On genetically modified food
People always look at me in horror when I say that I have zero problem with eating genetically modified foods. Even if I did, I would not consider it up to you or any politician to decide whether or not I should be permitted to do so, or whether it should be legal to do so or not. Of course it should be legal. Of course one should be allowed to eat whatever one wishes. If you are to make the offensive suggestion that it is your or another person’s decision to make for me, the onus is on you to make the case for that.
So, yeah: Pass the franken-food.
I would like to ask some of the [GM critics] how they imagine most strains of wheat, barley, soybeans or rice that have been staples of diets for centuries came along. They are, albeit through trial and error over eons, just as ‘modified’ as a Monsanto crop. And that I think is the kicker: it is the speed of scientific change, not the change as such, that gives people the heeby-jeebies about genetic modification. I am not sure how that can be easily addressed without massive improvements in popular understanding of science.
Filed under: Life
One of the problems with the genetically modified stuff is that in the case of seeds, they can get into the wild and cross with non-GMO seeds. If in the future we ever find out there are truly big problems with GMO foods, we might not be able to put them back in the box.
I don’t want to make the decision for you. I just want to make sure that I will still have a choice. If Monsanto wants to make GMO foods and you want to eat them, that’s fine with me! But they need to make them in a way that will prevent them from getting into -my- food supply, and they need to label them so I can avoid them.
Hypocrisy: Saying that you care about the poor, but convincing them to reject GM food, dooming children to starvation.
All these “activists” care about is feeling good about themselves and their world view. I wish they were forced to change places with all the people that they “help.”
V: Yeah, this is why property rights matter and are not a “right-wing” or “Republican” value, despite what the same activists would have us believe.
Not quite about the topic, but it put me in mind of something that happened here in Chicago: the foie gras ban. What makes it even more ridiculous is the fact that the alderman who spearheaded the drive to ban it oversees a ward that is being torn apart by gang violence. Sure, kids are getting shot - but hey, at least the geese are safe!
It’s all a bit of a non-issue for me in a lot of ways. I’m fully aware that the ingredients of meals I eat at restaurants may contain any number of genetically modified substances … but I still want to eat out occasionally. And some genetic modifications have had a great impact of crop yields etc in poorer countries. To claim ‘all genetically-modified food is bad’ is very simplistic, in my opinion.
Yes, a few noise makers should not prevent the world from experimenting on new agricultural technologies. If we shun technology, how on earth is this world going to be? We need people like Jackie who are ready to demonstrate courage and challenge those who use fear and misinformation about new technologies such as crop genetic engineering. Blogger James hits the nail on the head when he appeals to scientists to come out and defend genetically modified crops against charges that they are poisonous concoctions that can threaten the health of human beings and that of the environment. You can visit James’ blog at http://www.gmoafrica.org.