TLDR: Spreading Alpha-Gal, which causes people who eat red meat to go into anaphylactic shock, through seeding ticks is moral because meat is immoral, but said over 10 pages
This paper shows how simply outrageous zealotry is, standing naked in front of us all encouraging the spread of allergies to healthy people for philosophical reasons.
People do die from Alpha-Gal syndrome (last month actually). This entire paper is rage inducing.
The bite of the lone star tick spreads alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), a condition whose only effect is the creation of a severe but nonfatal red meat allergy. Public health departments warn against lone star ticks and AGS, and scientists are working to develop an inoculation to AGS. Herein, we argue that if eating meat is morally impermissible, then efforts to prevent the spread of tickborne AGS are also morally impermissible. After explaining the symptoms of AGS and how they are transmitted via ticks, we argue that tickborne AGS is a moral bioenhancer if and when it motivates people to stop eating meat. We then defend what we call the Convergence Argument: If x-ing prevents the world from becoming a significantly worse place, doesn't violate anyone's rights, and promotes virtuous action or character, then x-ing is strongly pro tanto obligatory; promoting tickborne AGS satisfies each of these conditions. Therefore, promoting tickborne AGS is strongly pro tanto obligatory. It is presently feasible to genetically edit the disease-carrying capacity of ticks. If this practice can be applied to ticks carrying AGS, then promoting the proliferation of tickborne AGS is morally obligatory.
Canonical Link (paywall) https://doi.org/10.1111/bioe.70015
From the conclusion:
Herein, we have argued that AGS is a moral bioenhancer and that its promotion is morally obligatory. Among other things, that means that researchers have an obligation to develop the AGS‐carrying capacity of ticks, and that means human agents are obligated to expose others to AGS (and possibly lone star ticks), not to prevent the spread of AGS or lone star ticks, and to undermine attempts to “cure” AGS. Indeed, given that AGS is a moral bioenhancement with no significant negative effects on human health (so long as one avoids eating meat), it is not a disease and thus cannot be “cured.”
Lots of assumptions baked into this conclusion... that there are no negative effects from avoiding meat...... Imagine if someone is allergic to plant toxins.....
The sheer narcissistic paternalism of wishing to remove other people's choices really enrages me, especially as a justification to spread a disease that limits healthy food supplies....
The ability of these people to come up with an argument that forcibly denying choice for adults is good, actually is perplexing. I studied philosophy at University and I can't think of a philosophical framework that works in, aside from solipsism
its basically poisoning the food supply with extra steps, which i think is ridiculous to try to frame poisoning food as a ethical thing to do.