First and foremost, I am appalled by the fact that life forms can be patented! I knew about this before the film because I do a lot of research on industrialized animal agriculture and found out that Monsanto was trying to patent a breed of genetically modified pig a couple of years ago. The ethical issues here should be obvious, and the threats to biodiversity are dangerously scary.
I had no idea that news stations can lie, cover up, and fabricate stories as much as they want. I was certainly being ignorant, but it didn’t occur to me that they are nothing more than a business. They show what sells, nothing more and nothing less. What really bothers me is how the public completely absorbs what they see on the news and make a point to watch it religiously. That is quite frightening because their opinions are completely in the hands of a corporation. Even my own parents are completely brainwashed by the television. When the swine flu was blown out of proportion, they bought hand sanitizer. When Michael Jackson died, of course they had to watch the documentaries about his life. When natural disaster struck Haiti this winter, it was likely the first time many Americans had even heard if that country (since it is the poorest in the Western Hemisphere, and therefore doesn’t fit in with the capitalist regime).
When I watched to segment about the World Bank charging the impoverished people of Bolivia for WATER, I became, once again, outraged with the World Bank! Water is a human right; all people should have access to the clean water that they need for survival. Period. I’m not sure I have ever heard good things about the World Bank. The last time I was reading about that particular institution it was about how they essentially force impoverished tropical countries to grow food to sell cheaply to places like the United States. I mean come on, did anyone ever wonder why we have such unlimited access to bananas when the people in the countries where they grow are starving?
And finally, words of hope that I love to hear which were in the film: “The People, united, will never be defeated!”
My parents are completely TV brainwashed too. Is it the generation? The falsifying the news bit on Monsanto always throws me over the edge! Yes, thankfully the film ends on a positive, activist note. Love that part! And it should remind us all that indeed, WE are the only ones who can make a difference - if and when we choose to ACT!
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