ABSTRACT
Citizens are encouraged to participate in the System, casting their votes for this or that policy, for this or that decision. In the latest voter briefing, there is a somewhat contentious issue. In a draft Monitoring Bill, it is proposed that permanent remote access should be installed in the skulls of recidivists or compulsive criminals. Virtually everyone agrees that genes influence behavior. Scandinavian twin and adoption studies are widely touted as favouring a genetic role in crime. ‘Everyone knows’ that the cycle of violence is repeated across generations. Better genetic information might lead to better decisions. However, poor science can be politically exploited; and, even in ideal polities, this science is complex—‘while genes may constrain, influence, or impact behavior, they do so only in concert with each other and the environment, both internal and external to the organism carrying the genes.’.
