UM scientist shares stories of Rumsfeld phone calls, possible reasons for bee colony collapse

[Newsjock]

Source: Missoulian

Researchers at the University of Montana have trained honeybees to safely locate land mines, but were banned from field-testing the bees' prowess overseas by former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

Senior field researcher Scott Debnam, part of UM's increasingly famous bee project, blew through a long list of fascinating facts about honeybees - and revealed a possible cause for Colony Collapse Disorder just discovered at UM a week ago - during his City Club Missoula presentation Monday.

... Debnam and others spent 10 months preparing to go overseas to start locating the hidden land mines that threaten literally millions of people worldwide. A week before their scheduled departure, Rumsfeld called to say the mission was off.

Why? If the U.S. showed the world that bees could find land mines, this nation could not then use bees for other defensive - domestic - purposes, Rumsfeld said. In other words, the U.S. doesn't have a domestic land-mine problem, so UM's bees should be used to defend this country in other ways.

Read more: http://missoulian.com/articles/2008/07/22/news/local/news05.txt

[Muttocracy]

1. but it's a fungus causing CCD, not the landmine/Rumsfeld connection

That was blowing my mind for a minute. :tinfoilhat:

"On Monday, Debnam also announced that exhaustive research has led to the conclusion that a fungus called Nosema Ceranae, combined with a pair of viruses, could well be the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder, which results in sick bees leaving their hives and not returning."

[SpiralHawk]

8. My view is that it's corporate GMOs* at the root of the problem

*Genetically Mutant Organisms

[Muttocracy]

9. Which GMOs? Commercial crops?

I think the combo of virus, fungus, mites, commercial honeybee transport, and pesticides is more likely based on the science so far.

[Captain Angry]

2. That was a fascinating article.

Bees detecting landmines, or poison? Two days to train them? Incredible.

[Hekate]

3. Jaw-dropping. Rummy is a fungus himself. Can't this info be written up in a scientific journal?...

It sounds like it was not a Top Secret federal project, or Debnam wouldn't be giving a lecture about it. Therefore, what is to stop this team from writing it all up and disseminating it in scientific journals? What with photocopy machines in every country on Earth, not to mention the Internet, the necessary know-how could spread rapidly. I hope that it does.

Hekate

[gtar100]

4. Rumsfeld is one sick person and he's dug himself one deep hole.

Imagine, the man has the mindset to stop this project because it might interfere in military weapons sales. No doubt there's a large group of these greedy shit heads who can't see beyond their pocketbook, but to see this in action is just more confirmation of the wretched filth his soul has become. It's confirmation that he and those he associates with would do *anything* for money. Funny though...nothing they can buy will save them from the long, torturous sleep at the end of it all as nature turns their filthy waste into compost. He may think he'll escape through oblivion, but none of us escape. Especially those who live so close to the rot, such as he and his kind. We all reap what we sow, personally and collectively.

[Ghost Dog]

5. Presumably, then, bees can be quickly trained to detect

(and indicate the presence of) just about any (volatile, presumably) substance.

Hmmm. Powerful.

And this technique is to be retained for exclusively US military/security use, huh?

Smells of bad karma to me.

[Joanne98]

6. So just what else are they training the bees to do?

[annabanana]

7. I'm sorry.. This story gave me a fit of the giggles...

(not the colony collapse part of course)

The thought that NOW, not only do we have to worry about the emails & phone calls being tapped, we have to keep an eagle eye on the garden..

[The Backlash Cometh]

10. Rumsfeld stole our bees?

Is there nothing sacred to that man?

[dsotm-wywh]

11. Don't forget to buy your Gilead Sciences stock!!!

This reminded me. The bird flu scam is still on full throttle and Gilead Sciences and Rummy are laughing all the way to the bank. You can't beat 'em so join 'em.

GILD - Nasdaq - up 30% in the past 12 months. Has almost tripled in the past 4 years, with a split in 2007. I predict this ones gonna keep going up for the next year or two until the whole Bird Flu thing flies the coop.