Please, dear blog-readers, accept my apologies that I don’t have the time right now to sufficiently write my own thoughts on the matter of corporate control and manipulation of our food supply. However, this 10-minute video does a fair job of introducing the issues surrounding GMO (genetically modified) foods and the effects on the world wide food supply, as well as the implications for our future. Please take the time to watch.
The fact is that genetically modified foods are so prevalent in the United States that if you randomly pick an item off your grocery store’s shelves, you have a 75 percent chance of picking a food with GM ingredients. This is because at least seven out of every 10 items have been genetically modified.
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Here are four simple steps to decrease your consumption of GM foods as much as possible:
* Reduce or eliminate processed foods in your diet. The fact that 75 percent of processed foods contain GM ingredients is only one of the many reasons to stick to a whole foods diet.
* Read produce and food labels. Conventionally raised soybeans and corn make up the largest portion of genetically modified crops. Ingredients made from these foods include high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), corn flour and meal, dextrin, starch, soy sauce, margarine, and tofu.
* Buy organic produce. By definition, food that is certified organic must be free from all GM organisms, produced without artificial pesticides and fertilizers and from an animal reared without the routine use of antibiotics, growth promoters or other drugs. Additionally, grass-fed beef will not have been fed GM corn feed.
* Look at produce stickers. The PLU code on stickers for conventionally grown fruit consists of four numbers, organically grown fruit has five numbers prefaced by the number nine, and GM fruit has five numbers prefaced by the number eight.
Some additional tidbits:
There are no labeling requirements for Genetically Modified food products.
There have been no studies done on the effects of GMO foodstuffs on humans.
Approximately (probably more) 7/10 of the food items on our grocery shelves have been genetically modified or contain genetically modified ingredients
Even the supporters of GMO foods are concerned with the long-term containment of these modified genes and are concerned about tainting the food supply.
Corn and Soybeans are the largest percent of genetically modified foods on the market today
Whatever your immediate reaction to this issue may be, remember to always evaluate everything critically and to do some research (preferably outside of the mainstream media bias). Dare to think outside of the prescribed box (ie: for yourself, analytically) and ask the questions about who the issue/topic is truly benefiting and toward what end… and don’t be afraid to make the connections that those others seeking power and control their own benefit (& generally at the expense of others) would prefer you simply not see.
Try researching Montsano, Morgellon’s Disease, GMO (genetically modified food), and other links for an assortment of additional information on this topic. Then consider buying local organic food and writing letters to the politicians objecting to the practice of genetically modifying our food, and not even giving us an informed choice about whether or not to consume it.
Caffeine… it’s found in coffee, in soda, in chocolate, in tea, even in pharmaceuticals… For humans, it’s a nervous-system stimulant. In the plants where it’s found naturally, it serves as a natural pesticide. Caffeine has a long history, through various cultures and eras, and it’s one of the most addictive, culturally-acceptable substances we have on the planet.
And I’ve just kicked the caffeine habit. Can I say that getting over this habit -this attachment, this addiction- was easy? No, but because of the gradual decrease in consumption over the course of a week or so, a couple of days was spent in a semi-haze with a come-and-go headache and a bit of lethargy. Debilitating, yes. Pleasant, no. But I was (largely) functional, and found this option to be much better than prior experiences with an utterly paralyzing 3-day headache from “cold turkey” caffeine withdrawal.
So why do this? Medical findings on the effects of regular caffeine consumption vary; There are those studies that claim benefits whereas others note areas of concern for one’s health. But let’s face it - coffee is a huge industry on the world scale, and even if there was outstanding evidence of it doing more harm than good to those who consume such a substance, few people are going to be anxious -or able- to reveal such findings against such an established industry. There is simply too much money and too much control of various populations at stake to shake this industry.
So, again… why do this? Well, as part of my spiritual practice, having conscious control over my mind, body and emotions is important. Caffeine addiction was getting in the way of personal mindfulness on a physical level. So it was time for it to go… and time to reclaim another part of my being, my health, my personal choices. I am now a little freer from the mechanisms of the industrial world than I was a week ago … and it feels good.
We are all influenced, to some degree or another, by each other, our cultures and societies, by the press and the media and governments and the modes of recreation (most notably television and movies) in which we participate. But we must break out of the influences thrust upon us and become the critical thinkers we are really meant to be. We must think -really and truly think- about the messages our news and media are giving us and those things put before us which serve to condition us into thinking and feeling a certain way or to believe a certain “party line”. We must listen to our hearts, think with our heads, and evaluate the legitimacy of each thing for ourselves, as objectively and critically as possible. Read the rest of this entry »
I can not help but to laugh at myself and at how long it has taken to get these five principles posted! I was thinking of giving a brief explanation of Reiki, adding some personal experiences as a healer, maybe a little background on Reiki, or posting the principles as a nice graphic… but some days, it’s more important just to get the essence of a thing accomplished than to let one’s own ego and humanity obsess over the details. Like with Reiki itself, this is not about “me”, it is about Reiki itself. There is a blessing in here somewhere for at least one of you! More on Reiki will be posted another time. These principles can certainly stand on their own! Enjoy.
Namaste, laughing at myself and putting ego back where it belongs!
Most of us have ailments or physical complaints that seem to sneak up on us once in a while. Sometimes they are nothing more than a seasonal cold or allergy, sometimes it’s a broken bone, or sometimes it may be something even more severe. It’s part of being in the physical world… Isn’t it?
As mentioned in a prior post, I’ve recently returned to a vegetarian diet after taking a couple years “off”. And yes, I spent a few days last week amid the regular chaos of Life scrambling around in the cupboard looking for something to eat and not coming up with much that was terribly appetizing (edible? perhaps. Appetizing? - *blech*). But now, despite a little whining about it (yes, even the Monkey succumbs once in a while), Vegetarian Life is good! *grin* I’ve gone shopping and found some good recipes - old favorites and some new things that sound really, really good! I’m excited, and a bit surprised to discover that Vegan may actually be more the way to go than the old ovo-lacto diet variety of vegetarianism practiced a few years ago.
Yes I’ve gone back to a vegetarian diet (ovo-lacto, not vegan or anything resembling it) and … well, I’m a bad vegetarian. Not because I crave meat or even want the stuff, but because I don’t have the patience (or often the time) to find recipes and go shopping (all over town, for various ingredients) before I even attempt to cook for myself! My creativity goes to other outlets. Not cooking. Certainly not on a daily basis. That, combined with the fact that it’s been a few years since I had to contend with regular vegetarian cooking is… well, it’s working against me! Yikes!
For a good part of the day, I’ve been thinking of topics about which to write and reviewing the rather extensive list of things that are currently half-written, trying to determine whether (and how) to finish any of them to post… and for some reason, none of them seem appropriate. So this is a bit of an experiment (yes, another one) -a blog entry without any particular concept or idea in mind as I start typing. I’ll post it when it seems “done” and we’ll just have to see what happens!
