May You Be Blessed With A Thousand Sons? CRISPR Might Say OK!

While bereft of progeny myself, I had started to recklessly throw around the lovely Indian blessing of “Sahasra Putravati Bhava” (may you have a thousand sons) on young women that I had any affection for. That is an obsolete Indian blessing many an elder bestows on unsuspecting young women in India. Trust the English to make an unholy and out of proportion curry from this benign and well meaning blessing. They are going to interpret it in their country using CRISPR on livestock and make (the irony of it) millions of only female chicken … and single gendered mice populations even :)

World Farming says millions of male chicks are killed in the UK each year. Solution: no more male chicks

I will readily admit to cackling at the sudden consternation of young women and couples who thought such an obviously joking benediction might actually take effect. Having eschewed child rearing myself for so many reasons such as diapers, to unending effort, to college funds, I truly did not wish any of that, much less a thousand fold on our lovely new generations. However the tenuous parallel to this latest from the CRISPR crowd whilst well intentioned and possibly even appropriately regulated still tickled me pink. Imagine being able to ordain (CRISPR gods can apparently ordain entire species) only sons or only daughters.

Is that very far for humanity if the erstwhile colonialist English might sanction it for livestock? Imagine…