Howdy folks,
In regards to this snippet

I'm not blasting Nancy -- I commend her for her concern -- but it is
complicated and controversial and I worry that people will blow it off if
they read statements that aren't true and then discount everything.

I second the notion that for a subject this controversial
getting your basic info straight is a prerequisite for being taken
seriously.
The best and most recent book on the subject is by long time
science writer Kathleen Hart, published in 2002 called "Eating in the
Dark" which the Austin Library has a couple of copies of. I stuck a
review of it up on my site along with some of my other favorite books.
Her book is very straight forward without a lot of histrionics.
One of the interesting studies she looks at that jumped out at me was
the discovery that Bees that were feeding on genetically modified
crops were, themselves experiencing their own genetic modification,
the first interspecies jump of genetically modified code.
A larger and more metaphysical subject is the discussion within the
gene code researchers that genes act not as 'building blocks' that can
be removed and replaced but operate in a synergistic' web' making the
effects of gene insertion far more unpredictable than previously
thought.
She also talks about the economic impact that as happened so often
hits the farmer hardest. Farmers growing crops for human consumption
have found their crops unable to go to market because of 'unexpected'
cross contamination with crops engineered solely for feed leaving them
to take a loss.
She also takes a look at what is coming down the pike which is the
introduction this year or the next of geneticly modified wheat crops
which the industry is gearing up for in a preemptive fashion to
deflect protest.

On a cheerfull note, last January the FBI gave a talk to farmers
in Virginia (this was an AP report ) warning them to be suspicious of
any of their neighbors who complained about GMO crops, that they could
be potential terrorists, like those crops burners in Ireland and
England. The FBI warned them to start keeping lists of folks in the
areas opposed to GMO's. I suspect this is in anticipation of the
uproar when folks figure out it's not just corn chips they have to
worry about, but their bread.
We seem to have a historically recurring pattern here, use a
serious threat to pass draconian laws against potential enemies, and
then start categorizing anyone who disagrees with your interest as a
'potential enemy'.

Anyway, I strongly suggest "Eating in the Dark" and if your the
type who really likes to scare yourself about new genetic technology
read "The Demon in the Freezer", about what happens when we start
playing with the gene code of some of our favorite diseases.

take care,
Steve Coyle
www.austingardencenter.com