During the Republican debate tonight, Huckabee recited the preamble to the Declaration of Independence:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Of course, being Mr. Evangelical, he put an extra emphasis on "they are endowed by their Creator."
I've always thought the whole Creator reference was unnecessary. Some may insist on it out of insecurity, but are these people really arguing that if there is no creator, we have no rights?
It would seem to me we still have the exact same rights regardless, as all "rights" are merely privileges extended by man/government. After a bio-chemical attack or nuking of America, we'll see how much Creator-endowed rights to liberty and the pursuit of happiness really matter.
Anyway, I had no intention of making a post about that, but a story I just saw on the local news after the debates caught my attention. The FDA is apparently ready to allow the sale and consumption of cloned meat (or, rather, meat from cloned animals)!
First of all, I had no idea cloning was so widespread that the issue of cloned meat ending up on our tables was even on the table!
Secondly, who the hell would be comfortable eating that shit? This is going to bring about the first wave of "still living" seen in I Am Legend or something, there is no reason to think that this is safe. It wasn't too long ago that Dolly the sheep was euthanised because of a progressive lung disease and crippling arthritis after just six years of life, less than half the normal lifespan of that type of animal. The article I am posting ends by confirming this is still the case for the majority of cloned animals.
Third, I link this to Huckabee just to set up a discussion of what benefits and limits cloning could have. Stem cell research has been one of the major debates of the past four years.. There are also people who have a problems with the way animals are treated before they get to the supermarket-- animals like chickens and pigs crammed in spaces where they can't even move or develop normally, just to maximize profits.
These animals aren't "created by God," at least not directly. Should they be treated like normal animals or is it okay to engineer them simply for food and treat them however?
There could be bigger ramifications in the coming decades and centuries most wouldn't begin to think of... There is also a potential upside, in terms of feeding people (although there should be enough to go around naturally) but I really do not trust the science for this in 2008.
FDA set to allow sale of cloned milk, meat
Decision runs counter to Congress' wishes
BY RICK WEISS
Washington Post
01/04/2008
WASHINGTON - Having completed a years-long scientific review, the Food and Drug Administration is set to announce as early as next week that meat and milk from cloned farm animals and their offspring can start appearing on supermarket shelves, sources in contact with the agency said Friday.
The decision would be a notable act of defiance against Congress, which last month passed appropriations legislation recommending that any such approval be delayed pending further studies. Moreover, the Senate version of the farm bill, yet to be reconciled with the House version, contains stronger, binding language that would block FDA action on cloned food, probably for years.
With a conference committee poised to finalize the farm bill in the next few weeks, that left the FDA a potentially narrow time frame within which to act if it wanted to settle the issue in sync with America's major meat trading partners.
New Zealand and Australia have released reports concluding that meat and milk from clones are safe. Canada and Argentina are reportedly close to doing the same.
And although European consumers are generally uncomfortable with agricultural biotechnology, the European Union's food safety agency is expected to endorse the safety of meat and milk from clones in a draft statement that could be released within the next week.
"The science seems to be leading them and us to the same conclusion," said a U.S. trade official, speaking on condition of anonymity because
The FDA has hinted strongly in the past year it was ready to lift its "voluntary moratorium" on the marketing of milk and meat from clones and their offspring. Multiple studies compiled by the agency have shown that the chemical composition of those products is virtually identical to that of milk and meat from conventionally bred animals. And studies in which rodents were fed food from clones have found no evidence of health effects.
But public opinion has been negative on the issue, with some saying that not enough safety studies have been conducted and others concerned about the health of the clones, which are far more likely than ordinary farm animals to die early in life.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_7885964?source=rss&nclick_check=1
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Of course, being Mr. Evangelical, he put an extra emphasis on "they are endowed by their Creator."
I've always thought the whole Creator reference was unnecessary. Some may insist on it out of insecurity, but are these people really arguing that if there is no creator, we have no rights?
It would seem to me we still have the exact same rights regardless, as all "rights" are merely privileges extended by man/government. After a bio-chemical attack or nuking of America, we'll see how much Creator-endowed rights to liberty and the pursuit of happiness really matter.
Anyway, I had no intention of making a post about that, but a story I just saw on the local news after the debates caught my attention. The FDA is apparently ready to allow the sale and consumption of cloned meat (or, rather, meat from cloned animals)!
First of all, I had no idea cloning was so widespread that the issue of cloned meat ending up on our tables was even on the table!
Secondly, who the hell would be comfortable eating that shit? This is going to bring about the first wave of "still living" seen in I Am Legend or something, there is no reason to think that this is safe. It wasn't too long ago that Dolly the sheep was euthanised because of a progressive lung disease and crippling arthritis after just six years of life, less than half the normal lifespan of that type of animal. The article I am posting ends by confirming this is still the case for the majority of cloned animals.
Third, I link this to Huckabee just to set up a discussion of what benefits and limits cloning could have. Stem cell research has been one of the major debates of the past four years.. There are also people who have a problems with the way animals are treated before they get to the supermarket-- animals like chickens and pigs crammed in spaces where they can't even move or develop normally, just to maximize profits.
These animals aren't "created by God," at least not directly. Should they be treated like normal animals or is it okay to engineer them simply for food and treat them however?
There could be bigger ramifications in the coming decades and centuries most wouldn't begin to think of... There is also a potential upside, in terms of feeding people (although there should be enough to go around naturally) but I really do not trust the science for this in 2008.
FDA set to allow sale of cloned milk, meat
Decision runs counter to Congress' wishes
BY RICK WEISS
Washington Post
01/04/2008
WASHINGTON - Having completed a years-long scientific review, the Food and Drug Administration is set to announce as early as next week that meat and milk from cloned farm animals and their offspring can start appearing on supermarket shelves, sources in contact with the agency said Friday.
The decision would be a notable act of defiance against Congress, which last month passed appropriations legislation recommending that any such approval be delayed pending further studies. Moreover, the Senate version of the farm bill, yet to be reconciled with the House version, contains stronger, binding language that would block FDA action on cloned food, probably for years.
With a conference committee poised to finalize the farm bill in the next few weeks, that left the FDA a potentially narrow time frame within which to act if it wanted to settle the issue in sync with America's major meat trading partners.
New Zealand and Australia have released reports concluding that meat and milk from clones are safe. Canada and Argentina are reportedly close to doing the same.
And although European consumers are generally uncomfortable with agricultural biotechnology, the European Union's food safety agency is expected to endorse the safety of meat and milk from clones in a draft statement that could be released within the next week.
"The science seems to be leading them and us to the same conclusion," said a U.S. trade official, speaking on condition of anonymity because
The FDA has hinted strongly in the past year it was ready to lift its "voluntary moratorium" on the marketing of milk and meat from clones and their offspring. Multiple studies compiled by the agency have shown that the chemical composition of those products is virtually identical to that of milk and meat from conventionally bred animals. And studies in which rodents were fed food from clones have found no evidence of health effects.
But public opinion has been negative on the issue, with some saying that not enough safety studies have been conducted and others concerned about the health of the clones, which are far more likely than ordinary farm animals to die early in life.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_7885964?source=rss&nclick_check=1
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They did that shit soon as people starting waking up and started taking responsibility (and they started loosing money)
