On Myth 2, Mr. Charles completely
adopts Monsanto's argument on these points and ignores the evidence
submitted by the plaintiffs in the OSGATA
et al v Monsanto lawsuit, like me, that Monsanto has repeatedly
accused
those contaminated with its seed of patent infringement, including Troy
Roush (as documented by the Associated Press
http://www.purefood.org/Monsanto/SeedSavingSuits.cfm)
and Dawn and David Runyon (as documented by CBS http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-18563_162-4048288.html).
Monsanto has not denied these cases, and instead points to other cases
where farmers were not contaminated. But just because Monsanto
sometimes sues farmers who intentionally used their seed DOES NOT mean
they've NEVER accused farmers who did not intentionally possess their
seed.
Further, what's the word "trace" mean when
Monsanto says "We won't sue farmers
for possessing TRACE amounts of our seed." Contamination is often
unnoticeable unless/until someone tests their seed supply or is
contaminated by RoundUp and then notices some of their field doesn't
suffer. Thus, contamination can be in much more than "trace" amounts.
Lastly, we asked Monsanto to simply put in writing that they'd never
sue us before we moved forward with the case. You can see all the
letters between us and them at the end of our Amended Complaint here http://www.pubpat.org/monsanto-seed-patents.htm.
Instead of simply confirming they'd never sue
us, since we want nothing to do with their GE seed, Monsanto instead
hired a team of lawyers and accused us, the plaintiffs, of trying to
pull a publicity stunt and being liars. I'd much rather be tending to
the work on my seed farm than being involved in a
lawsuit against one of the biggest, most aggressive companies in the
world, but I have to protect myself and this case, where we're only
seeking the peace of mind that Monsanto could never sue us for patent
infringement (and not a single dime), is the only way to do so.
If Mr. Charles really thinks its a "myth" that
Monsanto would ever sue me or my
co-plaintiffs or other organic, biodynamic and plainly non-GMO farmers
for patent infringement, I'd gladly take an insurance policy from him
offering to defend me from any potential accusations in the future. If
he's not willing to give me that insurance policy, then he's not
willing to put his money where his mouth is, which is exactly what I'm
being forced to do today, put my money and my business and my family's
future on the line hoping and praying Monsanto never sues me for patent
infringement when I get contaminated by their seed, something they do
not even dispute will happen due to the prevalence of their seed in the
marketplace.