New APPS: Art, Politics, Philosophy, Science

Is the labeling of GMOs as GMOs anti-science? Part 1

On November 6, 2012, Californians will vote to decide if genetically engineered foods, whether raw or processed, should be labelled as such (see details here).  If it passes, it would be the first such law in the U.S., even though at least 50 countries worldwide, including all of the European Union, China, Japan, and Russia, already have GMO label laws. The ballot measure, Proposition 37, has generated a lot of heat on both sides.

Although the debate is complex, one meme has caught my eye in particular: those who advocate for "yes on 37" have been termed "anti-science" by members of the "no on 37" camp.  Some have even likened pro-labelers (presumed to be anti-GMO, although that is not necessarily the case) to climate change deniers and evolution deniers.

Environmental Issues Loom Large in U.S. Presidential Campaign

First, let me introduce myself as a new New APPS blogger.  I'm a philosopher of biology/science at the University of California, Davis, with strong interests in evolution, ecology, and increasingly, environmental ethics.  I hope to blog on a wide range of issues, including but not limited to the above.  But let me begin with some thoughts that have been rattling around my brain the last few days, because I would like to get some feedback on them.  Ultimately, they are about ethics and environmental ethics.

As you probably know, it's election season in the U.S.  And as will happen during election season, even individuals who are very close politically can disagree.  Thus, one liberal may say that she is voting for Barack Obama, even though he has been disappointing in some respects and is not really all that liberal.  Another liberal will say that he is voting for the person whose values most closely match his own, and that is Jill Stein (the Green Party candidate) not Obama.  As it turns out, there are a number of facets to this disagreement about the best person to vote for, including strategies about voting for the lesser of two evils vs drawing a line in the sand now.