Re: More Than Human

[Guest guest]

*nod* It terrifies me. It's frightening enough to me that we've

already contaminated a huge area of America with GMO crops, thanks to

ridiculous approval processes and regulations. To think of the same

thing possibly happening in humans and animals makes me want to cry.

I'm no luddite, but I think that we need to proceed ever so cautiously

with regard to genetic engineering of organisms. There is tremendous

potential for good and tremendous potential for harm. If the greed of

a few dictates the way things go I don't think it will be good for the

human race or the earth.

I think correcting inherited diseases is a noble use of the

technology, but anything that crosses the line into body

improvement/creating superhumans I am ardently against. Sadly, it

seems many people disagree.

Tom

> Usually I read novels. I generally find them to be more reflective of

> reality than most non-fiction books. However, I've just started

" More Than

> Human " by Ramez Naam. The writing itself isn't more than okay, but his

> presentation of the current state of genetic modification (copyright

2005)

> is pretty stunning to this non-scientist and what amazes me even

more is how

> far we've already come in the kind of modification for therapy that

will

> apparently soon lead to modification for biological enhancement of

physical

> and mental states. Has anyone read this book or anything similar?

I'm not

> sure I'm ready for this Brave New World.

>

>

> http://www.taichi4seniors.com

[Guest guest]

Tom,

<I think correcting inherited diseases is a noble use of the

technology, but anything that crosses the line into body

improvement/creating superhumans I am ardently against. Sadly, it

seems many people disagree.>

I hardly know what I feel about all this. I'm certainly not against the

exploration or experimentation -- that kind of " push " into new frontiers

seems inevitable with the human spirit -- but when it comes to this idea of

enhancement, what is frightening is how likely it is to happen quickly, on a

scale much larger than therapy for diseases, before we really know what's

going on or what it will mean to us -- because there is already a huge

market (playing now with cosmetic surgery, steroids, etc.) that is just

waiting for this stuff, on black market terms if necessary.

http://www.taichi4seniors.com

[Guest guest]

On 7/31/05, West <clairewest@...> wrote:

> Has anyone read this book or anything similar? I'm not

> sure I'm ready for this Brave New World.

>

,

I checked out " The Fluoride Deception " from the library, and got

through most of the book. Almost a third of it is references. The

author documents how government and industry knew about and kept

secret fluoride's toxicity these last 70 years. It's like a long

episode of the X-Files, only every far-fetched plot is true. I didn't

know this, but fluoride gas was crucial in the making of nuclear bombs

for WWII. So many workers were exposed to the fumes, not to mention

people living near the secret plants.

Naomi

[Guest guest]

Naomi,

Interesting stuff on fluoride - and a lot more depressing than my book

(which eventually began to weigh on me so much I stopped reading it). The

last I knew we don't have fluoride here in S.D. but every 5 or 10 years

there's a big push somewhere in the county to get it into our water system.

Meanwhile, I have a good filter (for most toxins, while it lets most

minerals through) but I rarely use it for drinking water, depending on my

juices instead for water that's not only cleaner but more alkaline.

http://www.taichi4seniors.com