Why No DNA Data Banks

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/sports/30genetics.html

In health-conscious, sports-oriented Boulder, Atlas Sports Genetics is playing into the obsessions of parents by offering a $149 test that aims to predict a child’s natural athletic strengths.
"I could see how some people might think the test would pigeonhole your child into doing fewer sports or being exposed to fewer things, but I still think it’s good to match them with the right activity," Ms. Campiglia, 36,

http://www.automotivedesignline.com/howto/202200812;jsessionid=RY5O2T4KP2ZLOQSNDLRCKH0CJUNN2JVN

In the event of an accident, modern automobiles can generate important data any time the antilock braking system (ABS) and airbags are activated. Various sensors distributed throughout the vehicle generate these data, which includes detailed braking profiles of the ABS system, time of airbag deployment, engine performance details such as RPMs, the state of the transmission, etc. The data are continuously stored into an on-board computer, much like the black boxes used by the airline industry. Successfully storing and later retrieving data can be extremely valuable in the event that criminal charges or lawsuits follow.

Why no DNA Data Bank.

I doubt that many of you have seen the movies Antz or A Bugs Life unless you went and saw it with your nieces or nephews. Both movies have something to say about DNA and genetics. In one the queen was arbitrary assigning jobs to the larva worker, soldier, worker and so on. In the other movie, the Woody Allen character complains, But I don’t want to be a worker. The jest of it was because of his DNA and genetic makeup, he was assigned the job they said he had to be.
Here the mother feels no qualms about using DNA to see where her 2-1/2 year old son should place his hopes of becoming the next Pele (Soccer) or Mark Sanchez (Football). How will she feel if they say he should play the piano?

Anyone who has been in an accident that has a black box that shows that you weren’t at fault will sing the praises of the technology that got them off the hook.

Consider this, you go in to purchase insurance that is required by the state. The insurance company tells you to pull your car into the garage so they can attach your car to their computer to examine your driving habits. Your black box has GPS that tells their computer where you were and what the posted speed limit is. Then it tells them what you were driving, did you make jackrabbit starts or last minute stops. When you stopped, did you come to a complete stop or coast through the stop sign? By the way, not only will your rates be based on your age group and state driving record, it will be based on what your car has to say about your driving habits. Hello, Hal (2001), can’t you help me out here? Do even try to tell them that your brother borrows the car all of the time and anything bad wasn’t you. They have heard it all before.

You apply for employment and they ask you for a DNA sample to see if your profile fits the requirements for job. OH, never mind, ten years down the road, they will already have your child’s DNA on file. You won’t even know that you were rejected because of some regressive genes that you inherited from your mother’s side of the family. Haven’t you seen the Futurama episode where Fry is assigned a delivery boy chip because of his DNA? With a DNA Data Bank, that doesn’t seem as far off base as it did when I first saw it.

When you apply for insurance, the insurance company checks with your doctor to find out what your past medical history is. If they don’t like what they see, they don’t have to write you a policy. God forbid that the government should take over and have access to your DNA. Will decisions be made as to whom receives what surgery base on the probability that you will develop high blood pressure and die early in life?

Building a master race has been attempted in the past and there is always a chance that it will be tried again in the future. Do any of these issues cause you concern about your future or the future of your children, or are they "black helicopters" to you?

IV & XIV amendments, see my blog.

http://agrouchyoldman.livejournal.com/9182.html