The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg ruled on Thursday that the authorization of genetically modified soy produced by former agrochemical corporation Monsanto was legal. An appeal is not possible. The ruling follows appeals made by three German non-governmental organizations to a decision made by the EU Commission in 2012. The Commission said the genetically modified soybean has the same effect on human and animal health as non-genetically modified soy products. This allowed Monsanto to continue selling products containing genetically modified soybeans. The beans were modified to make them more resistant to insects and pests and also more resistant to the herbicide glyphosate. 'Toxicological risks' The NGOs challenged the Commission's decision saying that not enough research had been carried out into potentially unknown side-effects of the GMO soybeans. The NGOs, TestBioTech, European Network of Scientists for Social and Environmental Responsibility and … [Read more...] about German groups lose GMO soybean battle to Monsanto at top European court
The War of the Roses at 30: still one of the nastiest comedies of all time
It’s easy to forget just how consistently, bracingly nasty The War of the Roses is, thanks in great part to the extravagant, and festive, studio packaging it arrived in, unwrapped in cinemas 30 years ago this month. It was fast-paced, glossy, Christmassy and, deceptively, it starred one of the most beloved onscreen couples of the 80s: Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner. Audiences were accustomed to seeing them bicker in the hit adventures Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile but their sparring was only ever of the screwball variety, a string of lighthearted quips signposting a Billy Ocean-soundtracked happy ending on the horizon. At the end of the decade, they reunited to show us that happily ever afters are as fantastical as treasure maps and that early romance will more likely give way to seething resentment and sadistic violence. The film was a cruel R-rated footnote to their era of PG-13 flirting and it both shocked and compelled me as a child whose family was in … [Read more...] about The War of the Roses at 30: still one of the nastiest comedies of all time
‘I’ve seen death in this city, but nothing as sad as this’: how a ferry disaster exposed the corruption devastating Iraq
Early in the morning on 21 March, in Mosul’s flat and dusty al-Baker neighbourhood, a school principal named Ustad Ahmad went to see his mother. It was the start of the new year holiday of Nowruz, and she asked if they could go to the cemetery to visit his father’s grave. Ahmad had other ideas. He was planning to take his wife and children to an amusement park, as a reward for the boys’ full marks in their recent exams. Besides, he told his mother, he didn’t want to be reminded of death on such a beautiful spring day. Back home, after breakfast with the boys, Ahmad sat on a wooden chair in the bathroom for his weekly shave. Then, preparing to go out, he put on his new summer blazer, a pair of jeans and the wraparound sunglasses his wife had recently bought for him. Tall and burly, Ahmad was a very proud man – proud of his status among his colleagues, the comfort and neatness of his house, his smart and witty boys, his beautiful baby daughter and above all, … [Read more...] about ‘I’ve seen death in this city, but nothing as sad as this’: how a ferry disaster exposed the corruption devastating Iraq
Amy Dunne on her lonely, harrowing abortion fight: ‘I was told I would be done for murder’
The week Amy Dunne turned 17, she was several months pregnant and made two discoveries – one devastating and the other incomprehensible. A hospital scan showed something badly wrong in her womb. The foetus had anencephaly, a fatal abnormality. Doctors said the baby, a girl, would die soon after birth. Although she was living in foster care and still a child herself, Dunne had looked forward to becoming a mother and building a new life with her boyfriend. Distraught, she shared the news with her social workers and said she needed to travel to Britain from Ireland for an abortion. That’s when Dunne discovered something badly wrong in her country. One social worker said she could not leave, Dunne recalls. “He told me that if I did leave the country to go and have an abortion that I would be done for murder. And that anyone else who accompanied me would be done as an accomplice for murder.” This was April 2007 and the threat was real. Abortion was illegal and so, it … [Read more...] about Amy Dunne on her lonely, harrowing abortion fight: ‘I was told I would be done for murder’
Donald Trump axes Snap food stamps for 700,000 in major crackdown on welfare benefits
SHOCK new rules formalized by the Trump administration will see nearly 700,000 Americans lose their access to food stamps, officials announced Wednesday. The new rules will limit the ability of states to exempt work-eligible adults from having to obtain steady employment in order to receive benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP. Under the current rules, work-eligible, able-bodied adults without dependents and who are between the ages of 18 and 49 can receive three months of SNAP benefits in a three-year period, if they don't meet the 20-hour work requirement. However, states with high unemployment and a lack of sufficient jobs can waive such limits. The new rules strip the ability to waiver unless a city or county has an unemployment rate of 6 per cent or higher. The waivers will be good for one year and will require the governor to support the request.In October, the US unemployment rate stood at 3.6 per cent. The final rule will be published in … [Read more...] about Donald Trump axes Snap food stamps for 700,000 in major crackdown on welfare benefits
