On February 24-27, 1975 the International Congress on Recombinant DNA Molecules was held in Asilomar, California – Known as Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA. The conference was organised by Paul Berg, who in 1971 founded gene-splicing technique, and in 2008 he wrote that “the meeting set standards allowing geneticists to push research to its limits without endangering public health.” [1]
1975 was “when the technology was being developed, some scientists became concerned that it might be possible to create hazardous microorganisms using recombinant DNA techniques. The scientists themselves called for an investigation of the safety of the technique. Molecular biologists from around the world, including two from Australia, met for this purpose at Asilomar in California in 1975. The outcome of the Asilomar meeting was that scientists decided to continue recombinant DNA research using precautions to contain any possible hazards.” [2]
Dr Malone writes “As they considered this new technology, they foresaw both great opportunity to advance knowledge and medicine, and great risk to cause catastrophic damage to both humanity and the biosphere.” In the 80’s the “guidance which emerged from the Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA were treated with reverence and respect”, but over time “the structures created to oversee and enforce scientific compliance with the guidance have gradually been diluted and disregarded….now “virtually anything goes, and better to seek forgiveness than permission to proceed with whatever genetic engineering whim might strike ambitious and entitled self-anointed elite biotechnologists…”
SARS-CoV-2 is a product of recombinant DNA technology!