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Overcoming Bias Commenter's avatar

If history is any guide, then in the long run, catastrophic plagues with disastrous consequences will arise naturally from time to time on a fairly regular basis.   Sure, in the short run, genetic engineering might make this more likely, but only somewhat; once we are able to better deal with the generalized problem of germs in general in better ways then we can now, then genetically modified germs won't be an issue anymore.

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Overcoming Bias Commenter's avatar

I only mentioned Golden Rice because Robert argued its implementation was remarkably slow. If one's point is to show that this was because of biological complexity that is a poor example because it was anti-GM regulations that slowed the implementation of Golden Rice. 

My wider point is that I do not understand the fear and regulatory pressure around GM plants from a biological perspective. As I said "When it comes to genetically modified plants at least I cannot see why there is so much public fear and regulatory pressure compared to their traditionally breed counterparts. The purpose of traditional corp breeding is to modify a plant's genetic makeup. Just  as molecular techniques seek to do in a very precise fashion. I don't believe the novelty in the process compared to traditional breeding (which can include the use of mutagenic chemicals and radiation) is substantially different enough to justify the regulations. Regulations are based on the process not outcomes when the it should be the reverse".Here's another way to put it. We take a plant and using a naturally occurring bacterium (nature's own genetic engineer) that carries out the naturally occurring process of horizontal gene transfer we artificially insert naturally occurring genes from other plants (or often the same plant) or bacteria (such as those that confer herbicide resistance) but somehow compared to the haphazard methods of irradiation and chemical mutagenesis this method is feared and inordinate regulatory pressure is brought to bear upon it. Perhaps, you could explain to me what I do not understand and why you believe, if you do, why these burdensome regulations are necessary? 

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