>I appreciate your points, but I don't agree with all of them.

I'm curious as to which you don't agree with, and why?  I'm happy to
continue to discuss them, and am also enjoying this discussion, as it is
finally getting to the real meat of some issues.

> Ridicule and put-downs do exactly the opposite.

I completely agree!  I'm not here to win any arguments--I'm here to learn
and share information.  I dislike it when the discussion gets personal,
since it's not about the person, it's about facts and interpretation.  I'd
rather lose a debate and learn that I was in error in my thinking, than to
win the debate unknowingly being wrong.

>I don't subscribe to the "this poison is better than that one" thinking.
 I believe we have to be more intelligent about how we use poisons in
addition to being smarter about which ones to use, and I think the "here's
the best one" or "this one is safe" mentalities seriously hinder us.

Unfortunately, those are exactly the sort of decisions that those who apply
pesticides must make every day--which one is "best" for the purpose, or
"safest" for the purpose.  There is a risk to applying any pesticide, and
risk to the grower in not applying one.  It's all about the weighing of the
risks and benefits involved.

In answer to Charlie, the crop is lined with a fairly thick layer of
chitin, and little is apparently absorbed through that lining.

--
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com

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