There are some things that really just make me mad. Off the top of my head things like no sleep, hunger and Monsanto really tick me off. However I just experienced something that really, really ticked me off”: An 8th grade workbook that has lies about GMO’s in a homophone exercise.
My friend who has done tons of work regarding GMO’s and was heavily influential in the work of Proposition 37 (in my hometown the San Francisco Bay Area), tagged me in a photo of a scanned document a friend of hers sent about a month ago. The document is a photo of a workbook page that an 8th grader received and the example they use for the exercise has complete LIES about GMO’s in it . The 8th grader resides in a midwestern state and the location of state has been kept confidential to ensure the safety of the student and family.
If you are shocked as much as I am, I want to say that yes, this is FOR REAL.
As you can see from the photo, this is a homophone exercise so there are obvious misspells. The students are supposed to correct the homophones then create sentences that explain the details in the sentences provided. It’s pretty irritating to me that they chose to use GMO’s and biotechnology as the main idea in this exercise. It’s even more irritating that the title of it is “Pros and Cons of Genetically Modified Organisms” and there are absolutely NO cons. Um, can someone say indirect brainwashing!?
What’s even worse is the exercise begins by stating that GMO’s are necessary to “feed the world.” Umm, I’m sorry but the world is still hungry and GMO’s have been on the market since 1996. I would love for someone to explain why they are not already solving world hunger? Because HELLO, food shortage is NOT the problem my friends! In the United States alone we waste more than 40% of our food per year — it either rots or gets tossed out.
In the words of British writer George Monibot:
The world has a surplus of food, but still people go hungry. They go hungry because they cannot afford to buy it. They cannot afford to buy it because the sources of wealth and the means of production have been captured and in some cases monopolized by landowners and corporations. The purpose of the biotech industry is to capture and monopolize the sources of wealth and the means of production …
GM technology permits companies to ensure that everything we eat is owned by them. They can patent the seeds and the processes which give rise to them. They can make sure that crops can’t be grown without their patented chemicals. They can prevent seeds from reproducing themselves. By buying up competing seed companies and closing them down, they can capture the food market, the biggest and most diverse market of all.
No one in her right mind would welcome this, so the corporations must persuade us to focus on something else … We are told that … by refusing to eat GM products, we are threatening the developing world with starvation, an argument that is, shall we say, imaginative … (source)
Oh, and one more thing to add in argument to the statement in the last part of the exercise that talks about rice… Golden rice does not work! The form of Vitamin A found in golden rice is not easily absorbed, especially by malnourished people. They figured an 11-year-old boy would have to eat 27 bowls of golden rice a day in order to satisfy his minimum requirement for the vitamin.
Since the time my friend tagged me in the photo a little more than a month ago, many people have complained to the manufacturer of the workbook that they are editing the workbook and doing a re-print with updated info. THIS is the company’s website and THIS is their Facebook page (if you do feel so inclined to complain a little).
How would you feel if your child came home and had something like this in their workbook? Or have you already experienced this before?
Support Naturally Loriel
'8th Grade Workbook Has Lies About GMOs In It' has 4 comments
October 12, 2013 @ 7:29 am Beverly Phillips
Not to mention all the misspellings
October 12, 2013 @ 7:17 pm christine
This is terrible! Not really surprising, but terrible. And, sadly, this is all most people seem to know about GMOs… they’re gonna save the world, right?
… sigh …
I’m just waiting for the “nutrition” unit my son (he’s in 4th) is going to do later this year! Hopefully his teacher is well-informed (or at least open-minded!) because my son really knows his stuff and won’t be letting her get away with any GMOs are good for you and butter is bad for you nonsense!
October 18, 2013 @ 11:53 pm Healthy Notions, LLC
Wow! How come I am not surprised?? Hopefully, this will be a thing of the past as the U.S. people begin to open their eyes to the foods of Monsanto. Keep up the good work ~ !!
October 22, 2013 @ 1:59 pm Laura
I don’t have a problem with this exercise. It’s only part of the story. Here’s the answers kids…
The pros and cons of GM Foods
GM foods have the potential to solve many of the world’s hunger and environmental problems. The foods come from organisms that have purposefully altered DNA for a variety of reasons. Some plants have been made more draught resistant which means life or death in some parts of the world.
Since they’re toxic, that would mean more death and sterility, so that there will be a lot less hungry people and animals affected by the draught.
Other plants are more pest resistant so that fewer chemical pesticide applications are necessary. The plants are toxic chemicals, so any pests eating them will get sick.
By inserting an antifreeze gene from fish into potatoes, scientist have created potatoes that can withstand colder temperatures. Unfortunately, most people’s bodies do not recognize the new fish potatoes as food and they mount allergic reactions.
And a form of rice, a main diet staple for millions, has been made more nutrient rich with added Vitamin A to support vision and overall health.
However, the Vitamin A is poorly absorbed and the rice so nutrient poor and toxic, it ends up causing sickness, disease and more death, but a lot of companies will profit.