Jeffery Smith's Confession

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I thought he was going to apologize.  Instead he asked for more money to keep the crazy boat afloat, as his non-profit is as bankrupt as his scientific messages. It was only a matter of time. 




Jeffrey Smith is the author of books and producer of documentaries, the origin of hundreds of talks, articles and websites, all extolling the dangers of genetic engineering. He once was one of the prominent figures in that arena, and maybe still is. However that that arena has transformed into a tiny handful of science-free experts continuing to convince the credulous that their food world is about to collapse at any second, and that Monsanto is around every corner with a frosty stein of cancer-causing glyphosate with their name on it.   

 Nobody is buying it anymore.  Two decades of fear-based messaging have influenced a culture by condemning failed agriculture, a corrupt regulatory system, and poison food supply.  But people keep eating. Sure there are boxes with butterflies and expensive boutique grocery outlets that exploit the ill-informed, but in general folks understand that food is safe. The most visible breaches of food safety often come as food poisoning from organic produce, the stuff that is supposed to cloak us in a happy silo of security. 

 Smith's video is from October 19, 2019, so after two months of the campaign there were zero comments and under 500 views. Nobody really cares anymore.

 His request for funding hinges on the tired old tropes of the "dangers of GMOs", and now includes rhetoric about the "threats of gene editing".  The appeals are logical leaps that ignore the science, but that's Smith's calling card.

 What he should do-- confess his actual mistakes.  The guy has an audience, maybe a somewhat visible presence in that community.  He should simply state that he was wrong, that there are no health issues, and that his new position will be to build confidence in the safety of the food system, help American agriculture, and ensure that the technologies can move faster to help those in need worldwide.  He could make a point of  promoting universities and small companies, pulling share away from the multinationals, and helping responsible technology reach those they were meant to serve. 

 Like the Food Babe, a little confession of ignorance, and a commitment to team with scientists to ensure food abundance and safety would raise his stock through the roof.  We like when people see the errors of their ways.  They are forgiven and welcomed into the scientific community with loving and open arms. 

 But alas, he's just digging in deeper.  

 At least nobody is paying attention. 

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