2013-03 Excellent! TED Talk, Ron Finley, A guerilla gardener in south central L.A.

I want to make sure this TED Talk  by Ron Finley is widely known.

Maybe you’ll experience the same high as I did, watching it?!

http://www.ted.com/talks/ron_finley_a_guerilla_gardener_in_south_central_la.html 

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• Ron Finley’s work is very positive and creative.  It is CONSTRUCTION;  this is what “the new” will look like.
• Then I have to send you some DE-CONSTRUCTION of the old that has to be done simultaneously.  The battles against corporate takeover of the food supply have been waging for decades.   

Ron Finley:  “Just like 26.5 million other Americans, I live in a food desert, South Central Los Angeles, home of the drive-thru and the drive-by.  Funny thing is, the drive-thrus are killing more people than the drive-bys.  People are dying from curable diseases  . . .   Plus I got tired of driving 45 minutes round trip to get an apple that wasn’t impregnated with pesticides.  . . . “

If you know even a small fraction of the de-construction that good people are doing today, your heart will soar.   It pales in comparison to what we were doing a decade ago to stop GMO “Terminator Technology” in seeds, Herbicide-Resistant (GMO) Wheat,  GM alfalfa, etc.

Now back to  “A guerilla gardener in south central L.A.”:

The TED talk was posted in March 2013. By April 8: 728,389 Views. (The real number of views is typically double because of “other platforms” that pick it up).   A day later, April 9:  another 3,000 people have watched the video.

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I  provided input to the TED conversation and received a reply from Ron Finley.

An important aspect I will draw out when I have time:  there is a very good lesson on economic indicators in what Ron Finley is doing.

CONTENTS

1. TED Talk, RON FINLEY, A GUERILLA GARDENER IN SOUTH CENTRAL L.A.  http://www.ted.com/talks/ron_finley_a_guerilla_gardener_in_south_central_la.html 
2. MY NOTE TO RON FINLEY (INDUSTRIALIZED AGRICULTURE), see below.
3. REPLY FROM RON FINLEY  (below)
4. TRANSCRIPT:   2013-03-07  Transcript,  Guerrila gardener  (Ron Finley, TED Talk)
5. EARLIER NOTE SENT TO PEOPLE IN BHUTAN, CROPLIFE’S EFFORTS TO UNDERMINE THEIR DETERMINATION TO BE A TOTALLY ORGANIC COUNTRY.   Please see  2012-12-16  Genetically Modified Crops with flavour  

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2.  MY NOTE TO RON FINLEY (INDUSTRIALIZED AGRICULTURE)

(May 14, 2013 – updated)

Sandra Finley

2 days ago:

I cannot thank you, Ron Finley, enough. (Coincidentally, I too am a Finley!) 

I am from the agricultural province of Saskatchewan, Canada.  We produce bioteched food crops soaked in chemicals.

The consequences are very high disease rates and developmental problems locally, an environment into which we just keep pumping more and more poisons, compliments of the chemical-biotech corps.

The University of Sask. College of Agriculture was taken over by them decades ago, beginning by Monsanto.  Bayer CropScience and others now inhabit the University, too. The usurped University has become a “conditioning centre” for credentialing the agricultural specialists advising farmers.

The Govt has just given $15 million plus $35 million in corporate money to the University designated for the high-sounding “Global Institute for Food Security” (GIFS).  The Institute is to be headed up by Roger Beachy on interim basis (he’s be here one week a month for a year). 

“His research at Washington University in St. Louis,  in collaboration with Monsanto Company,…” (note, too, that the head offices of Monsanto are in St Louis).

Seems to me that the Govt is using the University as the conduit for sending public money to Monsanto and others (corporate welfare paid for by citizens), in an endeavour that is clearly NOT in the public interest.  Not to mention that the University loses its autonomy when the Govt sends DESIGNATED funding (money is supposed to come with no strings attached.  This is a public university.)

All is not bleak – bless you. 

Also, I am an elected member of the University Senate. With more info and help, maybe we can reclaim “Our soil” as you are doing in L.A.  If your inspired revolution fertilizes our efforts here, maybe we will be providing food grains that are developed by the criterion of their contribution to healthfulness, not by whether they can withstand chemical applications, and be “owned” (patented) by these very corrupt corporations.

My sincere best wishes to you & your group in L.A.   Perhaps you will come and visit us one day in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.   Vive le revolution!

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3.  REPLY FROM RON FINLEY

Ron Finley      TED Speaker