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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] GMOs

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  • From: Marty Kraft <martyk AT allspecies.org>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] GMOs
  • Date: Fri, 05 Mar 2004 11:59:59 -0600

My opposition to genetically modified organisms comes from the process by
which they come to be.

In natural populations of a species there are a certain number of genes
present. These genes combine and recombine to give all the variation that
you see in that species. Every once in a while a mutation happens that
changes a gene in a fundamental way. If the gene is passed on it may show
itself to be of advantage to the survival of the species and over hundreds
or thousands of years it might become a common gene to almost all members of
the current population. Only a small percentage of gene mutations actually
make the species better and are selected against, that is, there is no
reason that they are passed on. Some mutations actually kill individuals
that happen to get them.

Every individual of all of the millions of species that are alive today have
gone through a selective process similar to winning hundreds of thousands of
lotteries in a row. Billions and billions of other combinations of genes
either led to death or the individual didn¹t make it long enough to
reproduce. For example in humans six million sperm start out and only one
makes it to fertilize one egg. There are far fewer eggs but most of them are
flushed out, one each month.

Look at all the wonderful adaptations that various species have made to the
environmental conditions where they live. Nature has a profound wisdom built
in to genes of each individual. This wisdom has been tested for billions of
years. All the ones that flunked are dead, no genetic information passed. It
is a ruthless rigorous system.

Let¹s look at a scientist who has been putting his/her wisdom together for
30 years, lets say. They work for a company whose focus is money for a few
years down the line. Maybe they have a product like Roundup that they want
to make even more money on so they create a Roundup Ready soybean. Right
away the motivation clouds the wisdom. The scientist and the company are not
interested in the best thing for the species they are interested in the best
thing for their wallets.

These scientists have no idea what effect these manufactured genes are going
to have on the soybean species or similar species. Have they tested their
genes for even a hundred years? They dump thousands or millions of seeds
bearing their gene into nature where nature would introduce one and let it
be tested over hundreds of years. These scientists have no idea what these
manufactured genes are going to do to our children as they grow up and
mature yet here we are dealing with this problem.

I used to use the word arrogance when referring to some human interference
with nature but Monsanto motivated me to look up the word hubris. It is
difficult for me to grasp how they can do such a thing.

I eat tofu, tempe and other soy products. I don¹t want to eat their genes.
They are forcing them on me. If all foods become genetically modified I am
in the position of starving or submitting to an unwanted invasion of my
body. In other areas that is illegal.

That just isn¹t very nice.

Not flaming, just passionate.

Marty Kraft







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