gmos
JUROR #4 SPEAKS!
I am honored to publish the letter that Robert Howard, Juror #4, wrote to Judge Suzanne Bolanos following the hearing on October 10th. October 11, 2018 Hon. Suzanne Ramos Bolanos Judge of the Superior Court 400 McAllister Street San Francisco, CA 94102 Re: Dewayne Johnson Vs. Monsanto Company Case No. CGC-16-550128 Dear Judge Bolanos, First…
Why Did We Sit Here For Weeks?
I should have known. The day started with my car suddenly shutting off in the middle of a busy street as I drove my daughter to school. When I dropped my son off at the train, I saw and videoed a mid-twenties white man in goth-ish clothes with a big black backpack and a stick…
The Good News and The Bad News
I’m reading the engrossing book “Bad Blood” that entertainingly exposes the corrupt debacle at blood-testing startup Theranos. Throughout the book, stunning similarities emerge between the pervasive corruption, lying, and coverups at Theranos, and all that we have learned about Monsanto. Unfortunately, while an individual could choose whether or not to use Theranos’s tests, glyphosate is…
Poison, Deadly, Movin It Slow
The philosophizing trio Bel Biv Devoe sang: “Situation is serious. Let’s cure it cause we’re running out of time.” I grew up in a socially liberal, Reagan-Republican family, which was a bit more common in the 1980s in the San Francisco suburbs than today. My dad is a retired US Air Force Lt. Colonel who…
You Call Them Inventory, I Call Them People
This morning, I retired my yoga-wear-at-best writing uniform in exchange for my big girl clothes. I think my husband was pleased to see the effort. I’ve been feeling a bit glum this last week after reading piles of academic papers and articles that paint a rather dismal picture of our future as living beings. Brazil…
Radishes, Raspberries, Romaine and Roundup
My mom went to our local farmer’s market this past weekend. She texted me: Woman at the farmers market was making a big stink [claiming that organic can still be GMO] and I thought she was wrong and the poor guy selling tomatoes didn’t know what GMO was. She said everything at Trader Joe’s was…
American Groan
I’m back! After the intensity of the trial and the excitement of the verdict, I went sightseeing to clear my brain and find new inspiration. While in Chicago, I had the chance to visit the painting masterpiece American Gothic, by modernist artist Grant Wood, at the Art Institute of Chicago. The work felt strangely symbolic…
The Day That Hope Prevailed
We begin our third day of waiting in the small courtroom, on edge for any news of questions from the jury or a verdict. In the patient crowd are all of the attorneys (except for Bobby Kennedy who is spreading the word of the dangers of Roundup in media interviews), a few other journalists and…
THE VERDICT – GLYPHOSATE CAUSES CANCER AND MONSANTO KNEW IT
I’m busy celebrating!!!! You will get the blow-by-blow (and then some) from me this weekend. The reading of the verdict was a moment of deep emotion and I could not be more proud of Lee Johnson, the jury and the brilliant attorneys. © 2018 Kelly Ryerson ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Day 17 – EPA, EPA, EPA. Closing Statements Part II
It seems impossible to create an argument that could top that of the Plaintiff. Even if I correct for my substantial bias, my opinion is that the limited science that Plaintiff was allowed to present was sufficient to show that Ranger Pro caused Lee Johnson’s cancer. After lunch, it seems simply an empty exercise for…
Day 17 – Today is Their Day of Reckoning. Closing Statements Part I
It’s an eerie morning. The migrating smoke from wildfires north of San Francisco casts a sinister amber haze. As I drive north to San Francisco, it feels a bit like an ominous warzone. Wildfires are devastating communities in Mendocino and many other towns throughout California. I’m convincing myself that this can’t be any kind of…
Day 16 – What Hypothetical? MR. JOHNSON Is The Hypothetical!!
Surprise! Neil Young and Daryl Hannah are in the house today. Young and Hannah are activists in the fight against Monsanto, and Young released the album The Monsanto Years in 2015. As we all settle into the courtroom, the bailiff asks Young to remove his hat. I don’t think it is proper to ask “The…