Editor:

Sen. Michael Bennet mostly votes when pulled by corporate money, or pushed by public shame. With GMOs, he’s historically pulled. A few months ago, citizens pushed him against the DARK Act, and he voted correctly. But earlier this week, thanks to a recent pull from Monsanto, he did the wrong thing – according to Coloradans and anyone who eats food.

Monsanto, Big Agriculture and Bennet are now selling a “compromise” DARK Act. They want to put the two-dimensional bar code on foods with GMOs. Now remember that one time you scanned a QR code? That’s why Big Ag came up with this “compromise” – you won’t use it. Bear in mind, all economic arguments against GMO labeling have been debunked.

The DARK Act also undoes Vermont’s recent referendum that requires GMO labeling.

Monsanto and Big Agriculture in general are afraid of the negative PR around GMOs. They are rich, and they will either pull senators to vote their way or spill millions into ads in the final hours before a vote to make GMOs sound tested and safe. But careful citizens don’t have money to spend; we have our free speech and our right to make our own decisions about what we put in our bodies.

To Monsanto and Bennet’s credit, many short-term studies in the United States show GMO foods as safe. But the GMO term can mean a lot of things. And that’s a problem. Many studies are performed or funded by organizations with skin in the game, and health effects are difficult to link directly to GMOs just as exposure to a carcinogen over many years is difficult to link to your cancer. Expensive longitudinal studies just aren’t done.

In crops, seeds are genetically modified to withstand the harsh chemicals sprayed on them (which create super weeds, super bugs, leaches into soil, waterways, and back into the plants, animals and water we consume). Thus Monsanto wants GMOs.

Nineteen major European countries have banned GMOs, taking a risk-adverse approach to food. They don’t use humans as guinea pigs for the profit of mega-wealthy, mega-powerful food and drug corporations.

In the United States, we are unhappy guinea pigs to Big Agriculture. Let’s not be. Let’s be informed with clear, on-the-package labeling, and make our own choices. That’s what we want. Tell Sen. Bennet to vote ‘NO!’ on the DARK Act next week!

Jeremy George

Denver