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Letter I received from Bill Neslon on the FDA

Dear xxx,

Thank you for contacting me regarding the ongoing Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process for genetically engineered salmon. I voted for Senator Murkowski's amendment on May 24 that would have prohibited the FDA from approving genetically engineered fish unless the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also approved.

In September 2010, a group of senators sent a letter to President Obama asking him to halt all the proceedings at the FDA on this issue. Among the concerns they cited were the possible public health consequences of marketing this fish for human consumption, the lack of transparency in the FDA's review process, and the environmental impact of large-scale farming of genetically engineered fish. On January 31 of this year, Senator Begich introduced S. 230, which would ban genetically engineered salmon altogether.

I understand these concerns and I am monitoring this situation closely. Although genetic engineering has the potential to enable us to produce more food at a lower cost, policy makers must fully understand and inform the public on the risks of these foods before allowing them into the marketplace. Regardless of whether this fish ever ends up on dinner tables in America, consumers have a right to know what they are eating and that it is safe. I will keep your views in mind should any legislation on this issue come before the Senate.

I appreciate your communication on this important issue. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future.

Sincerely,
Bill Nelson

Obligatory Simpson's reference:

Wouldn't it be easier and cheaper just to breed the salmon in tanks and then release them into the "wild" to grow up? And do the same with other fish? I mean won't the salmon think of wherever you released them from as their home to return to for breeding, making them easy enough to catch later?

Another genetic experiment on the US population.

And as usual 20 to 30 years from now when all of us result in some sort of health problem from eating these GMO's they'll finally tell us it was bad. But for those 20 to 30 years we'll be making fantastic money for GMO industry which doesn't even want their genetically modified garbage labeled.

Write a letter to your senator asking them to deal with this, at least have them add GMO labels to these mutants.

FortWayne says

Write a letter to your senator asking them to deal with this, at least have them add GMO labels to these mutants.

Can you read, I did.

121212 says

FortWayne says

Write a letter to your senator asking them to deal with this, at least have them add GMO labels to these mutants.

Can you read, I did.

I did.

zzyzzx says

Wouldn't it be easier and cheaper just to breed the salmon in tanks and then release them into the "wild" to grow up? And do the same with other fish? I mean won't the salmon think of wherever you released them from as their home to return to for breeding, making them easy enough to catch later?

Salmon running up the river to breed aren't good for eating. They stop feeding and get all mushy. If you get them right at the mouth they are ok, but the ones from the open ocean are better.

I know they do the pen raise and release thing with steelhead on the north west coast and probably salmon somewhere, but it's more of a conservation thing than agriculture. Steelhead don't die after breeding so they hold up better than salmon.

donjumpsuit says

We should be supporting sustainable agriculture, and farming of both livestock and fish. GMO's are a big part of sustainability and an agronomic society were we don't depend on nature to provide 100% of our complex needs, but manipulate nature to ensure the needs of the entire population without stripping the land we live on bare.

I don't disagree with you in principle, but the farming of salmon and other carnivorous fish is not sustainable. Yes, people don't want to eat the herring that is fed on the farm, but the wild populations of fish sure do! The harvest of prey fish to support farming is partially responsible for the depletion of wild stocks.

People should stick to farming herbivorous species like tilapia or basa. They can be fed vegetable meal grown in a sustainable manner. Oysters, scallops, and other filter feeding shellfish are good too. It's cheaper, more efficient, and more environmentally friendly.

If we stop overfishing the oceans wild populations of salmon, tuna etc. will recover and we can still enjoy them, just not all the time. I love wild salmon but have no problem limiting it to a once a month thing.

Tilapia IS tasty.

How about feeding tilapia to the salmon?

New Renter says

How about feeding tilapia to the salmon?

No it's corn as usual!

If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding! How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?!

New Renter says

How about feeding tilapia to the salmon?

I drove around the Salton Sea last summer. It looked just as it does in these pictures:

http://www.ilxor.com/ILX/ThreadSelectedControllerServlet?boardid=40&threadid=33067&bookmarkedmessageid=34

I'm not so fond of tilapia anymore.

just_passing_through says

New Renter says

How about feeding tilapia to the salmon?

I drove around the Salton Sea last summer. It looked just as it does in these pictures:

http://www.ilxor.com/ILX/ThreadSelectedControllerServlet?boardid=40&threadid=33067&bookmarkedmessageid=34

I'm not so fond of tilapia anymore.

You can always farm them yourself:
http://www.tilapiafarmingathome.com/Pages/default.aspx

I've been to the Salton Sea area as well. Not my cup of tea.

Zlxr says

If this happens will they decide to feed the fish dead bodies of humans and animals that they don't want to bury? It's in another country - and if the people decide not to like us - will they even care and how will we know?

So just how many degrees of freedom do you WANT from dead bodies? Something has to eat them (either as food or fertilizer). Would you feel more comfortable eating something that ate something that ate a human corpse?

Human ash scattered at sea -> plankton -> small fish -> predator fish -> your plate.

Hey - I only put the idea out there. It's a personal preference thing.

I'm fine with ashes - at least they are more or less clean. But even with ashes you would think that someone could mine the nutrients and heavy metals etc. so you could use them to the best advantage.

We've already got the Mad Cow problem from feeding animal flesh to other animals. Did we not learn anything from this?

Another issue I forgot to mention is that they (AquaBounty) only tested a few fish. They are not supplying all of the info they know. The question is why?

But the very biggest issue is that what the U.S. does with this first GMO animal - is setting a precedent for us and for the whole world for future GMO animals.

Do we really want to set the rules so low that anything goes?

Hey Xlxr,

Here is something else you might find of interest:

http://frogmom.com/category/farmsandorchards/

This blog has some nice descriptions of farms and orchards to visit around the SFBA.

Thanks New Renter.

By the way - I started talking about finding someone with fruit to spare and I think I will have a source for free persimmons and apricots. We always had persimmons growing up - you just have to get used to the fact that they look like they're almost ready for the garbage can when they are ripe and ready to eat.

Just like if you want to make good banana bread you need to use overripe bananas.

If any of you can find sweet fruit - the way it used to be - try freezing sections and eating them instead of popsicles. We used to do that with orange and peach slices and with berries.

Or - my Mom would cut up fruit and slightly cook it and add cinnamon and that's what we got on our pancakes and french toast (instead of syrup).

I grew up with nice hot cooked breakfasts - and it's still the way to go. The only other good substitute is a really good smoothie with fruit, protein and hopefully a carrot or something vegetable. But I don't use soy anymore.

One possible way to deal with not such sweet fruit would be to cut them up and dip them in lemon or lime juice mixed with a little Stevia. The lemon and lime keep them from turning brown and hopefully stevia will be better than real sugar.

It's true that fruit isn't like it used to be - but it's also true that the more sugar you have in your diet - the more sour fruits and vegetables will taste.

Your welcome.

I had a coworker who I would give surplus Haychia persimmons to. He would then slice them up and dry them to make a nice treat. My son LOVED these. Of course I would often find his stashes about the house. Still drying is a great way to preserve persimmons and apricots as neither of these keep well.

It should also not be too hard to find sources of free apples. You are very close to Gravenstein apple country. Even in SSJ these trees are common and when they produce they REALLY produce. I also see Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, Newtown Pippin, and crabs around as well. I've had friends give me grocery bags full of apples that they had no idea what to do with but felt guilty at the idea of just throwing good food away.

Zlxr says

Do your own research - but the last 3 of these are websites I use for dealing with my issues.

http://www.consumerhealth.org/articles/display.cfm?ID=19990303202939

From your link:

" We are in the period of the Great Tribulation as predicted in the book of Revelation, the Hopi prophecies of the American Indians, Edgar Cayce and Nostradamus. The book of Revelation says that approximately one third of the earth's population will be wiped out during the Great Tribulation by famine, beasts, pestilence and plagues. We have entered very clearly into the times of the great plagues. "

I get it now. You're one of those conspiracy nuts.

Homeboy says

Zlxr says

and since the nature of things is to evolve and reproduce and survive - how do the scientists know that what they genetically modify will stay modified the way they intended?

I think you watch too many science fiction movies.

That is actually a huge, valid concern and the reason a lot of countries have categorically banned GMOs. If they can keep the Salmon farmed and confined and slap a label on it, you could call this an almost side-effect free experiment. With plants confinement being close to impossible, GMO produce/fruits/crop become a gigantic issue.

mell says

That is actually a huge, valid concern and the reason a lot of countries have categorically banned GMOs. If they can keep the Salmon farmed and confined and slap a label on it, you could call this an almost side-effect free experiment. With plants confinement being close to impossible, GMO produce/fruits/crop become a gigantic issue.

I think you misread what he wrote. You're talking about confinement of GMOs; he was talking about the GMOs themselves, what? mutating into evil monsters or something?

Yes it's true - I believe there's a conspiracy.

If Doctors won't or can't honor the hippocratic oath. And if the Health Care we pay for can decide when and how much care we can or cannot have - and refuse to cover certain illnesses -- then there's some kind of a conspiracy going on.

Illness is Illness. Sometimes all that patented medicine is worse than the illnesses. When they start firing Nurses for refusing vaccines and making laws to "make sure our food is safe" and the allow filthy fish farming - I think the FDA has lost their credibility.

What they care about is the bank account of large corporations.

I hate to use the term conspiracy but I do have to question a system which allows drugs like statins which have terrible side effects for questionable benefit yet deny marijuana which has a laundry list of benefits with few side effects.

New Renter says

I hate to use the term conspiracy but I do have to question a system which allows drugs like statins which have terrible side effects for questionable benefit yet deny marijuana which has a laundry list of benefits with few side effects.

Not what I'm talking about. Read Zlxr's last post and consider if you really want to align yourself with him. Also, look at those websites he gets his information from. Do you really think the chickenpox vaccine caused the herpes virus? C'mon, that's just patent nonsense.

Zlxr says

I took Lipitor for awhile and got really sick. My Doctor was basically a very good and caring Doctor and yet this doctor was practically screaming at me that if I didn't keep taking it that I would die. That it was better for me to be sick than to die. Well - I decided not to agree with the doctor. I also talked to a Pharmacist who told me that based on my symptoms I had no business taking that drug. So I quit taking Lipitor. It's been over 20 years and I'm not dead yet. Statins may work for some people - but they always make me feel bad. It's a choice I made and who knows maybe my choice will shorten my life and maybe it won't. But I certainly didn't die as quickly as they said I would. I haven't had a heart attack or a stroke yet.

So excuse me if I don't buy into all the crap we are being told. Maybe one day you'll live long enough to figure that out.

This might be of interest to you:

https://www.statineffects.com/info/

Of course there is always Chelation Therapy which they would have you believe is extremely dangerous. I didn't have any problems whatsoever.

And one could look into the Enzymes Serrapeptase and Nattokinase.

And since the first thing most doctors will do if you have a stroke or a heart attack is to give you a shot of magnesium --- you would think that they could/would have a lab test to make sure that people with a risk of strokes or heart attacks have enough magnesium in their bodies and in the proper ratio to the other minerals.

You would think.

Zlxr says

And since the first thing most doctors will do if you have a stroke or a
heart attack is to give you a shot of magnesium --- you would think that they
could/would have a lab test to make sure that people with a risk of strokes or
heart attacks have enough magnesium in their bodies and in the proper ratio to
the other minerals.

You would think.

This one is mysterious to me, too. I have been eating high-magnesium foods for many years now as I have a family history of hypertension. The first week of my changed diet, my blood pressure went from average of 139/85 to average of 114/77. I was a believer after that.

Zlxr says

Homeboy - you sure like to stretch things.

Bullshit. I'm repeating EXACTLY what you are churning out here. It's right there on the page for everyone to see.

Zlxr says

When AIDS first came out it was considered a Gay Disease and very little was done about it until it started affecting children etc. However, TB was considered contagious and they practically climb in your window to make sure you get treated.

What on earth are you talking about? There IS NO vaccination for AIDS. If there was one, don't you think we would use it? TB vaccinations have changed what was once a widespread cause of death to a relatively rare disease. If there were a cure for AIDS, they would definitely be "climbing in your window" to treat people.

Philistine says

This one is mysterious to me, too. I have been eating high-magnesium foods for many years now as I have a family history of hypertension. The first week of my changed diet, my blood pressure went from average of 139/85 to average of 114/77. I was a believer after that.

Can you give more details on this? Of course I was told to cut down on salt, but I haven't heard the magnesium thing.

Homeboy says

Can you give more details on this? Of course I was told to cut down on salt, but I haven't heard the magnesium thing.

Well, start with reading about what they call the "DASH diet", which was pioneered for reducing blood pressure. I don't really follow it, per se, but I applied its principles of increasing foods with potassium, magnesium, calcium, and fiber, and reducing fat, and incorporated that into my cooking and general eating habits. I now basically eat something similar to the so-called Mediterranean diet (except for the occasional cannoli bender or gin martini binge).

Zlxr says

Homeboy - there never was and never will be a vaccine that cures everything. That's the part you are missing and if you wait long enough for a vaccine you'll die first.

What are you talking about? I was the one who told YOU that there was no vaccine for AIDS. What your little conspiracy theory is missing is that the reason TB is treated differently than AIDS is because one has a vaccine and the other DOESN'T.

I've heard this "vaccines are evil" nonsense many times from various kooks. There is no science behind this view. It has been proven over and over. Vaccines have been very important in controlling diseases that used to cause countless deaths. To believe otherwise is just silly.

OF COURSE there's not a vaccine that "cures everything". What kind of strawman is that? Nobody ever said there was.

By the way, vaccines do not cure diseases; they PREVENT them. Once you have a disease, it is too late to be vaccinated. You seem to lack even this basic understanding of what a vaccine is. Maybe if you understood them, you wouldn't be so fearful.

The rest of your conspiracy rant is much too long for me to bother reading, sorry.Zlxr says

All I can say - is good luck. But instead of trashing what I have to say - read read read not just what I say - but what other people and other doctors have to say. We are all different and there are many approaches to take.

I think the problem is that YOU are reading the wrong things. I glanced at that website you were touting, and it's really nonsense. It really doesn't bother you that the first thing they say is, "We are in the period of tribulation predicted in Revelations"? Does that really sound like someone who is thinking scientifically? Without science, people would still be dying from syphilis, or from infections due to simple cuts, or from "doctors" practicing bloodletting. I just don't get why some people want to throw science out the window. Just because something is "alternative" does not mean it is automatically right. Playing around with untested "alternative" remedies can be dangerous. Don't do stuff to your body just because you read it on some kooky conspiracy website. Please. I hope you will be o.k.

Homeboy says

By the way, vaccines do not cure diseases; they PREVENT them. Once you have a disease, it is too late to be vaccinated.

That is a too common misunderstanding. Some vaccines do work retroactively, for example smallpox was eradicated by a retroactive vaccine.

Retroactive vaccine candidates exist for HIV also, but cannot get NIH funding. The drug companies are not interested in a vaccine. They prefer Obamacare, which enables them to make billion$ annually selling daily pills.

curious2 says

That is a too common misunderstanding. Some vaccines do work retroactively, for example smallpox was eradicated by a retroactive vaccine.

Retroactive vaccine candidates exist for HIV also, but cannot get NIH funding. The drug companies are not interested in a vaccine. They prefer Obamacare, which enables them to make billion$ annually selling daily pills.

Bullshit.

"smallpox was globally eradicated by 1980...smallpox vaccine can work in individuals who are already infected: those who receive the vaccine within 3 days of infection usually do not become infectious and subsequently recover with long-term immunity, those who receive the vaccine 4–7 days post-exposure experience less severe symptoms but will be as infectious as an unvaccinated person...."

Smallpox is only one example of a retroactive vaccine, there are others. For anyone who cares about facts, yes, some vaccines do work retroactively. For Homeboy, please feel free to Ignore me; your comments are not worth quoting, and I'm long past trying to explain anything to you.

curious2 says

"smallpox was globally eradicated by 1980...smallpox vaccine can work in individuals who are already infected: those who receive the vaccine within 3 days of infection usually do not become infectious and subsequently recover with long-term immunity, those who receive the vaccine 4–7 days post-exposure experience less severe symptoms but will be as infectious as an unvaccinated person...."

Smallpox is only one example of a retroactive vaccine, there are others. For anyone who cares about facts, yes, some vaccines do work retroactively. For Homeboy, please feel free to Ignore me; your comments are not worth quoting, and I'm long past trying to explain anything to you.

Nice how you left out the rest of the paragraph:

"those who receive the vaccine more than 7 days post-exposure gain no benefit "

Vaccines do not cure diseases. They prevent them. If it cured a disease, it would be called a cure, not a vaccine. I'm not sure what the point of your little nitpick is; that doesn't change the understanding of the difference between a vaccine and a cure. If, as you seem to think, they are the same thing, then why does the word vaccine even exist? You seem angry. I wonder if this is more about a personal vendetta for you than it is about the truth.