Essay Database

In 1961, the United States began spraying herbicides in its military campaign to defoliate the jungles of southern Vietnam. Mimicking Smokey Bear, American pilots chuckled “Remember, only you can prevent forests,” as they dropped weed killers over target sites. But as research progressed, the true nature of the chemicals which they were spraying came to light. It is certainly no longer a laughing matter when it is realized that Agent Orange, a fifty-fifty mixture of 2,4,D …

…from cleft palates, and thirty-two from malformation or absence of arms and legs. Every year since 1975, the hospital has been the site of five or more siamese twins. Physicians at the hospital report that a deformed fetus is delivered every two to three days. A room at the hospital contains jars which store aborted and full fetuses with atrocious genetic defects. For us, they are reminders of what happens when one tinkers with mother nature.