Democracy Now! (8/14/18)
California jurors have awarded $289 million in a historic verdict against Monsanto in the case of a school groundskeeper who developed cancer after using its weed killer, Roundup. We speak with Brent Wisner, the lead trial counsel for Dewayne Lee Johnson, who has non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Doctors say he is unlikely to live past 2020. Johnson’s was the first lawsuit to go to trial alleging glyphosate causes cancer. Filed in 2016, it was fast-tracked for trial due to the severity of his illness.
Link to Story, Transcript and 17-Minute Video
- With Merger Pending, Bayer Shares Plunge After Court Orders Monsanto to Pay $289 Million to Cancer Victim — Shares in Bayer took a nosedive on Monday—just days after newly-acquired Monsanto was ordered to pay $289 million in damages to a man who alleged that the company’s glyphosate-based herbicides, including the widely used weedkiller Roundup, caused his cancer. At one point the German pharmaceutical giant’s shares fell by as much as 14 percent, Reuters reported, marking a loss in value of roughly $14 billion. It capped off the U.S. trading day as one of the “biggest losers,” ending at a 10-percent loss. … Read the Rest
- Glyphosate—It’s What’s For Your Kids’ Breakfast: Study Finds Cancer-Causing Weedkiller In Popular Oatmeal, Cereals, and Snack Bars — A study of dozens of popular oat-based breakfast foods delivered sobering news this week when almost all of the products examined by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) were found to contain the chemical glyphosate. “We’re very concerned that consumers are eating more glyphosate than they know,” said Scott Faber, vice president of government affairs at EWG, in a statement. Glyphosate is classified as a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization and was listed last year as a chemical known to cause cancer by California. Out of 45 products “made with conventionally grown oats,” all but two were found to contain glyphosate. EWG also tested two organic brands, detecting the chemical in five samples. Thirty-one of the breakfast foods were found to contain levels of glyphosate that were higher than the level that EWG deems safe for children … Read the Rest
(Commoner Call photo. Open source and free for non-derivative use with link to www.thecommonercall.org )
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How Monsanto Plants Stories, Suppresses Science & Silences Dissent to Sell a Cancer-Linked Chemical
“There’s a lot of documents, but what they really show is sort of a rampant corporate culture that has no interest in looking at whether or not their product is safe, but have an interest in attacking science this doesn’t suit their business agenda. And that’s just simply what we see. When a bad study comes out, the emails that circulate amongst Monsanto employees is, “How do we combat this? How do we fight this? How do we take this person out?” It is actually given a name within Monsanto; it’s called “freedom to operate” and they actually have a budget assigned to this particular action.”
— Attorney Brent Wisner, the lead trial counsel for Dewayne Lee Johnson in his lawsuit against Monsanto.
Democracy Now! (8/14/18)
California jurors have awarded $289 million in a historic verdict against Monsanto in the case of a school groundskeeper who developed cancer after using its weed killer, Roundup. We speak with Brent Wisner, the lead trial counsel for Dewayne Lee Johnson, who has non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Doctors say he is unlikely to live past 2020. Johnson’s was the first lawsuit to go to trial alleging glyphosate causes cancer. Filed in 2016, it was fast-tracked for trial due to the severity of his illness.
Link to Story, Transcript and 15-Minute Video
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Whitewash: The Story Of A Weed Killer, Cancer, And The Corruption Of Science
Amazon
It’s the herbicide on our dinner plates, a chemical so pervasive it’s in the air we breathe, our water, our soil, and even found increasingly in our own bodies. Known as Monsanto’s Roundup by consumers, and as glyphosate by scientists, the world’s most popular weed killer is used everywhere from backyard gardens to golf courses to millions of acres of farmland. For decades it’s been touted as safe enough to drink, but a growing body of evidence indicates just the opposite, with research tying the chemical to cancers and a host of other health threats.
In Whitewash, veteran journalist Carey Gillam uncovers one of the most controversial stories in the history of food and agriculture, exposing new evidence of corporate influence. Gillam introduces readers to farm families devastated by cancers which they believe are caused by the chemical, and to scientists whose reputations have been smeared for publishing research that contradicted business interests. Readers learn about the arm-twisting of regulators who signed off on the chemical, echoing company assurances of safety even as they permitted higher residues of the herbicide in food and skipped compliance tests. And, in startling detail, Gillam reveals secret industry communications that pull back the curtain on corporate efforts to manipulate public perception.
Whitewash is more than an exposé about the hazards of one chemical or even the influence of one company. It’s a story of power, politics, and the deadly consequences of putting corporate interests ahead of public safety.
