There is, currently an awful amount of coverage regarding the safety issues of Genetically Modified (GM) vegetables and other products.
It is true to say that we do not absorb the DNA of other living organisms into our own DNA. If we did, we would end up with characteristics of that which we had consumed, Vegetarians showing vegetable characteristics, excessive consumption of rabbit pie leading to longer, hairier ears and men who ate horse meat... well, you know what they say about stallions.
The issue is one of trust and confidence in the government of the country. The powers that be claim that they are trying to reassure the EC that our beef is safe, whilst prohibiting the sale of beef on the bone. They are contradictory messages.. The government assured the British public there was no problem with beef. And assured us. And assured us. And then instructed the destruction of millions of head of cattle. The biggest losers were the small farmers who did not have the capital to bung any political party, so no change there. The situation with GM foodstuffs follows a similar path
The government has assured us that GM foodstuffs are safe. One has to consider the credibility of the persons uttering such statements. None.
The chief concern is not the modified genes in the products but a) the use of human antibodies as ‘markers’ which may have an effect on our own immune systems and b) while not a safety issue, the policy of rendering the seeds sterile to force farmers to return to the supplier for more seed, which will have it’s most devastating effect in the poorer countries.
Into the affray is thrown another red herring- the results of tests carried out on rats, which show that GM products cause damage to the vital organs. With all due respect to the scientist who carried out the work, human beings are not rats, even if some display some of the rodents negative characteristics. If effective evaluations are to be made then the experiments must be made on creatures with as near a genetic match to an average human being as possible
Following discussions at the Bradworthy Alternative Researchers, the following standards were proposed:
A genetic match of 98.5% is that of the more advanced simians. It goes without saying that if the research is carried out on chimpanzees or gorillas there would be a massive public outcry, so it would be politic to select a less popular species. A subgroup that fits the requirement would be members of parliament. Very similar to humans in many respects and with a genetic match of 98.5% (which would ensure the validity of the experiments), they are, fortunately, disposable. Without doubt there would eventually be a pressure group claiming that politicians have ‘rights’ but the lunatic fringe will always find some sad subject to support. There are drawbacks, obviously. Members of parliament are known to be able to mimic speech, which threatens a possibility of them trying to voice an opinion. Fortunately this cannot happen during an autopsy, besides, the probability of a member of parliament uttering a coherent phrase is 1 in 1.215^ 9.
More radical experiments could be carried out on the specimens found in the House of Lords, subject to the tests being overseen by the Institute of Palaeontology.