Adding another blow to Monsanto’s loss last week to a school groundskeeper who successfully sued the ag giant for contributing to his terminal cancer, Vietnam is now demanding that Monsanto compensate the country’s victims of Agent Orange. The herbicide was used during the Vietnam War as a defoliant.
Around 12 million gallons were sprayed between 1961 and 1971, the Independent says, leaving devastating consequences to Vietnamese unfortunate enough to be in the way when the spray came, including cancers and birth defects, to name just two. Monsanto’s response is that it’s the government that ordered Agent Orange’s specifications and, besides, there were eight other contractors manufacturing it, too.
That Monsanto’s first reaction is to slough off any responsibility and push it on to somebody else is not surprising. After all, that’s what the lawsuit that Dewayne Johnson proved this company did for decades, as they hid the true dangers of their herbicide, Roundup. Over the years, Monsanto has been accused of — and in some cases found guilty of — lying about and/or covering up the harmful effects of Roundup. Now, the first of thousands of legal cases against Monsanto has resulted in victory, and the conspiracy to hide the truth is plain for all to see.
You can read more about this in my previous article, “Evidence EPA Colluded With Monsanto to Dismiss Cancer Concerns Grows Stronger.” You can also review key documents from this case on the U.S. Right to Know website, but the bottom line is that Monsanto is determined not to take responsibility, no matter how damning the evidence.
The good news — if you can call it “good” — is that thousands of Roundup-related lawsuits are waiting in the wings to force Monsanto to at least face what they did, even if they won’t admit it. There really is no logical answer to all this, except to warn you as you see pro-Monsanto articles come out that these counter-articles are fake, too.
That’s because “orchestrated fake news” stories have been used to further the corporate agenda of many big industry giants, including and especially Monsanto. These stories are purposely contrived to confuse people about the science, using front groups such that sound believable and scientific, such as Science Media Centre and the American Council on Science and Health, both of which I’ve written about previously and started calling out in 2013.
With the recent lawsuit, Monsanto plans to appeal because, as you’d expect, Monsanto rejects the court’s ruling. They have an uphill battle, so I predict the forces will be out with fake news everywhere, so be forewarned: Look closely at who’s putting out the Monsanto support arguments and don’t be lured in.