TIP TALKS
The e-Newsletter of the
Toxics Information Project (TIP)
August, 2013
*****************************************************************************************************
IN THIS ISSUE
**THE WHY & HOW OF TIP TALKS CHOICES
**GIVE YOUR INPUT ON TIP’S CUTTING COSTS WHILE
CUTTING CHEMS PROJECT (Less Toxic Living on a Budget)
**HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS IN PICNIC SUPPLIES - & SAFER ALTERNATIVES:
**THE BEST LIST OF LIES ABOUT GMOS - & TRUTHFUL REBUTTALS
**ACTION: STOP SECRET TRADE DEAL FOR GLOBAL CORPORATE CONTROL
(OF FOOD SUPPLY & JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE)
**ACTION: SHIFTING SUBSIDIES TO ORGANIC AGRICULTURE
**ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS: MOLD, LYME DISEASE & AUTISM
**ACTION: UPDATE CELL PHONE RADIATION STANDARDS
********************************************************************************************
COMMENTS FROM TIP DIRECTOR, LIBERTY GOODWIN
We all live in a place called “hectic”. Too many concerns, too many
E-Mails, too much work, not enough time. So, I am faced daily with
how to effectively communicate important information in a way that
will be helpful – and not overwhelming. Here’s how that works with
this newsletter:
1. I send TIP TALKS out only once a month on a regular basis, and
keep it short, concise and focused on a few topics.
2. I choose topics based on several general criteria – critical news
or information of which you may not be aware, healthier alternatives
to help you deal with/reduce potential toxic harm in your daily life,
and actions that the most needed to counter situations in the world
around us that have great potential for damage to human health,
environment, and our political systems. I also take into account
the seasonal or time-sensitive nature of some items.
Finally, though, there is always much that can’t be included in this
limited format. So, I encourage you also to contact me at any time
with your own questions, comments, suggestions. If you wish to
receive help with a problem or concern about toxics and possible
health connections in your own life, I am available for personal
consultation (brief answers, no cost, then, sliding scale).
ALSO CONSIDER WHETHER YOU KNOW OF A GROUP OR
ORGANIZATION THAT WOULD BE INTERESTED IN A TALK OR
WORKSHOP ON ANY OF THE TOPICS WE ADDRESS!
CALL FOR MONEY-SAVING IDEAS: I AM ESPECIALLY INTERESTED
IN RECEIVING IDEAS TO INCLUDE IN OUR NEW COLLECTION OF
WAYS TO LIVE A HEALTHY, LESS TOXIC LIFE AT LOW COST –
HOW TO SAVE MONEY WHILE CUTTING CHEMS. SHARE WITH ME!
**********************************************************************************
SEASONAL CONCERN: NEW STUDY OF PICNIC SUPPLIES FINDS
LEAD, PHTHALATES, HAZARDOUS FLAME RETARDANTS, ORGANOTINS
AND OTHER HARMFUL INGREDIENTS
Mind the Store Calls on Top Ten Retailers to Phase Out Toxics
(Ann Arbor, MI) – August 8, 2013. The cooler is stocked, the picnic
basket is packed & many families are enjoying summer getaways—
even if just to the backyard. But why are we carrying so many
dangerous chemicals with us on our picnics?
WHAT’S BAD? Researchers released a new study of chemical hazards
in picnic products sold at top ten national retailers, finding most have
one or more hazardous chemicals linked to serious health problems.
The nonprofit Ecology Center tested 58 common outdoor picnic products
for substances that have been linked to asthma, birth defects, learning
disabilities, reproductive problems, liver toxicity and cancer..
See the study results here: www.healthystuff.org.
TAKE ACTION: Healthy Stuff.org is working with the Mind the Store
Campaign to ask retailers to remove toxic chemicals from the shelves
of their stores. So far, Target has been unresponsive –Click here to
help tell them to stop spoiling our picnics:
http://org.salsalabs.com/o/1421/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=14088
FIND HEALTHIER ALTERNATIVE CHOICES FOR YOUR NEXT PICNIC
www.healthystuff.org/alternativechoicesforyournextpicnic.php
**********************************************************************************
ESSENTIAL POINTS RE: GMOS:
The best, most comprehensive list we’ve seen of responses
to the misinformation being foisted on the public
by Monsanto & its co-conspirators.
13 LIES GMO LABELING OPPONENTS
ARE RECYCLING IN WASHINGTON STATE
www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_28148.cfm
It’s déjà vu all over again. Last year a coalition of out-of-state,
multinational biotech, pesticide and junk food corporations spent
nearly $46 million to narrowly defeat Proposition 37, a GMO labeling
initiative in California. Now, the same who’s who of the world’s most
notorious global corporate bad actors has descended on Washington
State. Why? To try to stop Washington State voters from passing
I-522, a citizens’ initiative that, if passed, will require mandatory
labeling of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in all food products
sold in Washington State. Like bad robots, they’re spitting out the
same old, tired lies, designed to scare voters into voting against
their own best interests.
Here are the lies. And the facts. Please read, print, tweet, share on
facebook, email, roll up and stuff into a bottle you launch into the
sea . . . whatever it takes to spread the word that while $46 million
may buy a lot of lies, it doesn’t change the facts. Read the essay
(It's not that long - and the points are to the point!)
www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_28148.cfm
********************************************************************************
STOP THE SECRET TRADE DEALS:
THE MONSANTO PROTECTION ACT ON STEROIDS!
http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/sign/stop_tpp_tafta_monsanto_protection_act_on_steroids/?akid=963.94384.VaOG_b&rd=1&t=2
If you thought the Monsanto Protection Act was bad, the secret trade
deals called the TPP and TAFTA are a global nightmare. Right now
two secret trade agreements, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership
(TPP) and Trans-Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA), also called
the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), are
being negotiated behind closed doors like this spring when the
Monsanto Protection Act was passed.
Just as we are on the verge of winning GMO labeling in the US, these
secret negotiations could eliminate the ability of countries around the
world to label GMOs or impose common sense restrictions on the sale
of genetically engineered seed and food in their countries if Monsanto
and other biotech companies get their way. They could also make it
illegal to label GMOs in the U.S., placing the decision in the hands
of corporate lobbyists and Monsanto GMO stooges.
Demand an end to secret trade deals, stop the fast track of TAFTA
and the TPP. Stand with Food Democracy Now! Don't let corporations
pass the Global Monsanto Protection Act! TAKE ACTION AT:
http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/sign/stop_tpp_tafta_monsanto_protection_act_on_steroids/?akid=963.94384.VaOG_b&rd=1&t=2
***********************************************************************
EWG GROW ORGANICS PETITION RE: NEW FARM BILL & SUBSIDIES
http://action.ewg.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=1959&tag=201308GrowOrganicsFull&utm_source=201308groworganicsfull&utm_medium=email&utm_content=first-link&utm_campaign=food
Congress will soon vote on a new farm bill - the federal measure with
the greatest impact on the food we eat. Currently, your tax dollars go
to highly profitable agribusinesses that don't need the help and to
people who don't live anywhere near a farm. The government does
very little to help farmers grow organic fruits and vegetables. We
want to change all that! Tell Congress that you want your tax dollars
to go to programs that help families gain greater access to healthy,
affordable food.
So much federal crop support goes to profitable farm businesses that
don't need it or to "farmers" who live nowhere near a farm. Only a tiny
fraction - .005 percent - goes toward growing organic. EWG is working
hard on Capitol Hill to make sure our tax dollars go to organic and
family farmers instead of corporate megafarms. But it's going to take
all of us to make it happen. Will you join the 27,000 EWG supporters
who've already demanded healthier, more affordable food?
For years, EWG has been helping you choose which produce to
buy organic and what to buy conventional with our Shopper's Guide
to Pesticides in Produce. Especially in the current economy, we
need federal agriculture funds put to better use - helping working
farm families, advancing organic and sustainable farming, protecting
the environment and providing healthy food to low-income families
and children. If you want access to healthier, more affordable foods,
Click here to join us by signing our Grow Organics petition today!
http://action.ewg.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=1959&tag=201308GrowOrganicsFull&utm_source=201308groworganicsfull&utm_medium=email&utm_content=first-link&utm_campaign=food
*********************************************************************************
CHEJ’S 2013 BACK-TO-SCHOOL GUIDE
IS HOT OFF THE PRESSES!
http://chej.org/backtoschool2013
Vinyl, The Most Toxic Plastic For Children’s Health: PVC,
also known as vinyl plastic, is the most toxic plastic for children’s
health and the environment. From production to use and disposal,
vinyl releases a toxic cocktail of chemicals including dioxins,
phthalates, mercury, PCBs, vinyl chloride, chlorine gas and
numerous other substances harmful to our health, some of which are
building up in our children’s bodies and food supply. Scientists have
found find certain vinyl chemicals linked to asthma, cancer, birth
defects, learning and developmental disabilities, obesity, diabetes &
other preventable chronic diseases on the rise.
Last year, independent laboratory testing commissioned by CHEJ and
the Empire State Consumer Project found toxic chemicals linked to
asthma and birth defects widespread in children’s vinyl back-to-school
supplies. Seventy-five percent of children’s “back-to-school” supplies
tested in a laboratory had elevated levels of toxic phthalates,
including
popular Disney branded school supplies, such as vinyl lunchboxes,
backpacks, 3-ring binders, raincoats, and rainboots. The levels of
phthalates found in children’s school supplies would be illegal if these
products were toys. Just like toys, school supplies are used by
young children that are uniquely vulnerable to chemical exposure.
CHEJ’s annual guide helps you and your family steer clear of phthalates
and vinyl, the poison plastic, in your children’s school supplies.
So grab a binder, snatch up a lunch bag, ditch phthalate-laden vinyl
plastic, and join the fight for healthier PVC-free schools! Download
the ·2013 Back to School Guide to PVC-free School Supplies and the 2013
Back-to-School Wallet Guide at:http://chej.org/backtoschool2013
************************************************************************************
Electromagnetic Fields: Mold, Lyme Disease & Autism
In this Lyme-endemic state of ours, here is some info that should be of
interest: After removing the mold culture from the wireless radiation
(EMF) protected Faraday Cage, this physician found that the wireless
EMF radiation from the nearby cell phone tower caused the production
of biotoxins In the mold to increase more than six hundred times. (600X)
www.ihealthtube.com/aspx/viewvideo.aspx?v=2829ee3a75d313fa
So do we really want/need even more radiation in the form of smart
meters/smart grid? Or city-wide WiFi? Has anyone calculated the
hidden costs to our health???
PLEASE FORWARD THIS INFO - AND SEE ACTION BELOW.
***********************************************************************************
PETITION THE FCC: DEMAND THAT CELL PHONE
RADIATION STANDARDS BE STRENGTHENED
Would you use a cell phone made in 1996? No? So why is the Federal
Communications Commission using cell phone radiation standards set in
1996? In the past 17 years, American cell phone usage has changed
dramatically. Smart phones are everywhere, children have their own cell
phones and landlines are becoming a thing of the past. Today, the U.S.
has 10 times as many cell phone subscribers as in 1997. Seventy-eight
percent of teenagers own a cell phone. More than a third of all
households are wireless-only. Though the evidence is not definitive,
numerous scientific studies show potential links between cell phone
radiation and cancer, lowered sperm counts and other health problems.
We urge the FCC to update its cell phone radiation regulations to:
· Provide adequate protection for children's health;
· Reflect actual current use patterns;
· Provide meaningful consumer disclosure of
cell phone radiation levels.
The FCC is accepting public comments on its cell phone radiation
standards. Make sure the FCC knows this is the time to strengthen
its standards, not weaken them! Take action here:
http://action.ewg.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=2039&tag=201308CellActionFull&utm_source=201308cellactionfull&utm_medium=email&utm_content=second-link&utm_campaign=cell
**********************************************************************************
CONTACT US WITH YOUR THOUGHTS, COMMENTS, QUESTIONS!
**************************************************************
Liberty Goodwin, Director
Toxics Information Project
P.O. Box 40572,
Providence, RI 02940
Tel. 401-351-9193
Website: www.toxicsinfo.org
***********************************************