It looks like you're new to The Community. If you'd like to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Login Here Signup Here Signup using Facebook
Meditating
Raw Newbie
I was looking online for information on ways to test food to determine if it was GMO. I came across information on this professor, which made the hair stand up on my neck.
Professor Steve Kurtz, an art professor at University of Buffalo, State University of New York, is a founding member of the award winning Critical Art Ensemble (CAE), which uses art to entice the public to examine issues surroudning information, communication and biotechnologies.
In May 2004, Kurtz called 911 to report the death of his wife, Hope Kurtz, by congenital heart failure. In order to create their art installations the Kurtzes sometimes worked with biological equipment and had a small home lab and petri dishes containing biological specimens. At the time of Hope Kurtz’s death they were working on an exhibit about genetically modified agriculture for the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. Their art project included a way for consumers to test food to see if it included genetically modified organisms.
Buffalo police deemed these materials suspicious and notified the FBI, who detained Kurtz for 22 hours without charge on suspicion of “bioterrorism.” Meanwhile, dozens of federal agents in hazardous material suits raided the Kurtz home, seizing books, computers, manuscripts, and art materials, and removing Hope Kurtz’s body from the county coroner for further analysis.
Kurtz was allowed to return to his home one week later, after the Commissioner of Public Health for New York State had determined that nothing in the home posed any sort of public or environmental health or safety threat, and that Hope Kurtz had died of natural causes.
In July 2004 a grand jury refused to bring any “bioterrorism” charges, but did indict Kurtz on federal criminal mail fraud and wire fraud charges. Also indicted was Dr. Robert Ferrell, Professor of Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, who served as a scientific consultant on Critical Art Ensemble’s projects. The charges concern the way Kurtz and Ferrell allegedly ordered and mailed the non-pathogenic bacteria used in several museum installations. Under the USA PATRIOT Act the maximum possible sentence for these charges has increased from five to twenty years in prison. [10]
In October 2007, Ferrell pleaded “guilty” to misdemeanor charges. Ferrell’s wife and daughter subsequently issued public statements saying the plea deal was due to the stress of the case and severe illness (Ferrell is a 27 year survivor of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and suffered a series of strokes following his indictment in 2004).
From what I could find online, charges are still pending against Professor Kurtz and you have to wonder why the US government is pushing this issue. Nothing he had was dangerous. There is nothing linking him to any terrorist organizations. I suspect the issue was the content of his speech.
I invite members here to look for information about this incident and educate yourself about what is happening. I just found this a litle while ago and the implications are enormous. Hopefully, some of you will share information you find on this thread. Thanks.
Comments
Wow. Thanks for the info Dain. I will pass this along to the people in my Meetup group who are aware of Codex and members of our gov’t’s intertwinement.
aspire, you refer to your meetup group. That’s a Ron Paul advocate term. Are you a RP supporter?
Hi 123. I am a member of some Kansas City and metro area Meetups for raw vegan foods, conscious awareness, and superfoods groups. I knew there are Ron Paul groups in the big Meetup.com base, but did not realize it was a RP term. ?? (Hope my writing makes sense!?) Anyway, I kind of discussed my dilemna about not sure now who to support as far as Obama or Ron Paul on the “Everybody Needs to Know This” thread with SimplyRaw around page 4-5. I have always leaned more towards the Dems in my voting, although I consider myself an Independent. I was 100% for Kucinch until he dropped out and was devastated (still am) when he did. I love that Ron Paul has publicly taken on Codex and America’s Food Reform. LOVE IT! There are a couple of other stances he takes (anti-big corps, for one) that really resonate with me. On the flip side, I am still not sure because his stance on some other major issues (to me) do not resonate with what I feel are a positive direction in mentality for us and our country. I am going to research more fully what his postitions are in case I have misunderstood, but the anti-Codex stance is a huge, huge issue to me.
Obama seems to resonate true positive change although he is vague on many of his issues, which makes me unsure. Perhaps he is vague to keep some powerful corrupt groups from realizing his true intentions to help the “little guys,” the People of America??? I realize that our “two party system” is really a “one party system” though, and that makes me incredibly nervous- that our Dems and Repubs are both in it together and the regualr people are mere pawns no matter which side we vote for. Ron Paul seems to be out of that “puppet” loop though, since he is not supported by the mass media and big corps. I know we need something truly DIFFERENT to come about, but I am not sure who can or will be the person to be courageous and strong enough, along with having the true integrity to take on the changes we so desperately need. Perhaps I will start a new thread about this topic to possibly gain some more insight on the candidates and our options. I am trying not to stress too much about knowing for sure just yet, believing my instincts and intuition will guide me more strongly as I learn more each day.
I take it you are a Ron Paul supporter? I’d love to talk to you about it. I’ll start a new thread in case you and/or others are interested. :)
Yes, I’m a huge Ron Paul supporter. Meetup isn’t a term exclusive to RP, but the groups that support him use that term for their meetings. I am terribly concerned for this country because we’re jumping from the frying pan into the fire with the three major candidates, I’m not loyal to a party, and I think that they’re devisive. I would like to see Ron Paul as president. I would rather be told the truth for a change instead of the political spin that we have become used to, conditioned with. This isn’t new, but few men have stood up against it. Ron Paul is one of those men. I like Ralph Nader too.
The case of Artist/Professor Kurtz is frightening; however, this time the judge issued an appropriate remedy – the case was dismissed. I have no doubt that the US government brought these criminal charges to chill public debate and citizen opposition to genetically modified foods. A press release today, listed below, cleared Prof. Kurtz of all charges.
Please read this account to educate yourself on how our government seeks to use this insidious law to silence those who are concerned about the movement to place corporate profits about human health. “Nutricide,” is the term used for efforts to deplete food of its nutritional value, substitute GMO foods in their place, and force citizens to pay big Pharma for all of our nutritional needs. We all need to add “nutricide” to our vocabulary, recognize its signs, and keep ourselves and others informed.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 11, 2008
CONTACTS: Email: media@caedefensefund.org Dr. Steven J. Kurtz: (716) 812-2968 Lucia Sommer, CAE Defense Fund: (716) 359-3061 Edmund Cardoni, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center: (716) 854-1694
ARTIST CLEARED OF ALL CHARGES IN PRECEDENT-SETTING CASE Department of Justice Fails to Appeal Dismissal Kurtz Speaks about Four-Year Ordeal
Buffalo, NY—Dr. Steven Kurtz, a Professor of Visual Studies at SUNY at Buffalo and cofounder of the award-winning art and theater group Critical Art Ensemble, has been cleared of all charges of mail and wire fraud. On April 21, Federal Judge Richard J. Arcara dismissed the government’s entire indictment against Dr. Kurtz as “insufficient on its face.” This means that even if the actions alleged in the indictment (which the judge must accept as “fact”) were true, they would not constitute a crime. The US Department of Justice had thirty days from the date of the ruling to appeal. No action has been taken in this time period, thus stopping any appeal of the dismissal. According to Margaret McFarland, a spokeswoman for US Attorney Terrance P. Flynn, the DoJ will not appeal Arcara’s ruling and will not seek any new charges against Kurtz.
For over a decade, cultural institutions worldwide have hosted Kurtz and Critical Art Ensemble’s educational art projects, which use common science materials to examine issues surrounding the new biotechnologies. In 2004 the Department of Justice alleged that Dr. Kurtz had schemed with colleague Dr. Robert Ferrell of the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health to illegally acquire two harmless bacteria cultures for use in one of those projects. The Justice Department further alleged that the transfer of the material from Ferrell to Kurtz broke a material transfer agreement, thus constituting mail fraud.
Under the USA PATRIOT Act, the maximum sentence for these charges was increased from five years to twenty years in prison.
Dr. Kurtz has been fighting the charges ever since. In October 2007, Dr. Ferrell pleaded to a lesser misdemeanor charge after recurring bouts of cancer and three strokes suffered since his indictment prevented him from continuing the struggle.
KURTZ SUMS UP END OF FOUR-YEAR NIGHTMARE
Finally vindicated after four years of struggle, Kurtz, asked for a statement, responded stoically: “I don’t have a statement, but I do have questions. As an innocent man, where do I go to get back the four years the Department of Justice stole from me? As a taxpayer, where do I go to get back the millions of dollars the FBI and Justice Department wasted persecuting me? And as a citizen, what must I do to have a Justice Department free of partisan corruption so profound it has turned on those it is sworn to protect?”
Said Kurtz’s attorney, Paul Cambria, “I am glad an innocent man has been vindicated. Steve Kurtz stared in the face of the federal government and a twenty-year prison term and never flinched, because he believes in his work and his actions were those of a completely innocent man. Clients like him are a blessing, and although I have had many important victories, this one stands at the top of the list.”
As coordinator of the CAE Defense Fund, a group organized to support Kurtz from the beginning of the case, Lucia Sommer sees the end of the prosecution as bittersweet, and like Kurtz, is thoughtful about the broader significance of the case: “This ruling is the best possible ending to a horrible ordeal—but we are mindful of numerous cases still pending, and the grave injustices perpetrated by the Bush administration following 9/11. This case was part of a larger picture, in which law enforcement was given expanded powers. In this instance, the Bush administration was unsuccessful in its attempt to erode Americans’ constitutional rights.”
Referring to the international outcry the case provoked, involving fundraisers and protests held on four continents, Sommer said, “The government has unlimited resources to bring and prosecute these kinds of charges, but the accused often don’t have any resources to defend themselves. This victory could never have happened without the activism of thousands of people. Supporters protested, vocally opposed the prosecution, and refused to let it go on in silence. And without their efforts at fundraising, Kurtz and Ferrell would not have been able to defend themselves from these false accusations.”
Sommer added that the next step for the defense will be to get back all of the materials taken by the FBI during its 2004 raid on the Kurtz home, including several completed art projects, as well as Dr. Kurtz’s lab equipment, computers, books, manuscripts, notes, research materials, and personal belongings. The four confiscated art projects are the subject of an exhibition entitled SEIZED on view at “Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center in Buffalo, NY, through July 18”: http://www.hallwalls.org/visual_shows/2008/show….
BACKGROUND TO THE CASE
The case originated in May 2004, when Kurtz’s wife Hope died of heart failure as the couple was preparing a project about genetically modified agriculture for the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. Police who responded to Steve Kurtz’s 911 call deemed the Kurtzes’ art materials suspicious and alerted the FBI. Kurtz explained that the materials (legally and easily obtained basic life science equipment and two harmless bacteria samples) had already been displayed at museums throughout Europe and North America with absolutely no risk to the public. However, the following day, Kurtz was illegally detained for 22 hours on suspicion of bioterrorism, as dozens of agents from the FBI, Joint Terrorism Task Force, Homeland Security, Department of Defense, ATF, and numerous other law enforcement agencies raided his home, seizing his personal and professional belongings.
After a federal grand jury refused to charge Kurtz with bioterrorism, Kurtz and Ferrell were indicted on two counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud concerning the acquisition of of harmless bacteria for one of Critical Art Ensemble’s educational art projects. Critical Art Ensemble is the recipient of numerous awards for its projects, including the prestigious 2007 Andy Warhol Foundation Wynn Kramarsky Freedom of Artistic Expression Grant, in recognition of Twenty Years of Distinguished Work.
The Department of Justice brought the charges in spite of the fact that the alleged “victims of fraud”—American Type Culture Collection and the University of Pittsburgh—never filed any charges or complained of any wrongdoing, and the fact that in bringing the charges the Department of Justice was acting completely outside its own Prosecution Policy Relating to Mail Fraud and Wire Fraud.
For more information and extensive documentation, including the judge’s dismissal, please visit the CAE Defend Fund Website.
Meditating -
Thanks for the update!
I was unaware of the term ”Nutricide”. I have seen the word thrown around here and there. But I had no idea what the definition was or the intentions behind the use of the word. Maybe we should start a thread called “Nutricide”.