Apéndice A: ¿Cual es el problema con el plástico?

When you eat or drink things that are stored in plastic, taste it, smell it, wear it, sit on it, and so on, plastic is incorporated into you. In fact, the plastic gets into the food and food gets into the plastic and you. So, quite literally, you are what you eat. . . drink. . . and breathe – plastic! These plastics are called "Food Contact Substances" by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but until April 2002, they were called "Indirect Food Additives."

In a nutshell, plastic is made by combining monomers into polymers under great heat and pressure in a process called polymerization. Each manufacturer has its own proprietary formula for each plastic. And each uses a variety of additives such as plasticizers for flexibility, UV filters for protection from sunlight, antistatic agents, flame-retardants, colorants, antioxidants, and more. Heavy metals such as cadmium, mercury, and lead are common additives. There are also chemicals used to facilitate production such as mold releases, and countless other toxic chemicals regularly added to plastic consumer goods without our knowledge or approval. Many of the products and byproducts of the intermediary steps of plastics production are used in other plastics or

industrial processes and products such as pesticides or fertilizer.

Migration is the movement of free toxins from plastic into the substances they contact – in this case it's your food. For decades, the plastics industry has deceived us with assurances that the polymerization process binds the constituent chemicals together so perfectly that the resulting plastic is completely nontoxic and passes through us without a hitch. In spite of this industry disinformation, the polymerization process is never 100% perfect. Logically then, there are always toxicants available for migration into the many things they contact – your food, air, water, skin, and so on. Both the FDA and the industry know this. However, because of many millions of dollars worth of advertising and public relations work, consumers are educated to think that plastics are safe.

The additives utilized are not bound to the already imperfect plastic, leaving them quite free to migrate. One quick example: without a plasticizer additive, PVC would be rigid. The plasticizer resides between the molecules of the PVC, acting as a lubricant that allows those molecules to slide by each other, and thus flex. Many containers used for food or water are made of it. Even Barbie dolls are made of it. The plasticizer migrates out from day one. And as it ages, the migration can visibly weep out of it.

Plastics, their additives and other processing chemicals can be toxic at extremely low concentrations. In fact, some are significantly more toxic at extremely low concentrations than at much higher concentrations. (...) Except on chemical-by-chemical investigations by various independent, institutional, and academic labs, plastics are not explored for harmful effects or regulated in any meaningful way.

Water bottles are made from various types of plastic - (...) they all migrate to some degree.

The manufacture of plastic itself must be halted for a multitude of reasons. Besides causing an endless number of human deaths, disabilities, and diseases, plastic is clogging all habitats of the world and destroying the ecosystem. There is now 6 times more plastic than plankton (a major food source for sea animals) floating around in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

For instance: Bisphenol-A (BPA) is a monomer used in the synthesis of PC plastics, epoxy resins, and composites, as well as a heat stabilizer in PVC. The list of products containing BPA is long. Some rigid containers such as water and baby bottles are made of PC. In the medical industry, it is used for syringes, containers, lenses, and dental products. Today it is common that dentists coat children's teeth with dental sealants that harden (polymerize) within the mouth. This exposure to BPA is large enough to have biologic effects. Food and beverages cans are coated with a BPA-containing plastic. The list of negative health effects associated in some way with exposure to BPA is remarkably long. The most visible effect may be aneuploidy, a chromosome abnormality found in more than 5% of pregnancies. Most aneuploid fetuses die in utero. About one-third of all miscarriages are aneuploid, making it the leading known cause of pregnancy loss. Among conceptions that survive to term, aneuploidy is the leading genetic cause of developmental disabilities and mental retardation. About 1 in 300 liveborn infants and 1 in 3 miscarriages are aneuploid. It is associated with Down syndrome, Patau syndrome, Edwards syndrome, Klinefelter syndrome, Turner syndrome, Cri du chat syndrome, and Alzheimer's disease.

Being one of many known endocrine disruptors, BPA affects development, intelligence, memory, learning, and behavior, skeleton, body size and shape, significant increase in prostate size, decreased epididymal weight and a longer anogenital distance, prostate cancer, reduced sperm count, both physical and mental aspects of sexuality. It may have something to do with obesity. Exposure to BPA increases risk of mammary tumors.

(fuente: Get Plastic Out Of Your Diet, Mindfully, Paul Goettlich, 16-11-2003

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Apéndice B

US interventions in Latin America since 1823

• 1823: The Monroe Doctrine declares that Latin America is within the United States' "sphere of influence".
• 1846: The US goes to war with Mexico and the latter is forced to cede half its national territory to its northern "neighbour", including present-day Texas and California.
• 1854: The US navy bombards and destroys the Nicaraguan port town of San Juan del Norte. The attack occurred after US millionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt sailed his yacht into the port and an official attempted to levy charges on his boat. The navy attack was to pave the way for William Walker.
• 1855: William Walker, operating on behalf of bankers Morgan & Garrison, invades Nicaragua and proclaims himself President. During his two year rule, Walker also invaded neighbouring El Salvador and Honduras (proclaiming himself head of state in each of these countries also). Walker restored slavery in areas under his occupation.
• 1898: The US declares war on Spain and annexes Guam, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Hawaii. US forces also occupied Cuba, another former Spanish colony, after the war.
• 1901: US forces leave Cuba and the country gains its "independence" only after passage of the infamous Platt Amendment, under which the US abrogated to itself the "right" to intervene in Cuba's internal affairs at any time. Cuba was also forced to cede Gauntanamo Bay to the US, in perpetuity.
• 1903: The US "encourages" the creation of the separate state of Panama, then a part of Colombia and acquires rights to the Panama Canal. In later years, former President Theodore Roosevelt - the effective creator of Panama - was to remark: "I took the Canal Zone and let Congress debate". Colombia was later paid $25 million in compensation.
• 1905: US President Theodore Roosevelt declares the United States to be "the policeman" of the Caribbean; the Dominican Republic (then part of Hispaniola) is then found to have committed an offence and is placed under a "customs receivership".
• 1912: U.S. marines invade Nicaragua, beginning an occupation that was to last almost continuously until 1933. In the same year, President Taft declares: "The day is not far distant when three Stars & Stripes at three equidistant points will mark our territory: one at the North Pole, another at the Panama Canal and the third at the South Pole. The whole hemisphere will be ours in fact as, by virtue of our superiority of race, it already is ours morally."
• 1914: The US navy shells the port city of Veracruz, an attack apparently caused by the refusal of some Mexicans to salute the Stars & Stripes. During World War I, the US also invaded Mexico and Hispaniola (present day Dominican Republic and Haiti). They stayed for 20 years.
• 1933: US forces leave Nicaragua leaving dictator Anastasio Somoza and his National Guard in control.
• 1954: The CIA orchestrates the overthrow of the democratically-elected government of Jacobo Arbenz, in Guatemala. A Guatemalan poet described the Arbenz government as "years of spring in a country of eternal tyranny." Almost 40 years of violence and repression followed, culminating in the "scorched earth" government terror of the 1980s. Over 150,000 people lost their lives.
• 1961: US-backed forces invade Cuba but suffer defeat at the Bay of Pigs.
• 1965: 23,000 troops sent to the Dominican Republic to "restore order", following a popular uprising against the country's military regime.
• 1973: A US-backed coup overthrows the elected government of Salvador Allende, ushering in the regime of General Augusto Pinochet.
• 1981: The Reagan Administration initiates the "contra war" against the Sandinista government in Nicaragua.
• 1983: US invasion of Grenada.
• 1989: US invasion of Panama to arrest one-time protégé, Manual Noriega. The operation leaves thousands of civilian casualties.
• 1990: Massive US intervention in the Nicaraguan election process through covert and overt means. Washington openly funded the opposition coalition, yet such foreign funding of US parties would be illegal under US law.
• 2000: As part of the "War on Drugs", the US launches Plan Colombia, a massive civil and military aid programme for a country with perhaps the worst human rights record in the hemisphere. Total US funding is $1.3 bn, with 83 percent of that going to the military. Plan Colombia later becomes subsumed into the War on Terror.
• 2002: The US supports and funds elements that organised the unsuccessful April 11 coup in Venezuela. (The Revolution will not be Televised, Filmed & Directed By Kim Bartley & Donnacha O Briain, 2002)

USA Invasions, Bombings, Military Aid, Political Interventions and Sanctions in the world since 1947

Year	Country	Action	Reason Given	Actual Reason
1947	France	Election Finance; Economic Coersion	Communism	Wanted pro-USA government and French recolonisation of Vietnam.
1947	Italy	Election Finance; Economic Coersion	Communism	Wanted pro-USA and pro-business government.
1947	Greece	Military Backing	Communism	Wanted pro-USA government and military bases.
1947	Philippines	Election Finance	None	Military bases.
1948	Peru	Military Backing	None	Control of government.
1948	Vietnam	Military Backing	Communism	Support for French recolonisation. Fear of independent Vietnam.
1948	Nicaragua	Military Backing	None	Pro-USA government and access to plantations.
1949	China	Arms Sales; Bombing	Communism	Access to a pro-USA and pro-business government.
1950	Colombia	Food Aid	Humanitarian	Destruction of an agricultural rival.
1950	Korea	Killing Civilians	None	Unknown.
1950	Puerto Rico	Military Action	None	To crush independence movement.
1953	Philippines	Election Finance	None	Wanted pro-USA government and military bases.
1954	Vietnam	Military Backing	Communism	Fear of united and powerful independent country.
1955	Europe	Election Finance	None	Wanted united pro-USA, pro-NATO and anti-socialist Europe.
1956	Egypt	Sanctions	Communism	Country took ownership of its Suez Canal and opposed USA Middle East policy.
1957	Jordan	Military Training	None	Wanted strong pro-USA government.
1958	Lebanon	Military Action	None	Removal of anti-West dissidents.
1958	Indonesia	Election Finance	None	Government is against USA business interests.
1958	Japan	Election Finance	None	To keep pro-USA governments in power.
1959	Haiti	Military Action	None	To crush rebellion against pro-USA government.
1959	Nepal	Covert Action	None	To help pro-USA government win power.
1960	Congo	Assassination	None	Wanted to remove popular and nationalist leader; access to minerals.
1960	Cuba	Trade Embargo	Communism	Country using its resources for its own people.
1960	Iraq	Destabilisation	None	Leader founds and supports OPEC.
1961	Cuba	Secret Invasion	None	Country using its resources for its own people.
1961	Dominican Republic	Assassination	None	Unknown.
1962	Vietnam	Military Action	Communism	Country wanted unity and independence.
1962	Cuba	Economic Sabotage	None	Country using its resources for its own people.
1962	Brazil	Election Finance	None	Wanted pro-business government.
1962	Dominican Republic	Political Coersion	None	Unknown.
1963	Iraq	Assassination; Intelligence	Communism	Previous government against USA oil interests; removal of dissidents.
1963	El Salvador	Advisors	Communism	Removal of anti-USA dissidents.
1964	North Vietnam	Bombing	None	Removal of independent government.
1964	South Vietnam	Torture Training	Communism	Suppression of independence movements.
1964	Panama	Military Action	Law and Order	Suppression of movement demanding return of canal.
1965	Vietnam	Military Action	Communism	To keep the country from uniting.
1965	Dominican Republic	Intervention	Communism	To keep elected leader from returning to power.
1965	Indonesia	Intelligence	Communism	Removal of dissidents. Helping a pro-business regime.
1965	Laos	Destabilisation; Bombing	Communism	Denial of support for Vietnam.
1965	Thailand	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government; military bases.
1965	Peru	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government.
1966	Vietnam	Village Clearing; Bombing	Communism	Political control of the country.
1966	Laos	Bombing	None	Denial of support for Vietnam.
1966	Central Africa	Finance	None	Access to uranium.
1966	Bolivia	Election Finance	None	Access to minerals and oil.
1967	Vietnam	Military Action	Communism	Political control of the country.
1967	Cuba	Assassination	None	Removal of popular leader.
1968	Vietnam	Village Clearing; Bombing	Communism	Political control of country.
1969	Cambodia	Secret Bombing	None	Denial of support for Vietnam.
1969	Vietnam	Military Action	Communism	Political control of country.
1970	North Vietnam	Bombing	None	Control of country.
1970	Uruguay	Torture Training	None	To keep opposition from taking power.
1970	Oman	Military Assistance	None	Unknown.
1971	Laos	Invasion	None	Control of country.
1971	Vietnam	Military Action	None	Control of country.
1972	North Vietnam	Blockade; Bombing	None	Control of country.
1972	Nicaragua	Troops	Business interests	Support for business and pro-USA government.
1972	Australia	Election Finance	None	Did not like Labour Party foreign policy.
1972	Iraq	Aid to Kurds	Humanitarian	To destabilise Iraq as it had a quarrel with USA ally, Iran.
1973	Cambodia	Bombing	None	Control of country.
1974	Vietnam	Trade Embargo	Communism	The Vietnamese were winning against the USA.
1974	Zaire	Military Aid	None	Control of resources.
1974	Portugal	Election Finance	None	Did not want socialist government to take power.
1975	Vietnam	Economic Attack	Communism	To stop country developing as a model for the region.
1975	East Timor	Support of Invasion	None	Did not want a new independent state; oil.
1975	Iraq	Change of Support	None	Kurdish rebels no longer of use.
1975	Morocco	Support of Invasion	None	Morocco grants use of military bases in return.
1976	Indonesia	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government.
1976	Philippines	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government.
1977	Pakistan	Military Aid	None	Support for unelected pro-USA government.
1977	Egypt	Economic Coersion	None	To remove Egypt from the anti-Israel camp.
1977	Zaire	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government.
1977	Indonesia	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government.
1978	Guatemala	Military Aid; Economic Aid	None	Support for unelected pro-USA government.
1979	Iran	Habouring Dictator	None	New government wants control of its resources, especially oil.
1979	Central Africa	Economic Aid	None	Support for pro-business government.
1979	Afghanistan	Military Aid	Repel USSR	To repel USSR and break their economy.
1979	Cambodia	Aid to Khmer Rouge	None	To please new ally China; to antagonise Vietnam.
1979	Vietnam	Economic Blockade	Communism	To stop country developing as a model for the region.
1979	Yemen	Military Aid	None	To please ally, Saudi Arabia.
1980	El Salvador	Military Aid	Communism	Stop opposition to pro-USA government.
1980	Honduras	Troops	Communism	Protect resources and create anti-Nicaragua bases.
1980	Iraq	Military Aid	Islamic Iran	Wanted to destabilise new anti-USA government of Iran.
1980	Cambodia	Military Aid	None	To destabilise Vietnamese backed government and to please new ally, China.
1980	Italy	Terrorism	None	To discredit socialist election candidates and to heighten fear of the USSR.
1980	South Korea	Military Aid; Political Support	None	Suppress opposition to pro-USA government.
1981	Tanzania	Economic Coersion	Communism	Wanted the country to change its economy to suit USA companies.
1981	El Salvador	Military Aid	Communism	Stop opposition to pro-USA government.
1981	Libya	Provocation	Terrorism	To destabilise an anti-West government.
1981	Indo-China	Economic Coersion	Communism	To stop the independent development of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
1982	Lebanon	Troops	Humanitarian	To help Israel remove Palestinians.
1982	Guatemala	Military Aid	None	To suppress opposition to pro-USA government.
1982	South Africa	Financial Aid	Terrorism	To help South Africa destabilise the region.
1982	Afghanistan	Military Aid	Communism	To replace USSR backed government by the USA backed government.
1982	Iraq	Military Aid	Islamic Iran	To support Iraq's war against the anti-USA government of Iran.
1983	Lebanon	Troops; Bombing	Peace Keeping	To ensure pro-USA factions won the civil war.
1983	Nicaragua	Blockade; Arming Rebels	Communism	To replace government with pro-USA regime.
1983	Zimbabwe	Economic Coersion	None	Government had too independent foreign policy.
1984	Mozambique	Economic Coersion	Communism	To stop support for democracy in South Africa.
1985	Lebanon	Car Bomb	Assassination	To remove anti-Israel and anti-USA dissidents.
1985	New Zealand	Economic Coersion	None	Country backed nuclear free Pacific.
1985	Chad	Military Aid; Financial Aid	None	Support for non-elected pro-USA regime.
1985	Honduras	Military Aid; Training	Communism	To destabilise elected government of Nicaragua.
1986	Nicaragua	Military Aid	Communism	To destabilise elected government.
1986	Libya	Bombing	Terrorism	To destabilise the country.
1987	Iran	Provocation	Terrorism	To destabilise the country.
1988	Iran	Provocation	Terrorism	To destabilise the country.
1988	Iraq	Military Aid	Islamic Iran	Support for Iraq in its war against Iran.
1988	Colombia	Military Aid	Drugs	Support for pro-USA government.
1988	El Salvador	Military Aid	Communism	Support for pro-USA government.
1988	Turkey	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA government.
1989	El Salvador	Military Aid	Communism	Support for pro-USA government.
1989	Panama	Invasion; Diplomatic Violation	Drugs	To ensure control over the Panama Canal.
1989	Cambodia	Military Aid	None	To destabilise Vietnamese backed government and to please China.
1989	Libya	Provocation	Terrorism	To destabilise the country because it is anti-USA and pro-Palestinian.
1990	Nicaragua	Election Finance	Communism	To ensure that a pro-USA government was elected.
1990	El Salvador	Military Training	Communism	Support of the pro-USA government.
1990	Guatemala	Military Aid	Communism	Support for the pro-USA government.
1990	Bulgaria	Election Finance	Communism	Did not want a socialist government in power.
1990	Germany	Document Theft	None	Unknown.
1991	Iraq	Invasion; UN Violation; Sanctions	Free Kuwait	To ensure that Iraq became less powerful.
1991	Philippines	Disinformation	None	Military bases.
1992	Somalia	Invasion	Humanitarian	To ensure that a pro-West government took control.
1992	Colombia	Military Aid	Drugs	To remove anti-USA elements.
1992	Albania	Election Finance	Communism	Did not want a socialist government in power.
1992	Angola	Military Aid	Communism	Wanted access to oil and diamonds.
1993	Iraq	Bombing	UN Violations	To ensure that Iraq does not flood the oil market, lowering the price.
1993	Cuba	Trade Embargo	Communism	Country using its resources for its own people.
1994	Haiti	Troops; Document Theft	Democracy	To ensure that a pro-west government is elected.
1994	Jordan	Financial Aid	Humanitarian	To obtain agreement with Israel's view that Palestinian refugees do not have a right of return.
1994	Colombia	Military Aid	Drug Trafficking	To suppress opposition to pro-USA government.
1995	Turkey	Military Aid	None	To keep a pro-USA government happy while it attacks Kurds.
1995	Iraq	Sanctions; Bombing	UN Violations	To ensure that Iraq does not flood the oil market, lowering the price.
1995	Mexico	Military Aid	Drug Trafficking	To crush opposition to USA business interests.
1995	Iran	Sanctions	Terrorism	Country using its resources for its own people.
1996	Iraq	Sanctions; Bombing	UN Violations	To keep the country weak and to destabilise the government.
1996	Mongolia	Election Finance	Communism	To help elect a pro-USA government that would allow electronic monitoring of China.
1997	Rwanda	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-West government.
1997	Iraq	Sanctions	UN Violations	To replace the government with one that is more pro-West.
1998	Afghanistan	Bombing	Terrorism	To destroy terror camps built by the USA to fight the USSR and now suspected of being used against the USA.
1998	Iraq	Sanctions; Bombing	UN Violations	To replace the government with one that is more pro-West.
1998	Sudan	Bombing	Terrorism	Unknown.
1998	Turkey	Military Aid	None	Support for pro-USA NATO country.
1998	Guatemala	Military Aid	None	Suppression of opposition to pro-USA government.
1998	South Korea	Food Aid	Humanitarian	To make the country dependent on USA produced food.
1999	Yugoslavia	Bombing	Humanitarian	European business interests.
1999	Iraq	Bombing	UN Violations	To destabilise independent Arab regime.
1999	Guatemala	Military Aid	None	Suppression of opposition to pro-USA government.
2000	Israel	Military Aid; Economic Aid; Political Support	Terrorism	Support for a strongly pro-West country in the Middle East.
2000	Kyrgyzstan	Financial Aid	Humanitarian	To gain influence in oil rich Central Asia.
2001	Colombia	Military Aid	Drug Trafficking	To protect USA oil companies from dissidents.
2001	China	Provocation	Communism	To obtain secrets and intimidate independent country.
2001	Israel	Military Aid; Economic Aid; Political Support	Terrorism	Support for a strongly pro-West country in the Middle East.
2001	Iraq	Sanctions; Bombing	UN Violations	To replace the government with one that is more pro-West.
2001	Afghanistan	Bombing; Invasion	Terrorism	To replace the government with one that is more pro-West.
2002	Afghanistan	Bombing; Invasion	Terrorism	To gain influence and control over oil rich Central Asia.
2002	Angola	Intelligence	Terrorism	To remove their no longer needed former client.
2003	Iraq	Invasion	Banned Weapons	To gain control of oil rich country and impose a government friendly to the USA.

(fuentes: Transnationale.org; USA Invasions, Bombings, Military Aid, Political Interventions and Sanctions, Krysstal, accessed 03-2005