The Dark Act (H.R. 4432) A Travesty of Justice

 When there is a hearing in the House of Representatives, shouldn’t the American people be represented? On December 10, 2014, H.R. 4432 (The Dark Act) was heard in Washington. This hearing was to discuss the issue of GMO labelling and if passed would preempt any State labelling–in essence an attempt to keep you from knowing what is in your food. Many travelled from all over the country to attend the hearing, including bus loads of American citizens sponsored by the Organic Consumers Association. Zen Honeycutt from Moms Across America travelled from California to Washington to attend the hearing. We spoke with Zen about what transpired that day in Washington.

Zen arrived early that day to make sure she would get a place in line for the hearing. They would allow 90 citizens into the hearing. When she arrived, she was surprised to see so many in line ahead of her. The people standing in line were acting bored, on their cell-phones, and appeared to be blazay about being there. What she learned was that many of these people in line were paid to be there–literally –to stand in line so that the people (concerned American citizens) who really wanted to attend the hearing could not get in. Is this justice?

What transpired during the hearing, which was streamed live and many had to watch on their cell phones, was indeed a travesty of justice. This one-sided debate went on for nearly three hours. The FDA’s representative, Michael Landa, was questioned by several Representatives about the safety of GMOs. At one point, Representative George Butterfield from North Carolina asked Mr. Landa “Is there a scintilla of evidence that would suggest that these foods are unsafe?” Mr. Landa responded “Not to our knowledge, No.” As I sat and watched this on my computer, I was not only outraged but said to myself

“Do we not have libel laws in this country anymore?”

I personally, as an American citizen, could send him over 100 studies and I know there are many more. Zen stated that she knew of over 1500 studies that showed that GMOs are not safe for human consumption.

 After the questioning of Mr. Landa, there was a panel of 5 witnesses questioned, including Scott Faber from the Environmental Working Group (EWG). For a few minutes I thought there was hope. Then, Congressmen Pompeo of Kansas (who sponsored H.R. 4432) asked this panel of 5 if they thought that GMO foods were as safe as their counterpart food. He was requesting a yes or no answer. He got a resounding “Yes” from every one of the panel members–including Scott Faber of the EWG.

 

While speaking with Zen today about this hearing and the injustice of it all, I was truly inspired by her passion to continue educating people about the dangers of GMOs and Glyphosate (RoundUp) and what this chemical-delivery system is doing to the health of so many Americans and especially the children. Her organization, Moms Across America, is just one of the many NGOs who will continue fighting for food integrity and will continue educating people so that they can know to choose organic for the health of their families. She spoke about the need for each and every one of us to recognize that we have the power to demand something different. She challenged everyone listening to the show to write their representative a letter about the dangers of GMOs. Moms Across America’s website has a lot of information, including testimonials from over 1,000 moms with their stories about how switching to organic has changed their health and the health of their children. One in every two children in this country has some form of chronic disease, whether it be autism, allergies, Crohn’s disease, diabetes, asthma and many others. Zen’s passion for helping ones know what is in their food and assisting them to make a different choice to choose organic is contagious. She is highly educated about GMOs and Glyphosate and is an inspiration to me and to many.

Please listen to this extremely important interview with Zen Honeycutt so you can understand what we are up against in our government. Listen so that you can know what you can do personally to take stand against our chemical-laden food system. Together we can make a difference. Click on the link at the bottom of the page to hear the full interview:

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5 Comments

  1. A visit to EWG’s website revealed no way to contact via email anyone. Phone numbers were found only for general questions, with instructions to leave a message. It seems to me that EWG has been infiltrated by at least one evil one in disguise. Any ideas who is truly on our side at EWG? How can we contact such a person? Maybe EWG doesn’t want a written email record of any discussion, especially about GMO labeling. I used to donate to EWG, but now no more. Food Integrity Now is a better bet. Thank you.

  2. These are Scott Faber’s exact words for the testimony that day. “We do not oppose… genetically modified food ingredients. We think there are many promising applications of genetically modified food ingredients… I am optimistic that the promises that were made by the providers of this technology will ultimately be realized…that we will have traits that produce more nutritious food that will see significant yield…” (see the 2h29m05s mark on video of the hearing attached) http://energycommerce.house.gov/hearing/examining-fdas-role-regulation-genetically-modified-food-ingredients#video

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