Received: from att-out.att.com by css.itd.umich.edu (5.67/2.2) id AA07017; Fri, 15 Jan 93 15:09:13 -0500 Message-Id: <9301152009.AA07017@css.itd.umich.edu> To: pauls@css.itd.umich.edu Date: Fri, 15 Jan 93 15:02:28 EST From: jad@ckuxb.att.com Status: RO X-Status: Article 19199 of alt.conspiracy: Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy,alt.activism,alt.society.civil-liberty,alt.individualism,alt.censorship,misc.headlines,soc.culture.usa,misc.activism.progressive Subject: Part 3, U.S. Government Practices Germ Warfare on U.S. Population Message-ID: <1993Jan15.002107.23528@mont.cs.missouri.edu> Followup-To: alt.conspiracy Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu Keywords: U.S. Government Practices Germ Warfare on U.S. Population Sender: news@mont.cs.missouri.edu Nntp-Posting-Host: pencil.cs.missouri.edu Organization: UVA. FREE Public Access UNIX! Approved: map@pencil.cs.missouri.edu Lines: 138 I made the following transcript from a tape recording of a broadcast by Pacifica Radio Network station WBAI-FM (99.5) 505 Eighth Ave., 19th Fl. New York, NY 10018 (212) 279-0707 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * (continuation) GARY NULL: Basically, just about everything that the human mind can imagine is much closer than ever before because of our ability to manipulate the genetic structure of the living cell. Well, not surprisingly, bio-technology companies are springing up at a phenomenal rate, all with the hope of cashing in on this budding new field. The profit potentials are ENORMOUS. And a public stock offering by a promising new company can send Wall Street into a frenzy. This is a world in which competition is fierce, and in which each nation is vying against other nations -- company against company. It is an arena in which profits can be in the billions of dollars, and where today's fledgling company can be tomorrow's multi-national giant, and where scientific reputations are made. Because of its virtually unlimited potentials, the bio-technology industry is attracting the attention of many established industries and institutions who view bio-technology as their chance to bolster profits and to increase power. The pharmaceutical corporations, for instance, are major underwriters of bio-technology research aimed at the development of new "wonder drugs", the most promising of which is currently a cardiovascular medication for which heart patients pay about twenty-two hundred dollars per SINGLE dose. The Military, which is forced to abandon the use and development of chemical and biological warfare -- by a treaty some years ago, and by the demise of the Soviet Union -- is looking for loopholes in these restrictions. The Military is already pumping tens of millions of dollars every year into research on new forms of germ weaponry, conducted at major universities and at research facilities, and at corporations across the country. However, while bio-technology does promise to provide (and probably will) solutions in areas where Science has previously had no success, many observers warn against unbridled enthusiasm. In a whirlwind generated by the visions of a new mega-industry springing up overnight, it's all too easy to overlook the need for caution and vigilance. Bio-technology, after all, involves the release into your environment of organisms which have NEVER, EVER been there before. They've never existed on this planet! And since the field itself is so young, it may be many, many years before we have an inkling of the impact that these new organisms will have on human beings and their environment. And while bio-technology is exciting because of its potential benefits, it also evokes in many the fear of an equally great risk of disaster if it is allowed to develop, unchecked and without proper regulation. The rapid growth of genetic engineering endangers a whole host of species, too. Remember, when they're creating a new crop species, they're doing it to replace an old crop that they don't OWN! Could you imagine the day when virtually every single food that is purchased in a market is patented? The seeds are patented, so therefore, you don't have the selection. You don't have the taste. You don't have the quality. It will have certain benefits. It might be more disease-resistant to a certain blight or bug. It might ripen at a certain rate. But it will have it's disadvantages. And what about the people who will then control the price on it? What, precisely, is the effect of releasing an artificially manipulated organism into the environment for the first time? Scientists are ASSURING us that there are no risks involved, either to humans or to the environment. But this cavalier attitude toward risks associated with scientific research and experiments is not unusual. With so many researchers being involved in the field, they may be inclined to simply contradict cumbersome facts. Other issues surrounding the bio-technology industry are more general, and often arise whenever Science allies itself too intimately with power and politics and money. In this regard, bio-technology is particularly vulnerable. It allies itself with America's most formidable institutions: the Medical Establishment, universities, major research facilities, the Pharmaceutical Industry, the Military-Industrial Complex and Agribusiness; and, of course, the U.S. Public Health Service. Now, to understand some of the issues surrounding the development of bio-technology today, first it's important to examine some of the factors affecting the manner in which Science operates in this country. I want to give you a little background. I think that it's important that you understand this. One of the factors to consider is that there are economics. Since PURE science, like pure art or pure mathematics, is rarely a self-supporting, independent discipline in America. In today's society, science is not so much valued for itself, but rather, for how it can be utitlized by other sectors of our society. What this means, in economic terms, is that much of the private endowment funds, which gave scientists the liberty to choose and direct their own research, have dried up, especially in hard times. And those funds have been replaced by research grants which are linked to very specific goals. The Military, for instance, which provides eighty percent of the research funding on many of the nation's campuses, wants new weapons, even though we have no one to fight with these weapons -- even though we don't need them -- even though the ones we have are more than adequate. It's because those [military contracting] companies generate profits. Remember: Any time anything is made for the Government, someone profits. Every industry wants a competitive edge. Medicine wants its "cures". All of these goals are very closely linked to how research monies are allocated. This puts research directors and university chairpersons and heads of facilities -- as well as the researchers themeselves -- under enormous pressure, aware that the continued funding of their programs may well depend upon coming up with the right answers at the right times. The temptation to cut corners becomes irresistible in many cases. In most cases, these short cuts are relatively insignificant, and we rarely hear about them or feel their effects. But in some instances, they can have serious consequences and lead to major questions of ethics and morality in science. In this regard, the crash of the space shuttle Challenger immediately comes to mind. But other events of equal importance involving research fraud and violations of basic scientific protocol frequently appear in the Media. Another factor which greatly affects the manner in which Science operates in this country is its relative freedom from public scrutiny. As it stands now, rarely, if ever, does any lay person know anything about science. They are intimidated by science, and they view it to be beyond their grasp. Part of this belief stems from the highly specialized and technical nature of science, which does, indeed, place it beyond the comprehension of most lay people. (to be continued) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * If you agree that this information is vital to the defense and the preservation of our free society, please help to disseminate it by posting it to computer bulletin boards and by posting hardcopies in public places, both on and off campus. The Usenet newsgroup, "alt.bbs.lists" provides dial-in numbers of BBSs. John DiNardo