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#1
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DDT or NO DDT?
This may be off topic but considering the chemical vs organic
arguement, I think it should be included here. A google of DDT and death will result in articles such as http://info-pollution.com/moreddt.htm I think we can have an interesting discussion after reading several of those articles. Is DDT more harmful than useful? |
#2
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DDT or NO DDT?
"James" wrote in message oups.com... This may be off topic but considering the chemical vs organic arguement, I think it should be included here. A google of DDT and death will result in articles such as http://info-pollution.com/moreddt.htm I think we can have an interesting discussion after reading several of those articles. Is DDT more harmful than useful? More harmful, search for researches and you will see that there this dilema is non sense |
#3
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DDT or NO DDT?
James wrote:
This may be off topic but considering the chemical vs organic arguement, I think it should be included here. A google of DDT and death will result in articles such as http://info-pollution.com/moreddt.htm I think we can have an interesting discussion after reading several of those articles. Is DDT more harmful than useful? DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. If they could beat malaria, Africa could join the 20th century -- or maybe even the 21st. g DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. Best regards, Bob |
#4
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DDT or NO DDT?
zxcvbob wrote:
James wrote: Is DDT more harmful than useful? DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. If they could beat malaria, Africa could join the 20th century -- or maybe even the 21st. g There was an article in either Discovery or Scientific American a couple of months ago about malaria. One of its points is the harmfullness of DDT is from the large quantities used in agriculture. Much smaller amounts would need to be used against malaria carrying mosquito so the amount of problem generated would be much smaller than the amount of benefit generated. DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. So long as that success doesn't tempt massive use in agriculture. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. |
#5
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DDT or NO DDT?
On Sun, 12 Mar 2006 17:18:20 -0600, zxcvbob
wrote: DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. Well, that's just silly. AIDS is the biggest health problem in Africa today, but there are plenty of others, even when you just consider parasites. River blindness, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, and schistosomiasis are just a few I can think of off the top of my head. The political and social issues would take days to cover, but they're certainly germane to any discussion on the problems that most of Africa third world. If they could beat malaria, Africa could join the 20th century -- or maybe even the 21st. g I hate to sound like a stuck record, but everyone keeps glossing over the whole resistance factor. There were already some 20 or so species of mosquitoes that were resistant to DDT by the time the ban went into effect in the 70's. There were documented cases of species of resistant house flies, too. If we went back to using DDT today, there would be lots of areas in Africa that it wouldn't work, and those areas would rapidly increase; so there's already a need to find other tools in the fight against malaria. DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. Not all malarial mosquitoes rest on the inside wall of the house, though, some go outside before resting. shrug It's not a simple problem. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. I can certainly agree with that. Penelope -- "Maybe you'd like to ask the Wizard for a heart." "ElissaAnn" |
#6
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DDT or NO DDT?
"zxcvbob" wrote in message ... James wrote: This may be off topic but considering the chemical vs organic arguement, I think it should be included here. A google of DDT and death will result in articles such as http://info-pollution.com/moreddt.htm I think we can have an interesting discussion after reading several of those articles. Is DDT more harmful than useful? DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. If they could beat malaria, Africa could join the 20th century -- or maybe even the 21st. g DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. Best regards, Bob DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes??? where are you living, it causes defects at unborned child at pregnant women at least, better think how to with draining the swamps, making local enviroment non suitable for mosquitos or something else, bann the DDT. |
#7
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DDT or NO DDT?
Powerless Agronomist wrote:
"zxcvbob" wrote in message ... James wrote: This may be off topic but considering the chemical vs organic arguement, I think it should be included here. A google of DDT and death will result in articles such as http://info-pollution.com/moreddt.htm I think we can have an interesting discussion after reading several of those articles. Is DDT more harmful than useful? DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. If they could beat malaria, Africa could join the 20th century -- or maybe even the 21st. g DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. Best regards, Bob DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes??? where are you living, it causes defects at unborned child at pregnant women at least, better think how to with draining the swamps, making local enviroment non suitable for mosquitos or something else, bann the DDT. How many salamanders and rare bog plants are you going to doom to extinction by draining the swamps? There are no perfect solutions. The DDT will lose its effectiveness eventually; that's one of the reasons to restrict its use just to malaria control. How did we get onto this topic anyway? Oh yeah, James came in here tossing grenades about just to stir up trouble. Bob |
#8
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DDT or NO DDT?
Hello Penelope & all;
"Penelope Periwinkle" wrote in message ... On Sun, 12 Mar 2006 17:18:20 -0600, zxcvbob wrote: DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. Well, that's just silly. AIDS is the biggest health problem in Africa today, but there are plenty of others, even when you just consider Possibly true (I haven't checked the numbers, so I'll take your word for it). But absent a "cure" the only preventative we have for AIDS today, is abstinence. And, maybe it's just me...but that 'self-administered' preventative doesn't seem to be working real well... We have a "cure" for Malaria--and a preventative as well. While it may offend the sensibilities of those ostensibly concerned with critters, it's been shown to really, Really, REALLY help those that can benefit from it--the children of sub-Saharan Africa come to mind. All of the factual, in-depth, long-term studies that I've seen on DDT, have shown it to be no threat to us or our wildlife (except those living in a chitin skin). parasites. River blindness, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, and schistosomiasis are just a few I can think of off the top of my head. Yep. All bad. All need some attention. But I'd submit that it's easier to deal with them when you're not swatting at ookinete infested mosquitoes... The political and social issues would take days to cover, but they're certainly germane to any discussion on the problems that most of Africa third world. Indeed they are. .... I hate to sound like a stuck record, but everyone keeps glossing over the whole resistance factor. There were already some 20 or so species of mosquitoes that were resistant to DDT by the time the ban went into effect in the 70's. There were documented cases of species of resistant house flies, too. So you're saying that for the decade or two that it _might_ take for some of those mosquitoes to become resistant, that it's okay to let 1.3 million people/year die? If we went back to using DDT today, there would be lots of areas in Africa that it wouldn't work, and those areas would rapidly increase; so there's already a need to find other tools in the fight against malaria. Why is that? DDT was primarily used in this hemisphere in the period after WWII until the eco-nutz got it banned in the '70's. It pretty effectively eradicated that disease. It's probably just my lack of mosquito entomology showing, but I'm pretty sure those resistant ones living here can't make it all the way to Africa to invest their resistant genes over there... In the mean time, 1.3 million folks (mostly children) die every year while the "do-gooders" dither... DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. Not all malarial mosquitoes rest on the inside wall of the house, though, some go outside before resting. shrug It's not a simple problem. Certainly true. But then again, nothing comes with a 100% guarantee...except the finality of death from malaria. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. I can certainly agree with that. As do I. But absent a comprehensive "mosquito-swatter" campaign, I'm not sure what else we can use TODAY that can make a difference... L8r all, DustyB .... |
#9
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DDT or NO DDT?
On 13 Mar 2006 12:51:34 -0800, "James"
wrote: Any particular reason you're cross-posting this to a Scottish group? Other than to recruit help with the mean lady and start a flame war, that is. I have set my replies to rec.gardens.edible only. Penelope Periwinkle didn't write: Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. You've mangled the post with your random snippage. I didn't say this, and you snipped out " We tend to use way too much pesticides in general" in order to make your response look stronger. How important is the environment if it was your children at risk instead of the faceless millions in Africa? How many of your children would you be willing to give up to save the bald eagle? Is the western world just saving African human lives are worth less than bald eagles? The sky is falling! The sky is falling! Once again you're creating a false dichotomy. It's not an either or choice. We can save bald eagles *and* children in Africa. DDT is not the only pesticide on the market, it's just one that's cheap and familiar. And, well, remember that whole resistance thing? By focusing on using only DDT we offer false hope. DDT was used in Africa from the late 1940's until 1970, and it didn't rid the continent of malaria. This would be where understanding the political climate and culture of the people would come in handy, but it doesn't lend itself to creating hysterical anti-environmentalism reactions, so I suppose it doesn't interest you. Nice try with the racist angle though. Sure DDT isn't the perfect solution but how strongly would you argue about the faults if it's your neighbor who's going to die? Remember what I said about embracing the power of "and"? Penelope -- You have proven yourself to be the most malicious, classless person that I've encountered in years. - "pointed" |
#10
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DDT or NO DDT?
On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 15:39:58 -0800, "Dusty Bleher"
wrote: "Penelope Periwinkle" wrote i zxcvbob wrote: DDT would be great for eradicating malaria. IMHO, malaria is the reason Africa is a backwards continent that never will amount to much. Well, that's just silly. AIDS is the biggest health problem in Africa today, but there are plenty of others, even when you just consider Possibly true (I haven't checked the numbers, so I'll take your word for it). But absent a "cure" the only preventative we have for AIDS today, is abstinence. And, maybe it's just me...but that 'self-administered' preventative doesn't seem to be working real well... Yeah, those amoral rape victims and wives of philandering husbands just have no self control. We should ignore their plight and concentrate on a disease that isn't spread by something dirty like S. E. X .. We have a "cure" for Malaria--and a preventative as well. While it may offend the sensibilities of those ostensibly concerned with critters, it's been shown to really, Really, REALLY help those that can benefit from it--the children of sub-Saharan Africa come to mind. Actually, there are drug resistant strains of Plasmodium species as well as the DDT resistant strains of Anopheles mosquitoes. Poor patient compliance and self-treatment are the main culprits. Those could be construed as "self-inflicted", sort of like the "self-administered" preventative for AIDS, so maybe we should pass on those victims? All of the factual, in-depth, long-term studies that I've seen on DDT, have shown it to be no threat to us or our wildlife (except those living in a chitin skin). Cites, please, because that's not what I've read. DDT is not the Chemical That Destroyed The World the hysterical greenies would have us believe, but neither is it harmless. The problem is not the initial application, the problem lies in the fact that it takes so long to break down. It stays with us for a very long time, and it's the accumulation in the environment that causes the very adverse effects. parasites. River blindness, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, and schistosomiasis are just a few I can think of off the top of my head. Yep. All bad. All need some attention. But I'd submit that it's easier to deal with them when you're not swatting at ookinete infested mosquitoes... What's the difference between getting bitten by an ookinete infested mosquito and an ookinete infested snail or fly? They're all very nasty parasitic diseases that have an arthropod vector. ... ... I hate to sound like a stuck record, but everyone keeps glossing over the whole resistance factor. There were already some 20 or so species of mosquitoes that were resistant to DDT by the time the ban went into effect in the 70's. There were documented cases of species of resistant house flies, too. So you're saying that for the decade or two that it _might_ take for some of those mosquitoes to become resistant, that it's okay to let 1.3 million people/year die? I'm saying that it's cruel and short-sighted to put all our malaria prevention eggs into the one DDT basket rather than continuing to research a more effective and inexpensive preventative. There are some 60 species of Anopheles mosquitoes that carry malaria, there are already 20 some species that we know are resistant. If we ignore those resistant species in a rush to the altar of DDT, we're not offering very much protection. There are usually multiple species of Anopheles in any one area, so killing some doesn't do much to prevent infection by another. If we went back to using DDT today, there would be lots of areas in Africa that it wouldn't work, and those areas would rapidly increase; so there's already a need to find other tools in the fight against malaria. Why is that? DDT was primarily used in this hemisphere in the period after WWII That's not correct. There were large scale spraying programs all over the world to try and eradicate malaria. The problem in Africa was the lack of an infrastructure to facilitate an eradication program. Malaria was not just a problem in Africa, there were pockets of malaria in Europe that were cleaned out. And, thinking on it a bit, why are we only talking about Africa? Malaria is in most of Asia and South and Central America. until the eco-nutz got it banned in the '70's. Um, it just occured to me, you do realize that DDT is still being used as a vector control, don't you? DDT is not off the market, there are treaties that set restrictions on its use, but it is still being used in malaria control. With everyone throwing around the word "ban" so freely, I thought I should mention it. It pretty effectively eradicated that disease. It's probably just my lack of mosquito entomology showing, but I'm pretty sure those resistant ones living here can't make it all the way to Africa to invest their resistant genes over there... The first species of resistant Anopheles was found in India in the late 1940's, *not* in the US. In the mean time, 1.3 million folks (mostly children) die every year while the "do-gooders" dither... Yes, I've been deeply impressed with your open-mindedness on the subject. DDT is relatively non-toxic to humans, and it doesn't take much to spray the inside walls of houses to kill the mosquitoes. Not all malarial mosquitoes rest on the inside wall of the house, though, some go outside before resting. shrug It's not a simple problem. Certainly true. But then again, nothing comes with a 100% guarantee...except the finality of death from malaria. Um, Dusty? Malaria is not 100% fatal. It's still very treatable in most cases, although the more powerful and expensive drugs necessary to combat drug resistant malaria come with some serious side effects, too. When the patients haven't wasted all their money on surviving that AIDS stuff, that is. See, infrastructure. If we could get the drugs to the patients, we could treat them; but finding, diagnosising them, and monitoring correct administration of the drugs takes money, manpower, and access to the patients. This is also why DDT offers such false hope. Spotty spraying and treatment encourage resistance in both the vector and the disease, not eradication. Developed countries that have already beaten malaria can get by without DDT. We tend to use way too much pesticides in general. I can certainly agree with that. As do I. But absent a comprehensive "mosquito-swatter" campaign, I'm not sure what else we can use TODAY that can make a difference... And it's far easier to bash "eco-nuts" than try and find out. http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-5460-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html looks like a good program. There are other alternatives to depending solely on DDT, but expense seems to be the limiting factor. Penelope -- You have proven yourself to be the most malicious, classless person that I've encountered in years. - "pointed" |
#11
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DDT or NO DDT?
Please read
http://dwb.unl.edu/Teacher/NSF/C06/C...icals/ddt.html It concludes DDT is not as harmful as claimed and it's more effective against malaria than alternatives AND cheaper. Maybe some of you are interested in following up the cites, poke holes and report back to us. You know I'm too lazy to considering I even sleep through classes. |
#12
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DDT or NO DDT?
On 14 Mar 2006 19:21:57 -0800, "James" wrote:
Please read http://dwb.unl.edu/Teacher/NSF/C06/C...icals/ddt.html It concludes DDT is not as harmful as claimed and it's more effective against malaria than alternatives AND cheaper. Well, yeah. I can find about a dozen or so web sites that claim that, just as I can find a dozen or so that claim DDT will end! all! life! as we know it. I realize I put a large spiky burr up your butt and wounded your pride by trouncing your flabberings about the difficulties and futility organic gardening. I suspect that's what that cross-posting nonsense to a Scottish group was about the other night, you wanted help from your friends. And I realize that you're not especially interested in balance, just in winning; but you really should have explored the web site I posted. The International Development Research Centre's a really interesting organization created by the Canadian government, and they are, among other things, helping countries test and establish malaria control programs that really do take cultural and biological idiosyncrasies of each area into account. Here, look again http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-5460-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html Explore a little, it's really interesting. Anybody from Canada here know much about this organization? A quick google didn't turn up much of anything about it, but I've really wasted a lot time cruising their site. It's fascinating reading, and I'd be crushed if it was all a bunch of hooey. Maybe some of you are interested in following up the cites, poke holes and report back to us. You know I'm too lazy to considering I even sleep through classes. Tsk...such bitterness! Penelope -- "Maybe you'd like to ask the Wizard for a heart." "ElissaAnn" |
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