Pandora's Box And The World: A Case Study

When considering the question as to whether the global movement of people, food and manufactured goods should be curtailed or reduced in order to counter the international spread of diseases, one must try to consider the big picture and consider whether the potential for a global epidemic outweighs the potential starvation and collapse of global economies if this movement were to be stopped. Unfortunately the lid is off of the metaphorical Pandora’s Box and the world’s economies have been systemically intertwined with global trade for at least the last 500 years. One has only to look at the deprivations that a country’s economy suffers if that country is subjected to international trade sanctions to see what an effect would be experienced globally if international trade is significantly reduced due to fears of disease. Even in developed countries like the United States there is the potential for starvation amongst inhabitants as the US, like many countries, is a net importer of food with imports accounting for approximately 17% of all food consumed in the country.1
Other options that should be looked at are already in place to a greater or lesser degree. These options include inspections, disinfection …show more content…
Humans have been genetically modifying food since the first people started selecting grains for harvesting at least 10,000 years ago. If we were to only eat the ancient versions of grains or non-domesticated animals our diet would be meager at best and there is no way the world could sustain its current population. It is ridiculous to think that we should only consume organisms that are somehow “unmodified”. We would be trying to farm hostile Aurochs, getting a few grains of wheat per stalk from wheat that towers above our heads and eating inch long wild bananas full of inedible seeds. The costs of food would be impossibly high and lead to mass starvation