No, we really don't need glow-in-the-dark rose bushes.
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| What could possibly go wrong? |
When asked what the
world needs, people tend to go all gushy and offer up such fuzzy stuff as
“world peace” and “more kindness.”
Yeah, yeah — but get
real. Let’s talk practicality here. What the world needs is something tangible,
a new whiz-bang product that will delight all of us and make the world a
brighter place. And I know just what it is.
Ready? The world needs
trees, shrubs, flowers, and other plants that glow in the dark. I don’t mean
glow dimly like a lightning bug or a luminous painting of Elvis on velvet, but
a potted plant giving off enough light to read by. Wouldn’t that be cool?
OK, actually it’d be
silly. But ready or not, luminescent plants are likely to be the next grand
contribution to humankind by the genetic tinkerers who brought us such advances
as tomatoes implanted with fish genes.
Already, one of the
plant tamperers has formed a corporation called BioGlow to commercialize such
things. “Wouldn’t you like your beautiful flowers to glow in the dark?” he asks
with a maniacal fervor.
Uh…no sir. First, they’re
beautiful as is. Second, there you narcissistic bioengineers go again —
screwing with nature. This crew is recklessly spreading untested, synthetic
organisms around the world with no idea of how they’ll mutate in nature or what
malicious, predatory organisms might result. That’s not science. That’s
screwballism.
For more information
on why a bit of caution and a little less hubris is warranted, contact Friends
of the Earth: www.foe.org.
OtherWords columnist Jim Hightower is
a radio commentator, writer, and public speaker. He's also editor of the
populist newsletter, The
Hightower Lowdown. OtherWords.org
