Humans have been genetically modifying organisms for centuries. Look at the modification of dog 'species': every single type of dog was modified from the Gray wolf. This was not evolution. This isn't 'natural'. It's genetic modification.
Of course, many of you are saying: "Listen, idiot, we're against organisms that have had their genomes directly altered . Especially by companies that destroy ecosystems, poison communities and own the American Senate (and Congress)."
There is plenty of evidence that the genetic modification we're doing today is dangerous. Troubling results in animal studies and a lack of human-based research mean that we have almost no clear results and no assurance whatsoever of safety.
There is plenty of evidence that the genetic modification we're doing today is dangerous. Troubling results in animal studies and a lack of human-based research mean that we have almost no clear results and no assurance whatsoever of safety.
But you still aren't against GMOs, and I want to tell you why.
What? Are you f*cking crazy?
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| World population, pre-agriculture to now |
Starvation causes half of all deaths in children across the world. As the global population grows, the agricultural system that feeds it will struggle to keep up. We can bulldoze country-sized swaths of rainforests to make arable land, or we can improve the yield of crops.
In the coming year, 670 000+ children under 5 years old will develop permanent blindness due to Vitamin A deficiency, and half of these children will be dead by 2015. A variety of genetically-engineered Vitamin A-rich rice called Golden Rice, created by a Swiss-German research team in 2005 and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, offers us the opportunity to effectively combat blindness and death by increasing Vitamin A intake.
We can grow more food, and make the food healthier, but we need to do the proper research first. This can only happen if we are pro-GMO.
The problem
We get to ask "What will we eat today?", while the rest of the world has to ask "Will we eat today?".
Ask the families suffering from blindness if they care that they might develop leukemia in 10 years due to inadequate research into genetic modification. Death by starvation is guaranteed for BILLIONS of people in the coming decades if they don't get access to food.
GMOs have the potential to save an astronomically huge number of lives. Our government's lack of emphasis on food and genetic research means that large companies do the research for us. Until we're willing to pick up our pens and tell our elected representatives that we want more public science funding, GMO development lies in the hands of monolithic, soulless agricultural companies and the spineless mouth-breathers in our government that serve them.
TLDR: Bill Gates is behind GMOs, and you should be too.
TLDR: Bill Gates is behind GMOs, and you should be too.
