here's an very interesting read about monsanto rumsfeld connection. http://www.newswithviews.com/NWVexclusive/exclusive15.htm DONALD RUMSFELD AND ASPARTAME Posted: May 9, 2004 12:18 AM Eastern by NWV Staff Writer 2004 NewsWithViews.com Aspartame is an additive found in diet soft drinks and over 5,000 foods, drugs and medicine. It was approved in 1983 for use in carbonated beverages. However, there may be more sour than sweet when it comes to aspartame. In reality, aspartame is a drug, not an additive in the sense many people associate with that word. It interacts with other drugs, has a synergistic and additive effect with MSG, and is a chemical hyper-sensitization agent. Dr. John Olney, who founded the field of neuoscience called excitotoxicity, attempted to stop the approval of aspartame with Attorney James Turner back in 1996. The FDA's own toxicologist, Dr. Adrian Gross told Congress that without a shadow of a doubt, aspartame can cause brain tumors and brain cancer and violated the Delaney Amendment which forbids putting anything in food that is known to cause Cancer. Detailed information on this can be found in the Bressler Report (FDA report on Searle). Dr. Olney isn't alone in attempting to reach out to the medical community and warn the American people about this drug. Dr. Ralph Walton, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine has written of the behavioral and psychiatric problems triggered by aspartame-caused depletion of serotonin. According to the top doctors and researchers on this issue, aspartame causes headache, memory loss, seizures, vision loss, coma and cancer. It worsens or mimics the symptoms of such diseases and conditions as fibromyalgia, MS, lupus, ADD, diabetes, Alzheimer's, chronic fatigue and depression. Further dangers highlighted is that aspartame liberates free methyl alcohol. The resulting chronic methanol poisoning affects the dopamine system of the brain causing addiction. Methanol, or wood alcohol, constitutes one third of the aspartame molecule and is classified as a severe metabolic poison and narcotic. Dr. Woodrow Monte in the peer reviewed journal, Aspartame: Methanol and the Public Health, wrote: "When diet sodas and soft drinks, sweetened with aspartame, are used to replace fluid loss during exercise and physical exertion in hot climates, the intake of methanol can exceed 250 mg/day or 32 times the Environmental Protection Agency's recommended limit of consumption for this cumulative poison." Neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, MD, author of "Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills," wrote about the relationship between aspartame and macular degeneration, diabetic blindness and glaucoma (all known to result from excitotoxin accumulation in the retina). The medical text, Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic, by Dr. H. J. Roberts is 1038 pages of symptoms and diseases triggered by this neurotoxin. The claim is made that aspartame has even caused the epidemic of obesity because it makes you crave carbohydrates so you gain weight, and the formaldehyde accumulates in the adipose tissue (fat cells) according to the Trocho Study. Further accusations are that aspartame is also responsible for the epidemic of diabetes as it not only can precipitate diabetes but simulates and aggravates diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy, can cause diabetics to go into convulsions and interacts with insulin. The effects of aspartame are documented by the FDA's own data. In 1995 the agency was forced, under the Freedom of Information Act, to release a list of ninety-two aspartame symptoms reported by thousands of victims. It appears this is only the tip of the iceberg. H. J. Roberts, MD, published the medical text "Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic" -- 1,000 pages of symptoms and diseases triggered by this neurotoxin including the sordid history of its approval. [See Video "Sweet Misery, a Poisoned World"] Since its discovery in 1965, controversy has raged over the health risks associated with the sugar substitute. From laboratory testing of the chemical on rats, researchers have discovered that the drug induces brain tumors. On Sept 30, 1980 the Board of Inquiry of the FDA concurred and denied the petition for approval. In 1981, the newly appointed FDA Commissioner, Arthur Hull Hayes, ignored the negative ruling and approved aspartame for dry goods. As recorded in the Congressional Record of 1985, then CEO of Searle Laboratories Donald Rumsfeld said that he would "call in his markers" to get aspartame approved. Rumsfeld was on President Reagan's transition team and a day after taking office appointed Hayes. No FDA Commissioner in the previous sixteen years had allowed aspartame on the market. Dr. Betty Martini has worked in the medical field for 22 years. She is the founder of Mission Possible International, working with doctors around the world in an effort to remove aspartame from food, drinks and medicine. According to Dr. Martini, aspartame has brought more complaints to the American Food and Drug Administration than any other additive and is responsible for 75% of such complaints to that agency. From 10,000 consumer complaints FDA compiled a list of 92 symptoms, including death. The history of aspartame and its approval has a political history as well as a scientific one. According to Dr. Martini, "When Donald Rumsfeld was CEO of Searle, that conglomerate manufactured aspartame. For 16 years the FDA refused to approve it, not only because its not safe but because they wanted the company indicted for fraud. Both U.S. Prosecutors hired on with the defense team and the statute of limitations expired. They were Sam Skinner and William Conlon. Skinner went on to become Secretary of Transportation squelching the cries of the pilots who were now having seizures on this seizure triggering drug, aspartame, and then Chief of Staff under President Bush's father. Some of these people reach high places. Even Supreme Justice Clarence Thomas is a former Monsanto attorney. (Monsanto bought Searle in 1985, and sold it a few years ago). When Ashcroft became Attorney General, Thompson from King and Spalding Attorneys (another former Monsanto attorney) became deputy under Ashcroft. (Attorneys for NutraSweet and Coke). "However, the FDA still refused to allow NutraSweet on the market. It is a deadly neurotoxic drug masquerading

I generally grow various Asian Greens, Turnips and radishes yr round. I generally have a two season garden, Hot and Cold. Cold covers most European veggies and Hot usually goes Asian, specifically Thai and Vietnamese veggies. Right now we're just beginning the Hot season harvestings with Japanese and Cambodian Eggplants, with Sweet and Hot Peppers just starting to colour up. I was trying an Indian gourd to replace Summer Squashes that get such bad Powdery Mildew here but while the plants are doing well, the 'Tinda' has produced one fruit...enough to slice up in a soup. Cheers, Pat

I was afraid you were going to ask me that! :) But seriously, one of the things I've learned is that I know absolutely nothing about soil biology, so I don't think I could begin to explain what Dan spends hours describing in the workshops. What I *can* tell you is what Ive observed in my own garden this season and a few things IÂve learned. First this is a garden I started 5 years ago. I did soil tests, made the recommended amendments and regularly added compost (high-end, organic-certified stuff). But my garden has been declining every year and last year, things simply didnÂt grow - and it wasnÂt just the weather. I broadcast a mineral mix recommended by Dan last fall, but it takes a few years for the soil to get back in balance and function so that plants can take up what they need (he describes in detail how you can measure and monitor all this). In the meantime there are drenches and sprays you can use (all organic-certified, mostly minerals and innoculants, and inexpensive) to help the plants if the soil isnÂt great (as mine is definitely not). This spring I decided to apply the drenches and sprays to only half of each planting to see what the effects would be. It was shocking. In most cases the plants were about 30% bigger and much healthier - deep green and very thick leaves (esp on tomatoes). I started treating everything after about 6-8 weeks. I tried growing 3 artichoke plants for the first time this year. The one I didnÂt treat is dead. It just died about two weeks ago; I have no idea why. The stem weakened and it fell over. At first I thought voles had gotten the roots, but that wasnÂt it. The one at the other end of the bed that got the most treatment is big and healthy with 3 artichokes on it. The tomatoes I didnÂt treat early were much smaller and were the first to show signs of early blight (which IÂve had almost every year). Just yesterday I realized that all the tomatoes are barely showing signs of blight and normally it would be a third of the way up the plant by now. Could be the dry weather . . . One of the goals of "nutrient dense" production is to create "high brix" plants and one reason is that they are supposed to be less appealing to bugs. IÂve had one tomato hornworm and it was on one of the untreated tomato plants. And this is the first year I have not seen any squash bugs (at least not yet) on my zucchini. I did have Colorado Potato Beetles on the potatoes, but very limited and easily controlled compared to previous years. And now that I think of it, I havenÂt even seen a cucumber beetle. Maybe the hot, dry weather has affected the bugs too, but IÂm very happy with the direction things have taken and with how much better my garden has done this year. IÂm just at the beginning of the learning curve about all this. One of the things I really appreciate about DanÂs approach is that itÂs all based on science, measurement, and testing. HeÂs working with farmers to to tissue analysis of plants during the growing season to test just how much they can do "in real time" to influence growing conditions. And heÂs trying to get experts together to create a definition of "nutrient dense" since itÂs fairly meaningless the way itÂs used these days. We all know that blueberries are a "nutrient dense" food. But Dan wants to know why blueberry A has more nutrients that blueberry B, and to set up systems to grow more As and to improve them. Most of our agriculture has been focused solely on yield for decades, so itÂs exciting to see this emphasis on nutrition and flavor, and IÂm very much enjoying playing around with it in my own garden. I also really liked that the workshops were spread throughout the year. It means you get a lot of support and plenty of time to get questions answered and to think up new ones! I hope this has helped to answer your question; it is by far my longest GardenWeb post! I think you can email me privately if youÂd like (or anyone else who has questions). IÂm afraid I might be taking up too much space here. :)

Alison I am so sorry to hear that, we have been watching all the news to see how everyone is going, so much water and I thought it was bad enough around here. I am sure half of the front garden is either under the house or down at the back fence but we only got 5 inches to your 20 so I can imagine what it is like for you there. Thats terrible that you have seepage and carpet damage but its good to read that you are OK and that is the main thing even if so terrible for others, but Australia is like that, here its either Feast or Famine as Garry said we are out of Balance and how do we fix that ????.....MM