<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">keith wrote - <span style="font-size:19.2px;font-family:arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)"> </span><span style="font-size:19.2px;font-family:arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)">When we do, we expect to find out that an awful lot of a</span></div><span style="font-size:19.2px">person's place in society depends on traits that are rooted in their</span><br style="font-size:19.2px"><span style="font-size:19.2px">genes</span><div><span style="font-size:19.2px">.-</span><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">---</div><br></div><div><div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">In the future behavioral problems will be treated with genetic manipulation, perhaps turning off or on genes that were changed by your ancestors' behaviors (changed epigenetically in your parents, etc. and then restored to the original on or off position).</div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"><br></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">Will people accept that as a substitute for putting people in jail for antisocial behaviors? I hope so. Punishment often doesn't last very long but changing genes will. However, there is a very powerful belief in the majority of people that things from failing to take out the garbage to serial killing, deserves punishment whether or not the punishment is associated with improvement in behavior.</div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"><br></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">The typical murderer has killed someone he knows, often a family member. The likelihood of his doing it again, with or without punishment of any kind, is very, very low. But he needs to be punished, according to this belief.</div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"><br></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"> Will people accept adding genes to newborns or even fetuses to avoid fatal diseases? I hope so. </div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"><br></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">Now for the big news!!! Since epigenetics involves the changing of the genes by the experiences of the person, how about future research that shows how to do that? That is, by doing certain things or being exposed to certain things, it is found that the genes that are causing the problems are changed in a beneficent way. This way a person can change his genes AND those he/she passes on to the children. Isn't this fantastic? (Well, yes, of course it is, since it is my fantasy, right?)</div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"><br></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">Of course to this we have add behaviors and experiences that are known to have a maladaptive effect on the person's genes, and he/she is warned to avoid those to avoid the problems they will certainly cause.</div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline"><br></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size:19.2px"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline">bill w</div></span></div><div><br></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Sun, Aug 13, 2017 at 12:01 AM, Keith Henson <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:hkeithhenson@gmail.com" target="_blank">hkeithhenson@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">On Sat, Aug 12, 2017 at 6:59 PM, BillK <<a href="mailto:pharos@gmail.com">pharos@gmail.com</a>> wrote><br>
<br>
snip<br>
<br>
I started to reply, and then picked up from your distortions what the<br>
objection is.<br>
<br>
Eventually, every human trait is going to be understood from the gene<br>
level up. When we do, we expect to find out that an awful lot of a<br>
person's place in society depends on traits that are rooted in their<br>
genes.<br>
<br>
This is not a politically correct position. However, I hope there are<br>
people somewhere who value reality over such memes.<br>
<span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><br>
Keith<br>
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