[sageikosa]

If species always "bred true", we'd all be single cell organisms huddled around some carbon rich undersea thermal vent.

I don't see how human genetic selection is morally inferior to natural selection, nor how human designed genetic recombination is morally inferior to random mutation.

[aristus]

I have no quibble with genetic modification. I have a quibble with a huge corporation that a) sues everyone back to the stone age and b) failing that, is highly incentivized to create new breeds with kill switches and phase the others out of the market.

[sageikosa]

OK. I just now scanned the original posting :-)

I didn't see anything about kill switches (for the seeds? although sterile fruiting bodies are nothing new to agriculture, and I can see why they might want to engineer this into their seeds now to avoid such occurrences in the future), although I did see stuff about producing newer hardier varieties.

They only want to sue because this one farmer is producing plants based on Monsanto's design patents (the design being based on genetic composition) without obtaining a license; which is exactly what you would expect a patent holder to do, regardless of whether its a large corporation or not.

I'll be interested to see what the Supremes do once they inject themselves.