This new segment that discussed an investigation into California’s longstanding practice of collecting and storing DNA samples from every newborn in the state made me stop & go OMG!
It’s definitely worth a watch. For over 40 years, the state has taken blood samples from babies to test for genetic disorders, storing the remaining samples indefinitely without parental consent. The segment highlights concerns about transparency and privacy, as it was revealed that the California Department of Public Health has been selling these DNA samples to independent researchers and occasionally using them for law enforcement purposes.
Personally, in terms of privacy & security, I think this issue reflects on broader concerns about how our DNA is handled (even when we take those popular DNA tests and do it knowingly.)
Do we have any members from California? How would you feel if you discovered your own DNA had been stored and used without your knowledge? What actions, if any, would you take?
How do guys think this issue reflects on the overall concerns about government / medical institution/ private institution transparency and individual privacy in the digital age?
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I lived long ago in California for ten years, and I am not surprised that the state has been doing this. One political party has dominated the state for 40+ years. Without vibrant two-party politics in an American state, and with mainstream media whose reporters vote 90+% of the time with the party in power, it is easy to get this kind of stupidity.
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@kirkmahoneyphd I think Illinois is headed in the same direction. I grew up in Chicago, but we moved to the 'burbs when it was time for me to go to HS because my parents were not going to send me to a Chicago Public School. ’
Illinois ranked second in the nation for the rate of residents moving out and finding a new state in 2023. Surprisingly, California ranked #6.
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I didn’t watch the video but from your comments about it, it highlights to me the lack of trustability of certain organisations. Doing something that affects citizens without the knowledge of said citizen, then when it comes out into the public sphere they say something like ‘we’re doing this to protect you’ or ‘it’s for your own good’.
It feels to me as though they treat people as if they’re unable to take any steps to protect themselves. It also feels like blatant lies, covering up the truth of why they’re actually doing these things.
But then there is balance in all things - as there is a dark side, so too is there a light side.
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