Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 8:14 PM
From: MoOvaltinePlease (mailto:[email protected])
Subject: Will Genetic Engineering Kill Us?
How in the world can you all write an article on this with movie injunctions ... and not mention Gattaca?? The movie is a depiction of what the article ("Will Genetic Engineering Kill Us?," April 16, 2003) was about!
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Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 7:50 PM
From: [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])
Subject: Will Genetic Engineering Kill Us?
Unfounded paranoia! First, gene therapy has proven to be much more difficult than was realized only a few short years ago ("Will Genetic Engineering Kill Us?," April 16, 2003). Second, traits such as intelligence are undoubtedly polygenetic. It will be impossible to alter more than one gene at a time, even if it is possible to engineer genes in persons. Third, geneticists agree that gene therapy should be done only on somatic cells, not on germ cells. That is because copies of corrected genes are spliced into recipient cell DNA at random and if spliced into extant genes they would become mutagenic to the recipient gene. If such therapy is to be done on germinal DNA one is introducing mutations into the population gene pool. Spontaneous mutations are bad enough, don't make matters worse.
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Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 8:35 PM
From: Colin Butts (mailto:[email protected])
Subject: Will Genetic Engineering Kill Us?
Here is the scenario. A doctor comes to the two parents and says, "You have the choice of a random DNA child, or we can eliminate the possibilities of the following: obesity, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, color blindness, etc. Oh, by the way, do you want blond hair and blue eyes, athletic ability and high IQ?" Are you telling me ("Will Genetic Engineering Kill Us?," April 16, 2003) that I will say, "No, no. It would be wrong of me to tinker with nature. My child will have to take its chances with a random roll of the dice."
Guess I'll just have to raise my blond, blue-eyed, healthy athlete with all the love I can muster. (sigh).
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Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 6:19 PM
From: Joe Kaczmarek (mailto:[email protected])
Subject: Microsoft pays up
I Want My Microsoft money.
After reading about how Microsoft will offer vouchers to consumers in Florida as part of their settlement ("Pen Pals Go Online to Buoy Troops ," April 16, 2003), I would like to know where I can get mine.
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