye

Salon.com Books | "Can Asians think?"

To print this page, select "Print" from the File menu of your browser. Kishore Mahbubani. " Can Asians think?" Singapore's ambassador to the U.N. ... through the book will convince you that the author takes the question "Can Asians think?" very seriously ... to the United Nations, writes, "Can Asians think? Judging from the record ...www.salon.com/books/int/2002/03/25/asians/print.html - 36k - Cached - More pages from this site

Sorry no more info on the book "Can Asians Think".

I can assure you the book is for real and in my experience, is quite true almost all the time.

The Crash of '97 was great for Asia. Best thing ever! I just hope we have another one here quickly or it looks like this place will be done for before I get the ###### out of here.

Too much money in the wrong hands is dangerous! More sprays, herbicides, pesticides, cars, toxic products....etc.

You name it they will buy it and spread it all over the place.

Take all, don’t leave even one!

Selling land, first cut down all the trees on the land and then put a for sale sign on the property! Think?

That’s the "non-thinking" here sorry to say.

Thais like to make money off their natural resources but fail to understand they must protect these in order to keep making this money, duh.

There is a book written by an Asian from Singapore called, "Can Asians Think?"

Need I say more? I didnt have to read the book either. Just look around and see the mess they (not all but 95% yes) are turning this place into.

Many diseases will explode in growth in the next 10-20 years watch out!

AIDES will look like childs play.

This article is from The Star Online

(http://thestar.com.my)

URL:

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=...469535&sec=asia

__________________________________________________________________________

Monday July 19, 2004

Monks banned from criticising government

BANGKOK: Thailand's government has banned the

country's Buddhist monks from mentioning Prime

Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's administration on

state-radio airwaves, media reported yesterday.

The muzzle order came after a monk used a radio

sermon to indirectly criticise the ruling party's

plan to build a casino in the kingdom, Radio

Thailand officials told The Nation newspaper.

“Some monks are critical of the government, and

the powers that be are not happy with such

criticism,” a station official was quoted as saying.

Thai rights campaigners said the move – which

involves the establishment of a committee to

monitor all Buddhist sermons on state-radio – was going

too far.

“It is nonsense to gag monks. Even military

dictators refrain from meddling in religious

affairs,” Suriyasai Katasila, from The Campaign for

Popular Democracy, told the daily.

Thaksin has drawn fire in the past from media

advocacy groups who allege a government campaign is

under way to muzzle the local press through

financial coercion and intimidation.

This is the first time the country's

saffron-robed monks have been gagged by the current

administration. – AFP

"forces of evil" I agree its amazing the rest of them dont notice or stand up to it anyway?

Maybe they are all the same?

"forces of evil" control this site I think most of the time.

Hey earn what?

I won the race like all the rest of you! We are all the winners in our mothers womb.

Get it> There is nothing to earn we are all the winners.

Get on with the program of being kind and lovingor leave this forom NOW!

Forces of love and kindness take control!

I have to agree and YES I would too!

Please get off your high horse Doc and be helpful! If not go back to your bedroom until youi can be a nice person again!

Here, here, finally someone who making sense!

I agree with the OP!

Many of the posts on this forum are stupid little dumb immature farts for ideas.

But when I have asked some important questions that I really needed help on they were trashed very quickly. Led by the Doc himself!

I really doubt the usefulness of this forum most of the time for me to tell you the truth.

I hope this OP gets the people in charge here to pull their heads out (start thinking of how you can really make this place a better forum) or I for one am out of here too!

The moderators set the tone for sure and a few should be replaced ASAP!

If you think your a man to jet ski think again.

I call you a wimp!

A dumb one at that! Get out a take a swim with your own body to get around instead of polluting up the beach with noise and air pollution.

Its not a sport its a suck on the planet Earth!

Get a real life! Wake up!

Or just hit something quickly and get the .... out of here, either one will work!

Jet ski is the worst thing here in Thailand!

This is nail in the coffin for Samui

They will over build Samui so much nobody will want to come there!

they dont know when they got a good thing

Thai's dont have a clue what they are doing to the environment I am sorry to say.

Money is the God here too.

Here are the questions, as I understand them.

These questions are pertaining for an Iranian woman and an American man (USA) to get married in Thailand.

The Iranian woman’s tourist visa from Thai embassy in India will expire soon but she would like to stay here in Thailand with her fiancé and get married here to him soon.

He has a retirement visa in place for Thailand presently.

How long will it take to get married in Bangkok if all their paper work in ready and translated?

He (male from USA) already has a Thai retirement visa; what is the requirement for getting her included on his retirement visa and how is it done?

How long will this take?

Can an Iranian woman get a tourist visa in Cambodia?

Is there an Iranian embassy in Cambodia?

Can Iranian get a 30 day extension of a normal tourist visa for Thailand and where might that be done?

They tired to extend in Koh Samui immigration and they would only give her a 7 day extension not a 30 day which she would like now.

Thanks !!!!

Storm Troopers At the Doors of Fahrenheit 9/11

Rob Kall | June 26 2004

The handcuffs hanging from the burly hired

security guard were clearly,

intentionally evident. He was checking

younger-looking ticket

purchasers for age, to protect them from the

R-rating of the movie. But

he looked big and nasty. I was bringing my 14

year old son, and since

he accompanied me, there was no problem.

The movie was incredible, besides weaving

together a strong case

against George Bush and his administration, it

was a riveting piece of

entertainment. The 24 theater megaplex had

devoted its largest room to

the movie and it looked like the previous showing

and the one we went

to see were both sold out.

I'd gone, wearing a blue shirt, like Moveon.org

had suggested. I'd

printed out flyers with a message from Michael

Moore, that I'd

downloaded as a PDF file from moveon.org-- ten of

them. I started

passing them out before I went out the main

doors. The flyers just

about flew out of my hands and I was disappointed

I didn't have more.

People wanted them. They wanted to DO SOMETHING.

As soon as I was finished handing them out, I

just kept walking, and

went through the main exit doors for the

particular theater the movie

was shown, which put me in the front area within

the movie megaplex.

This time there were three big, bouncer-type

security guards rushing

past me, towards the exit doors. "There are

people in there handing out

flyers," one of them said urgently, as they

rushed to go through the

doors to catch .... me. They'd seen people

walking out with the flyers

I'd handed out.

They were hot for action. Fortunately for me,

I'd handed out all the

flyers I'd brought. I'd only printed out a small

number because I knew

my teen-ager might not be thrilled with his

activist father. It was a

good thing. Getting grabbed or even arrested

would not have been a good

thing. Civil disobedience that's intentional is

one thing, but getting

hassled for handing out flyers-- I'm not ready

for that yet, even

though it REALLY felt like we were in a police

state.

After all, I'm a regular at that movie, and

I've never seen special

security guards carding people, never seen three

guards AFTER the

movie. Germany in the 1030s seem to be inching

closer and closer. I

spoke to my daughter, in upstate PA, and she had

to drive over an hour,

more than 60 miles, to get to a theater playing

the movie. She said

they were militantly carding there too. And even

there, in Santorum

country, the largest theater in the local

megaplex was almost sold

out... for the Friday noon showing... and the

rest of the shows that

day were already sold out by the time they were

leaving.

This movie IS going to make a difference. It's

going to bring people

together and it is flushing out the sold out faux

journalist and news

networks that have been attacking the movie using

all the talking

points the Republican attack artists have

conjured up, repeatedly

reciting the attacks on Michael Moore's

character, downplaying the

accuracy of the film.

After the movie my son and I were talking about

what would cause the

censors to give Fahrneheit 9/11 an R rating. I

said, "The most obscene

thing in the movie is the topic of the movie--

George W. Bush and what

he's done."

OK once my electric bill went from 100-150 baht per month (YES TRUE FOR SURE I HAVE THE BILLS TO PROVE IT) to well over 500 baht per month.

Wow I could not figure out what happened for the longest time!

By the way for me sleeping with air-con is out of the question, it plain makes me sick. You ALL MUST BE MADE OF IRON!

If the house needs this (AC) I move first!

Proper design is the key to a cool house. The new Thai buildings didn’t quite get it right and thus suck electric way way too much!

So anyways I told my TGF to find out what’s up with this high bill!

She had the Thai electric company come out and they found nothing wrong.

She had a local Thai electrician come out with the same results wouldn’t you know it!

They just said the RATES ARE GOING UP AND BLA, BLA, BLA KIND OF CRAP THEY ALWAYS SAY, TALKING LIKE THEY REALLY KNOW WHATS UP BUT ACTUALLY DONT HAVE A f.... CLUE!

Finally about a year later a friend who is a Farang (SORRY BUT SHOW ME A THAI WHO COULD HELP ME OUT with something high tech like this AND I WILL VOTE HIM FOR PM) and an electrician found out that the grounding wire from the main fuse box was sending a constant stream of electricity into the ground.

This took him a whole 5 mins of trouble shooting.

We disconnected it and walla the problem solved!

I PAID FOR A YEAR OF UN-NEEDED HIGH ELECTRIC BILLS!

It cost me an extra 300 baht per month for nothing!

Thanks our lucky stars for the Farangs in this country I don’t know how it would get by other wise!

They should offer free visas for life and salaries to Farangs just to keep the place from falling apart!

Maybe one of those Elite cards for free too?

Don’t you agree! Maybe throw in a free wife, one rai and house too while you are at it?

Not 50 yet only 44, male, not married either.

Sorry I was out and about but now I am back.

Where can extension take place?

DO I have to go to BKK or will Samui or Phuket do?

Thanks Aya

If they do this kind of crapola in Malaysia what do they do here?

Can anyone let us in on the truth of our food supply here?

Read this article first and let me know what you know?

Aya

This article is from The Star Online

(http://thestar.com.my)

URL:

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=...&sec=nation

__________________________________________________________________________

Thursday June 10, 2004

Crackdown on livestock farmers using beta-agonist

BY FOONG PEK YEE AND JASON SUNDRAM

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government plans to crack down

on local farmers who have been using beta-agonist

– a drug listed under the poisons schedule – to

produce more marketable lean meat.

Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said beef

and pork with residues of this drug could be

harmful to human beings.

The immediate side effects would include nausea,

headache, giddiness, palpitations and insomnia,

he said, adding that it could be fatal, especially

for those with heart problems.

“Between 70% and 84% of beef and pork were

contaminated by the drug, based on surprise checks by

my ministry last year and this year,” he said.

In a bid to weed out the beta-agonist users, Dr

Chua said the Cabinet had directed the setting up

of a national joint committee comprising five

departments or agencies – pharmaceutical, food

quality control, veterinary, environment and local

authority – be set up immediately.

Similar committees would also be set up at all

states, he added.

Errant farmers will be prosecuted under various

laws of the department.

“Farmers must realise that their irresponsible

way of doing business will backfire,” he told a

press conference here after attending the weekly

Cabinet meeting in Putrajaya yesterday.

Dr Chua said beta-agonist – a drug for

bronchio-dialator and used by asthmatic patients – could

only be bought based on certain criteria and

farmers had obtained them illegally.

He said the results of the ministry's spot

checks between May and June last year showed that 26

of the 37 samples, or 70.3%, were contaminated

with beta-agonist.

Selangor topped the list with 17 cases of

contamination, followed by seven in Perak and one each

in Johor and Penang.

Another spot check between July and September

last year found 43 (84.3%) of the 51 samples

contaminated – 19 samples from Selangor, 18 from Perak,

four from Malacca and two from Penang.

Dr Chua said checks at the slaughterhouse in

Shah Alam in January also found 24 of the 32

samples (75%) were contaminated – 12 samples from

Perak, eight from Malacca and four from Penang.

As an alternative for farmers to produce lean

meat, he said the Cabinet has agreed to allow the

use of Ractopamine, which is not harmful to

humans and is approved by the US Food and Drug

Administration.

In a telephone interview from Kuala Langat, pig

farmer Lim Keng Leong said lean pork could be

obtained by feeding pigs with long beans and maize.

“Pigs with between 70% and 80% lean meat will

fetch the best market value,” he said.

Lim, 38, who has about 1,000 special lean pigs

from Denmark, said the animals he imported were

“naturally quite lean” and he fed them proper food.

The Federation of Malaysian Consumer

Associations welcomed the initiatives taken by the

Government in combating the use of beta-agonist in

livestock.

Its president, Datuk Prof Hamdan Adnan, said

consumers did not complain about beta-agonist

earlier because they did not know about it.

“Because the drug causes conditions like

insomnia and worsening of heart problems, many consumers

are unaware that their condition may stem from

the usage of the drug in cows and pigs.

“Doctors are oblivious to the dangers of

beta-agonist as they tend only to treat the symptoms and

generally do not know the root cause of the

ailments suffered.

“It is about time more attention is paid to the

usage of beta-agonist in livestock,” he added.

<p>

__________________________________________________________________________

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They said I was given one before in the US (Washington).

I had plenty of funds in the bank (over 1mil), ownership of truck, health insurance, long term rental agreement.....

How do I extend this?

I would like a one year multi entry one. What will this cost and where can this be done?

Thanks, Aya