Clone Wars

So the FDA is telling us that cloned meat & milk is alright for human consumption. I wonder. "Dolly" the sheep, the first mammal cloned from an adult stem cell successfully, was cloned in 1996. That's only 12 years. I am sorry, but that is not a long enough time to determine that we can now eat her or her offspring. The American people don't agree with our government that this is a good way to go. Around 60% do not think that we should be cloning animals, especially for consumption. The FDA report that supports the further use of clones and the suggestion that it is ok for consumption, cites study after study where everything seems normal. But the FDA report is full of statements that hedge their bets. There are anomalies, but they fall within the accepted parameters of the scientific community and are therefore deemed safe. There seems to be a belief at the FDA, that if we can't find something wrong through our science, then it must be OK.

Economics is playing a large role in this. Corporate farmers and the scientific community that is associated with farming, see this as a way to increase profits. Not that I am opposed to profit, but not at the expense to the general welfare of the public. I understand that there is great pressure to produce more with less. If you can clone a cow that produces more milk, and its offspring also produce more milk, then you make more money. Are you willing to be the guinea pig to determine whether or not their profit comes at the expense of your health?

We need to stop. Just because we can do something, does not mean that we should. What happens when we have cloned ourselves a homogenous cow population and some new disease wipes them all out. Same with crops, we are genetically engineering plants at an amazing rate. Science has not yet proved to us that what they are doing is safe. It seems like the American people are taking a stand here. There is a growing number of people that are demanding to know the origin of their food. There are already companies that promote their products based on the fact that they are not being manipulated with genes, drugs, hormones, or anything unnatural. People seem to be buying these products more and more. Maybe the marketplace will slow this artificial manipulation process down.