Well here
we are in the new Millenium. And look not a Y2K problem in sight. Hmmm
guess I was right huh? Anyway back to the topic at hand. Lately
there has been a lot of talk about genetically altering living things ,
animal and plant, for our benefit. Anything from making a plant that glows
in the dark to goats that can produce spider silk in their milk. And if
you think both of these are made up you are quite wrong. The plant a year
or so ago. And the goats are being worked on as we speak. Sure the plant
could double as a night light but do we really need another product to
remind us that we have forever changed nature. And the silk in the goat
milk provides excellent material for bullet proof vests. Enough woven together
in a rope or cable like manner provides enough strength to stop a jet in
flight. The stuff could be used in so many ways, from bullet proof vests
to space ships. Here is the rub. What if these goats got loose and bred
with other goats without out knowledge? It is possible that the goat milk
industry would be destroyed because of silk clogging the machinery at the
dairy. For
now let's focus on the moral issues of this topic. What right do we as
a species have to alter the natural way of things? Sure we're humans. The
dominant species on the planet (the author is now chuckling at that statement),
we are in control, in fact we OWN this planet or so many would argue. Personally
though I don't agree. We do not own the planet. As a native american indian
said in a movie I saw once said "... we do not own the land. We are merely
caretakers." Well guess what? That statement is completely true. The land
was here before us and it will be here long after we are gone ( unless
we blow it up). So since we have established that we do not in fact own
this planet how is it that we can justify vandilizing it's creatures? These
plants and animals have not been asked if they wanted to be altered, they
just were. It seems that ethics have gone the way of the dodo these days.
For some reason I would like to see a human that was genetically altered
against their will and ask them what they think about it. But that won't
happen because we have laws, well to protect humans anyways. So
what is in store for the Future of genetic engineering? More eyes for us
humans? How about a human that could breath underwater? Sounds good don't
it? But remember us humans fear what is different from the norm. So instead
of just the racists that hate blacks or the ones who hate the whites of
the world we now have a group who hates those with genetic enhancements.
People without the enhancements will be jealous or fearful of these new
humans and we all know what happens next don't we? That's right segregation
and another 200 years of unjust oppression. Remember a person is smart
but people as a group are stupid, dangerous, ignorant creatures. So where
does that leave us? Well there is nothing we can do about it. Scientists
don't care what the masses think only in what they call "discovery", when
in actual fact most are looking out for their checkbooks. So as I look
to the future I see an image of earth from space, a blue planet with glowing
vegetation and eight legged goats. It isn't as far off as you may think.
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