[DEFEATED] Against Suicide Seeds

[Wallenburg]

By the format of this voting and wording of the question, are we voting for as in, against suicide seeds, or for as in, they're fine?

You could always read the resolution...

[Holy Jakelandion Empire]

What is it with all of you environmental freaks lately? Feeding people and providing jobs is much more important than a few ferns.

[Sardennoi]

What is it with all of you environmental freaks lately? Feeding people and providing jobs is much more important than a few ferns.

"From what I see, ambassador, it's more about protecting the ability of farmers to reuse seeds instead of having to purchase new ones each year. Not about starving people and taking away jobs. Unless I'm looking at this wrong?"

[Calladan]

What is it with all of you environmental freaks lately? Feeding people and providing jobs is much more important than a few ferns.

"From what I see, ambassador, it's more about protecting the ability of farmers to reuse seeds instead of having to purchase new ones each year. Not about starving people and taking away jobs. Unless I'm looking at this wrong?"

Have you considered that the two are connected? If a farmer has to repeatedly purchase new seeds, then their overall profit margin will - most likely - be impacted, maybe quite badly. And when businesses - any business - start to become unprofitable then they have to cut jobs and even face the possibility of shutting down.

Now if this is a typical business - a book store, a newspaper, an on-line retail company - then it's bad enough. But if this is a business that provides food to the nation then the consequences of it becoming less productive or even shutting down are far more catastrophic.

[Smolstrom]

By the format of this voting and wording of the question, are we voting for as in, against suicide seeds, or for as in, they're fine?

You could always read the resolution...

I had to read over it carefully to understand, voting for is against suicide seeds. with such a one sided vote right now though, I wonder if people are having the same issue as I was with wording, or have read and considered it, but still want to make seeds infertal.

[Sciongrad]

What is it with all of you environmental freaks lately? Feeding people and providing jobs is much more important than a few ferns.

"At least put in some effort... Did your read the resolution itself or just the category?"

[JC Helios]

Author from Christian Democrats,

I am strongly against the clause which forbids industrial entities from using government funding to research "GURT", as you've chosen to call it. It is heavily limiting and its open-endedness potentially subject to future abuse.

JC Helios

[Mousebumples]

What is it with all of you environmental freaks lately? Feeding people and providing jobs is much more important than a few ferns.

*** WARNED FOR TROLLING *** (emphasis mine)

[Imperium Anglorum]

Has an opinion been made regarding the use of links in proposals?

[Mousebumples]

Has an opinion been made regarding the use of links in proposals?

It's still under discussion so far as I'm aware.

[Mattopilos]

What is it with all of you environmental freaks lately? Feeding people and providing jobs is much more important than a few ferns.

"From what I see, ambassador, it's more about protecting the ability of farmers to reuse seeds instead of having to purchase new ones each year. Not about starving people and taking away jobs. Unless I'm looking at this wrong?"

Our nation sees it as a way to control the spread of GMO plants to the surrounding wildlands and forests in the regions near farms. We endorse the use of it, given we as a collective own the seeds, so no one is being affected negatively by it. If it is an issue to your peoples, maybe you think about how to resolve it without the need to ban a useful GMO technology. -Representative of the Community of Mattopilos M.J Jr.

[Potted Plants United]

Our nation sees it as a way to control the spread of GMO plants to the surrounding wildlands and forests in the regions near farms.

A large potted plant in a big plantpot with wheels suddenly comes to life, revealing a large leaf curled up to form a cone, from which a somewhat hissing voice can be heard:

We have to agree with our Mattopian friends in that sparing the - how did the ambassador of Christian Democrats put it? "Mother Nature"? - from being affected by genes that the more conventional varieties of the plants in question do not have, is much more important than sparing a farmer the trouble to re-acquire "unnatural" seeds for their use.

It should come as no surprise that we have cast our vote against this proposal, even though we could technically make all our products legal even if this was passed, since it only concerns itself with seeds, which kernels not containing an embryo are not, if we have to get technical.

We would be very much in favour of a proposal that would require all parties to do their utmost best to avoid spreading GM pollen and seeds into an environment they're not meant for, if said text didn't also attempt to ban GMOs entirely.

OOC note: I'm back from a week's vacation, missed everyone even though I had a lot of fun. ^_^

[Sedgistan]

We're discussing this. In the meantime, is there a good reason why linking to a past resolution and its repeal should be illegal? Unlike links to external, forumside or dispatch URLs, the contents of those links can't be changed.

An update on this: links to in-game General Assembly resolutions, as used in this proposal, are fine. With the exception of nation links for co-authors, any other links in proposals remain illegal (e.g. any other link to nations, regions, other gameside pages, any forumside link).

[Christian Democrats]

OOC: Apologies for my absence. I've been out-of-town.

I did see on my phone that Mousebumples, Imperium Anglorum, and Pierconium stomped this proposal early.

After much discussion, the delegation of The Sky Pineapple has decided to vote against this proposal for the following reason:
-Deciding that the wording of the proposal is extremely vague and unclear, failing to explain the dangers of GURT technology, and additionally concerned with he presence of at least one typo in the resolution and the vague nature of regulations suggested

Where's the typo?

OOC: Well, that must have happened a long time ago, because I archived the rules from right before the most recent changes, and there is no mention of links there either.

OOC: Within the last 6 years, at least.

Six years ago, it wasn't possible to put links in proposals.

Suicide seeds cannot spread to other farms as they cannot reproduce therefore cannot spread from where they were planted

Actually, the pollen of suicide plants sterilizes seeds in neighboring fields.

[Sciongrad]

OOC: Within the last 6 years, at least.

Six years ago, it wasn't possible to put links in proposals.

OOC: That's what I'm saying. Within the last 6 years, there was a rule in place against including links in proposals. Evidently, that rule was still in place and till the ruling in this very thread.

[Christian Democrats]

Six years ago, it wasn't possible to put links in proposals.

OOC: That's what I'm saying. Within the last 6 years, there was a rule in place against including links in proposals. Evidently, that rule was still in place and till the ruling in this very thread.

There wasn't a rule. It wasn't technically possible to put links in proposals. BBCode wasn't possible in proposals years ago. Then, it became possible to use bold, italicize, and underline. Then, full BBCode was permitted relatively recently.

[WA Kitty Kops]

Then, full BBCode was permitted relatively recently.

OOC: And there was a failure on some parts around that time to point out that this now meant that certain kinds of links were allowed while most other kinds were still not allowed.

Actually, the pollen of suicide plants sterilizes seeds in neighboring fields.

Still OOC: Also, that only happens if the suicide plants actually 1) produce pollen and 2) produce viable pollen that carries all the "foreign" traits.

[Imperium Anglorum]

Actually, the pollen of suicide plants sterilizes seeds in neighboring fields.

Still OOC: Also, that only happens if the suicide plants actually 1) produce pollen and 2) produce viable pollen that carries all the "foreign" traits.

OOC: Reminds me of the classic response to 'your case construct could have some problematic effects': 'don't do it the dumb way'.

[Libraria and Ausitoria]

On the grounds that potentially dangerous things should not (necessarily) be able duplicate themselves, we would like to register our vote against this proposal.

[Calladan]

On the grounds that potentially dangerous things should not (necessarily) be able duplicate themselves, we would like to register our vote against this proposal.

Unfortunately you could also use that argument to sterilise criminals and psychopaths.

[Libraria and Ausitoria]

Only if humans could genetically inherit such traits, which we think absurd.

Stick to the point. Some genetic modifications may turn out to have undesireable traits due to genetics, e.g. accidentaly being poisonous. While new designs are tested, or if they are definitely found to be potentially dangerous, it is suitable that they should not be able to procreate.

[Araraukar]

Unfortunately you could also use that argument to sterilise criminals and psychopaths.

Fortunately your criminals and psychopaths are not plants with suicide seeds. Or, at least, if I understood right and your nation's citizens are humanoids.

[Calladan]

Unfortunately you could also use that argument to sterilise criminals and psychopaths.

Fortunately your criminals and psychopaths are not plants with suicide seeds. Or, at least, if I understood right and your nation's citizens are humanoids.

They are. And (to set your mind at rest) we don't sterilise people who have questionable moral standards or display what might be considered aberrant behaviour.

[Calladan]

Only if humans could genetically inherit such traits, which we think absurd.

There is quite a lot of evidence from history that not everyone agrees with your point of view.

Stick to the point. Some genetic modifications may turn out to have undesireable traits due to genetics, e.g. accidentaly being poisonous. While new designs are tested, or if they are definitely found to be potentially dangerous, it is suitable that they should not be able to procreate.

I entirely agree, and voted against the proposal for that reason. My comment was merely intended to point out that while applying eugenics and selective breeding to plants can have its uses and in some circumstances be a good thing (tm), the science used in the arguments can be applied on a wider basis with much less desirable consequences.

[Araraukar]

There is quite a lot of evidence from history that not everyone agrees with your point of view.

OOC: If you're referring to RL history, please be aware that most people's roleplay isn't exact (or even anywhere closely related) copy of the real life and thus is unlikely to have the same history. For example, for me, Araraukar is on an Earth-like planet, but one with 2 moons and different continental placement (and of course some differences in animal and plant life). The RL nations and thus the RL human history never existed on the planet my IC nation is on.