'Gene drive': Scientists sound alarm.

No matter how noble the original intention, mankind always seems to find a way to use every new discovery in a less than humane way.

I've always felt that ALL knowledge comes with a price. We are in the early stages of paying the price for that wonderful discovery- neculear energy- and that alone has the potential to bankrupt the entire planet.

This gentic modification stuff wouldn't be so scary if it wasn't imbedded in the very heart of corruption. One nation's desire to be more powerful than another's might end up being the downfall of us all.

Our genetics interacts with the genetics of other things in nature. Changing something can cause change to occur in us. Unless they really research all branches of what these changes will cause they shouldn't be doing it. The limits of our knowledge and our only looking at certain things we already know can backfire on us.

I think the people who are doing all of this are doing it to gain profit or funding and are not completely assessing the consequences of their actions. What if they modify something and it is beneficial to us but it causes a change that wipes out all of our cows or chickens. Sure, we will have a lot of mice and monkeys around but the mice and monkeys may not have anything to eat because of altering the worlds biodome.

They are moving way to fast. They should be more conservative, our ecosystem here is actually fragile, changing the genetics of a mosquito can upset it. Things live and die, this is what makes life on this planet so diverse. Changing the frequency of the world by killing mosquitoes which flap their wings changes the interaction with dna with nature slightly. We cannot survive on what they refer to as proteins and fats, food is complicated and full of chemistry. Altering that chemistry can change things. Altering DNA's response to the frequency of the world is not so good of an idea because we evolved with all of this.

Risk assessment has been thrown out the window by much of the population and also science. What we don't know or have yet not discovered can hurt us. The old saying what you don't know can't hurt you is not relevant in this new world. Technology is going to bit us in the ass.

Sorry for swearing but I think this is an important issue.

Hey minstrel:
I think we tend to observe something with the limited science we've got to explain what we've….well, thus far, observed.  But if we're dealing with dicey science and history and information, to begin with, then we are fools to attempt manipulation of any of it, thinking, arrogantly, we've observed something real and know the next move, to change anything…..

But, that's just me.  In other words, even though we assume we've empirically observed anything whatsoever, and understood its process, it MAY be we've only empirically observed what we were given to see.  In that state, acting is pure folly….until such time as we know more, as hard as that may be….
respectfully,
tetra50

scary

When are we going to learn to stop messing (altering) with Mother Nature

Only time will tell what the fall out will be from this....

What about the super rapid dry yeasts that we use in our breads. These were genetically modified by science to grow faster. Since they were in bread which is cooked and kills the yeast during cooking, they bypassed a lot of the usual testing to get GM foods approved. I guess they said they did not need to do any testing because they were not a threat to humans because they are killed in the process.

Now, I make bread every day and yeast is all over my house. I do not use this super fast rising yeast after reading that there was no proof that it was actually safe. I kneed the dough on my counter, it gets all over the place. Now what if this hungry fast growing yeast is in my septic or it gets on our feet and tracked outside. There is no evidence it is safe because no testing was done or was required. What about the yeast all over my house, I touch lots of things. Yeast just goes back into a spore when it drys out. So it gets on other foods and counters. Now I use red star yeast, we have been using that for a very long time and it is a slower growing yeast. Even though the chemicals excreted by the GMare about the same as regular yeast, what if this gets outside and what can it do to the environment. If there was no required testing, cause yeast is yeast, then I guess it is safe since there is no proof it will hurt anything. You see, if there is no proof that it will hurt anything, then nobody can get sued here in America.

I'll keep my red star yeast, I know that type of natural yeast has not destroyed the earth yet. But you can eat the other stuff if you want, just don't be hauling it over to my house. Yeasts have unique flavors, I like the red star taste. I cannot say the other yeast is bad for you but can say that there is no proof it is safe because it's safety has not been tested.