Somewhat O/T...26 Apr 2024 22:00
Apols for the somewhat O/T , but it IS the weekend.
It may be cold comfort for SRT investors, but we're not alone in being caught up in domestic Philippine politics, where this time it seems ideology, rather than financial gain, is frustrating a public good that would benefit the poor.
It concerns the recent prohibition on Golden Rice, a genetically-engineered rice that can materially reduce blindness in children caused by Vitamin A deficiency.
The case FOR is here :
hxxps://www.nnc.gov.ph/regional-offices/mindanao/region-ix-zamboanga-peninsula/5767-golden-rice-a-staple-food-with-precious-benefits
The background is here :
hxxps://geneticliteracyproject.org/2019/11/08/golden-rice-the-gmo-crop-loved-by-humanitarians-opposed-by-greenpeace/
"Note that because the two academic scientists who developed the original Golden Rice stipulated that it be made available to poor farmers for free Syngenta, or any other corporation, does not own the intellectual property in developing countries and therefore cannot charge royalties. According to IRRI (the International Rice Research Institute) the terms of the licenses in place in the Philippines and elsewhere ensure that Golden Rice varieties will cost no more than their conventional equivalents. This means that farmers will be able to save and replant Golden Rice seeds."
The benefits are clear :
.."Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is one of the most important issues in terms of global public health, according to the World Health Organization. It is a leading cause of childhood blindness in the developing world, and weakens the immune system, increasing vulnerability to illnesses such as measles, respiratory infections and diarrhea, often leading to death.
The condition affects more than 140 million pre-school children in 118 nations, and more than seven million pregnant women. UNICEF estimates that 1.15 million child deaths are precipitated by vitamin A deficiency each year..."
The recent judgment by the Court of Appeals - to put a moratorium on the use of Golden Rice- is applauded by Greenpeace in these terms
ttps://www.greenpeace.org/philippines/press/63501/greenpeace-statement-on-peoples-win-against-genetically-modified-rice/
.."We reiterate our stance: the involved companies and agencies have yet to show concrete evidence that these crops would be in the best interest of Filipinos, our environment, and our agricultural sector..."
It's not quite clear who benefits from this verdict - apart from being a 'win' for Greenpeace's worldview, which seems to be that 'the environment' matters more than the people (witness its IMO equally irrational stance against nuclear energy, even more bizarre considering its potential as a transition contributor to 'net zero').
This is all sadly redolent of the apocryphal comment after the My Lai massacre in VietNam in 1968
'In order to save them [Ed.: from Communism] we had to kill them'.
Shame on you, Greenpeace!
Rant over.