Bill Gates on genetically-enhanced animals and plants

        FOREIGN AFFAIRS has made an article by Bill Gets available to those of us who don’t subscribe to Foreign Affairs, in a belief that Gates’ article is important and deserves a wider readership the the magazine would afford.

 See Foreign Affairs, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/?cid=int-gna&pgtype=art

From Gates' point of view the plight of the poorest of us is better than it has heretofore been in the recorded history of  the world [Gates didnn't put it that strongly], and it would be even better if genetically-enhanced animals and plants were readily and widely accepted,subject go some safeguards. Gates even mentions the prospet of genetically-enhanced human animals.

Still today, too many live on $1.90 a day.

Gates’ article is thoughtful, and we should be grateful and thankful and proud that Man is endow with one such as he.  Gates could have spent his time buying up votes for county judges and U.S. presidents, as some billionaires are said to be doing today. 

Gates made another impressive gesture when he encouraged Harvard graduates to devote their professional lives to decreasing the gap between rich and poor.

See Remarks of Bill Gates, Harvard Commencement 2007          https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2007/06/remarks-of-bill-gates-harvard-commencement-2007/ . ['". . . reducing inequity is the highest human achievement. (Emphasis added)]

Some happy day, if Gates’ recommendation is accepted, all animal and plant food will be  “new" animals and plants, owned by he who holds the patent on each of them.

To hold a patent is to allow the holder to charge for his “invention” whatever he wishes, and to withhold use of  the intention from whomever he pleases.

The power to starve a person or a people is an awesome power, and Gates does not discuss that power in this article.

There are supera-national organs a-borning which could insure that patents on food are not misused, if they could also be made to be fair.  A discussion on who might be empowered, fairly and reasonably, would be welcomed.  I know a few lawyers who could open the discussion.

Rich and poor together, one World

...not to make too much of it, but. . .