Another 'Too Big to Fail' System in G.M.O.s - by Mark Spitznagel and Nassim Nicholas Taleb

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http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/14/business/dealbook/another-too-big-to-fail-system-in-gmos.html

Another ‘Too Big to Fail’ System in G.M.O.s
JULY 13, 2015
By MARK SPITZNAGEL and NASSIM NICHOLAS TALEB

Before the crisis that started in 2007, both of us believed that the financial system was fragile and unsustainable, contrary to the near ubiquitous analyses at the time.

Now, there is something vastly riskier facing us, with risks that entail the survival of the global ecosystem — not the financial system. This time, the fight is against the current promotion of genetically modified organisms, or G.M.O.s.

Our critics held that the financial system was improved thanks to the unwavering progress of science and technology, which had blessed finance with more sophisticated economic insight. But the “tail risks,” or the effect from rare but monstrously consequential events, we held, had been increasing, owing to increasing complexity and globalization. Given that almost nobody was paying attention to the risks, we set ourselves and our clients to be protected from an eventual collapse of the banking system, which subsequently happened to the benefit of those who were prepared.

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As we said, the financial system nearly collapsed, but it was only money. We now find ourselves facing nearly the same five fallacies for our caution against the growth in popularity of G.M.O.s.

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The G.M.O. experiment, carried out in real time and with our entire food and ecological system as its laboratory, is perhaps the greatest case of human hubris ever. It creates yet another systemic, “too big too fail” enterprise — but one for which no bailouts will be possible when it fails.

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Mark Spitznagel is the founder and chief investment officer of Universa Investments and author of “The Dao of Capital: Austrian Investing in a Distorted World.” Nassim Nicholas Taleb is distinguished scientific adviser at Universa Investments, author of “The Black Swan” and distinguished professor of risk engineering at New York University School of Engineering.

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1. Taleb discusses the article on his facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10153181781383375&id=13012333374

This "anti-GMO is anti-science" nonsense has to stop.

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2. Totally.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice.

We have only a crude understanding of how genetics works, and it will most definitely bite us in the ass, the only question is when? With a little modesty, we could have improved our understanding a great deal by now. Instead we have greedheads pushing the latest little bit of progress like it's a new era in which we are completely in control. It's infantile.

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3. GMOs have already contaminated most of the US animal feed supply

To get organic, GMO animal feed you have to import it from Europe. And that is unsustainable.