Re: Four-legged hen

Farm1 wrote:
"Susan Hogarth" <hogarth@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
chickenman wrote:
define gm?? Are you genetically modified,,I think so.

Indeed. Deliberate genetic modification has been happening for a
long
time!

But past genetic modification followed the laws of nature unlike
current GMO. No-one ever managed to put genes from fish into tomatoes
in a natural way.

Lateral transmission (species-to-species or even kingdon-to-kingdom) of
genetic material isn't unknown - viruses and perhaps other mechanisms
serve this role in the wild.

I think the distinction between 'natural' and 'artificial' is a bit
spurious. Humans are -part- of nature, and what we do in the laboratory
is as -natural- as a bird building a nest. More dangerous; possibly.
But condemning it *just because* humans do it is ridiculous and brands
you (probably unfairly) as a luddite); you need to give -reasons- for
not wanting any particular thign to be done - real reasons, not
spurious ones like 'it's not natural!'

In fairness, I think the concerns of the anti-GMO crod are abit more
nuanced. They fall into two categories:

1) concern that introduced and expressed proteins will cause allergy
or
other autoimmune issues when the product is consumed.

2) concern that introduced genes will spread into the wild plant
poluation.

And not just the wild plant population. Farmers have lots of concerns
about the contamination from GMO crops. And these concerns are not
allayed when Monsanto acted like thugs with that farmer in Canada???
whose crop was contaminated by it's GMO canola.

None of these things are really new - they are just happening more
quickly now. Farmers have always quarreled with one another over weed
seeds, interbreeding (your bull got into my cows!), and other such
genetic and property-rights issues. New techniques call for caution and
careful application of principles of justice, but they do not call for
wholesale abandonment of useful technology.

- Susan

.

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