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The City University of New York
Graduate Center: 33 West 42 Street, New York, N. Y. 10036

   

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Ph.D, Program in Philosophy

November 20, 1970

Professor Joshua Lederberg

Department of Genetics

Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford University Medical Center
Stanford, California

94305

Dear Professor Lederberg:

Please pardon my delay in answering. Your letter was
forwarded to me at my new position.

I am, of course, honored by your having read my article,
but am also sorry to have caused you grief. The reason why
I interpreted your remarks as a "threat" is that you seemed
to be saying that one way or another-- despite "overzqlous
policing" or through "forcing their use on society"-- "seemingly
bizarre genetic experiments" are going to be done; moreover,
they must be allowed to be done. (The only other statement of
yours that I have read is your letter in Atlantic, March, 1969,
commenting on Fleming's piece. This was subsequent to my
article. Had I read your letter first, I still think I would
have interpreted you in the way I did.) Perhaps the word
"threat" was a wrong one to use. Also, I should have been
more cautious than to make use of a newspaper report, which
might very well have been inaccurate and out—of-context.
But I gather that you have no objections over the accuracy.

I should add a word about my sentence: "The legal control
of biological engineering is itself liable to abuse..." Given
a legal structure of control it would not only be possible to
stifle research that should be done, but it will also be easier
to make-~ what I would regard as-- bad uses of biomedical
technology. I fear that we are in fact likely to end up with
both of these results.

The copy of my Monist article is enclosed. I hope you
find something of interest in it. I look forward with eager-
ness to the assembly of writings that you mentioned. If you
have an offprint of a piece that you think would be appropriate
for me, I would appreciate your sending it.

Yours truly,

Ve pi. &; ¢

MG: ms Martin Golding
Professor of Philosophy
The City University of New York
Graduate Center: 33 West 42 Street, New York, N. Y. 10036

   

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Ph.D. Program in Philosophy

(2)

Professor Joshua Lederberg

P.S. In my UCLA article "atopogenics" should read "atypo-
genics" -- a needless barbarism in any case.

MG