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From: JEFF GOLD, INTERNET:maplehil@superaje.com
To: Patricia Dines, 73652,1202
Date: Tue, Nov 19, 1996, 6:54 AM
Subject: Genetic engineering(Patricia Dines)
Dear Patricia,
I wanted to thank you for injecting a little ethical thinking into the
genetic engineering debate. I am an organic farmer near Ottawa, Canada,
have been farming organically for more than 25 years and I have also worked
in Pakistan, Sudan and the Caribbean in agricultural development projects.
My personal experience has led me to conclude that food shortages and hunger
are more often caused by political and economic factors than technical ones,
and that it is extremely ridiculous for politicians and corporations to
suggest that they have the 'solution' for shortfalls in the food supply.
But it is a fact that almost every scientist involved in agriculture is
supported by either government or industry, making their motives very
suspect. I truly believe that the human race will eventually figure all
this out, but it may take centuries before people are willing to believe the
simple truth: we belong to the planet, the planet does not belong to us. If
Mother Earth prospers, we prosper. I also strongly believe that the basic
issue in this whole area of agrotechnology, and the whole notion of
scientific 'progress' in general, is not about intellectual understanding
but primarily about spiritual
issues.
I do not think anything is gained by pretending to be objective, in the
scientific sense, in a debate of this kind. After all, every researcher is
also a human being and must take full responsibility for the consequences of
their choices. Keep up the flow of information and good luck! Jeff Gold