About Africa...

[lynx]

I wonder if the reason for this apparent promotion of DDT could be related to the fact that the Plasmodium Genome sequencing has now been completed. The consequence is that this parasite may well be doomed in a very short space of time.

Once that happens, there is absolutely no reason why the mosquito can't happily continue sucking human blood without the risk of spreading malaria, so any reason for using DDT would be gone along with the profits.

Some people need to face facts, it is a very nasty chemical with long term effects on human systems, otherwise it would not be banned in the western world. The only reason for allowing it's continued use elsewhere is because the alternatives are worse.

Or are they? The immune system is also affected by prolonged exposure to DDT. Aids is now endemic in exactly the same places where widespread use of DDT has continued, and more or less over the same timescale. I wonder what the chances are that there is a link.

[vidcc]

On what are you basing her article as having more weight than opposing articles?...has she carried out scientific studies ?

I believe her point is that, by dint of sensationalist sentiment created by Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring, DDT was the baby that got pitched with the bathwater, so to speak, and never was given it's due as an effective measure against malaria, which, in the beleaguered interim, can be arguably said to have needlessly cost millions of lives, as opposed to possibly a few thousand who reacted poorly to the DDT.

In a nutshell.

I think there is more to it than that. Government bodies tend to ask for proof of claims and not just look at the claim itself.

[Rat Faced]

can be arguably said to have needlessly cost millions of lives,

No it cant..

As ive stated numerous times in the thread..

In the areas where malaria is indemnic, DDT has continued to be used. ie: The majority of the African Continent and India.

The example you gave; South Africa, stopped using it in 1996 and started again in 2001 because of an increase in cases.

DDT is banned for agricultural uses in the west.


I do agree that there is undue pressure to stop the use of DDT on those governments that are using it against malaria from some circles... in this case i fully support those governments to continue its use.

For any that use it for agricultural purposes (there are currently still 20 nations that do this), i'd be joining in the campaign to get rid of it.

I would argue that the article is aimed in the wrong direction at Africa, the majority of countries listen to each other here and don't succumb easily to political pressure... the countries that are abandoning it have done so because its no longer effective there because of over-use. The Mosquito's have adapted.

If they changed their aim towards Central and South America where they have started getting rid of DDT because of political pressure and still have malaria... I would not have jumped on it.

As i stated earlier though, they are attempting to hijack Africa for their own ends because its in the news atm.

[vidcc]

Government bodies tend to ask for proof of claims and not just look at the claim itself.

I presume we will soon see this dynamic at work in the upcoming Supreme Court nominative?

I have views on this but it is probably too "localised" for the thread to not be hijacked.

[GepperRankins]

Due to the large influx of illegal immigrants who, of course, are not tested for disease, as are legal immigrants, mosquito-caused diseases are re-emerging as a U.S. health problem.

That lost it for me...

It implies that malaria is contagious, which it isnt.

Unless those illegal immigrants are mosquito's of course....



DDT is still widely used in the Developing countries anyway, so to encourage its use when its already being used seems a little pointless.

Unless they're just trying to get it used in the USA again and so spread the disinformation that its banned worldwide to get noticed.

i haven't read the thing j2 posted, but that's a bloody good point :pwned:

[peat moss]

Sorry if has been said , I didn't read the whole thread . But aren't some stupid people trying to teach farming to Africa with out herbicides ? Yet our Usa and Canadian farmers use them ?


Sorry should have read the thread. My apologies , I see with the aid concert Africa is in the news. But I did read in fridays paper about DDT and African issues. It killed a few birds and everone is up in arms. The story was from an African view point wish I had the link.

[GepperRankins]

Sorry if has been said , I didn't read the whole thread . But aren't some stupid people trying to teach farming to Africa with out herbicides ? Yet our Usa and Canadian farmers use them ?


Sorry should have read the thread. My apologies , I see with the aid concert Africa is in the news. But I did read in fridays paper about DDT and African issues. It killed a few birds and everone is up in arms. The story was from an African view point wish I had the link.

to add to that. illogical hippy scare mongering caused some governments to reject GM crops

[bigboab]

Sorry if has been said , I didn't read the whole thread . But aren't some stupid people trying to teach farming to Africa with out herbicides ? Yet our Usa and Canadian farmers use them ?


Sorry should have read the thread. My apologies , I see with the aid concert Africa is in the news. But I did read in fridays paper about DDT and African issues. It killed a few birds and everone is up in arms. The story was from an African view point wish I had the link.

to add to that. illogical hippy scare mongering caused some governments to reject GM crops

If people end up with two or three heads because of GM crops, would that not mean more mouths to feed?

[peat moss]

to add to that. illogical hippy scare mongering caused some governments to reject GM crops

If people end up with two or three heads because of GM crops, would that not mean more mouths to feed?

I always liked the term Frankinfood !

[Biggles]

I have read one or two of the divine Ms Schlafly's articles ... I find her endearingly dotty.

Nevertheless, the piece, whilst havng a mild foam about environmentalism, does raise a useful point about the endemic nature of disease in Africa. It is precisely this problem that shackles much of Africa and precisely where the West can provide specific and useful aid.

DDT has it's uses but it does kill fish and as mosquitos and water and fish all co-habit this does present difficulties for countries where subsistence fishing occurs. Lynx's point about genetic advances in dealing with Malaria is something that I saw in my newspaper a couple of weeks ago and may prove to be the most effective solution in the longer term.

Not sure what the problem with the World Bank is ... hardly the most Liberal of organs and is currently run by Mr Wolfowitz, as I recall.