Take a look at David Aaronvitch's article today. It's all about David Davis and his "record". Besides the appeals to emotion in his piece, what struck me was this bit, where, in relation to the DNA database he wrote,It's just that many of us are prepared to trade our contested rights to anonymity [with the DNA database] in order to reduce the agonies of those whose kids or siblings are the victims of unfound killers or attackers.So I wish to ask David (and challenge him if the answer is negative to go and change it to the positive). Have you voluntarily given your DNA to the database, and that of your children? If not, go and do it now and prove the extent of your words.
If you do that I will respect your argument - although still fundamentally disagree with it - but until you do it, and confirm it in print along with permission to get confirmation, the argument remains little more than rhetoric in my mind.
2 comments:
Aaronvitch doesn't get the other side of the story - the fear people justifiably have that as government becomes powerful beyond its wildest dreams, it will misuse, muddle up and wrongly employ information.
Your DNA could be used to have you killed as part of a euthanasia programme, (and your kids), if it was realised that your genes made you more likely to vote Conservative, for example....or smoke...or have leadership qualities that would enable you to become a political activist...or write a column in a newspaper etc etc
It's not the use of the DNA information that should worry people, but the potential misuse of personal information, once it is in the hands of state agencies which live beyond the law.
This incidentally is the strongest reason why I left Britain - when I saw that the government is keeping a database on all children and their parents, to identify problems. Big Brother has already arrived in the UK.
I will post a link next.
LINK to article on state monitoring of families.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3690018.ece
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