The Agenda

04 S T U D E N T L I F E
C O L L E G E E S S AY S :
Though, at times, applying for college feels like youre jumping through a series of increasingly smaller flaming hoops, at other times the satisfaction after
having completed a piece of spectacular work makes you realize youve made it, that the cumulation of all these years at school allow us to write with
such finesse, splendor, & magnifigance. Lets hear it for the college essay - painful and transformative at the same time.

POWER VS POWERLESSNESS
Prompt: Which corrupts more, power or powerlessness?

Power corrupts more
than powerlessness. Corruption
on behalf of the powerless is not
their own - it is the corruption of
a system which holds the power-
less accountable for choices they
are forced to make. The corruption
of the powerless solely originates
in necessity, however corruption of
the powerful originates from with-
in. In order to be purely, definitive-
Detroit. Photo courtesy of The Huffington Post. ly corrupt, one must have agency
and autonomy - the ability to
tion arising from powerlessness.
However, that is untrue. In these
rough neighborhoods the lack of
police activity and law enforce-
ment attention (because theyre so
run down, poor, and have such a
high percentage of people of color)
results in the formation of gangs
as a means of self protection. Its
a cruel cycle - people of power
neglect people who are powerless,
which in turn encourages and ne-
system where power is fed by the
maintenance of powerlessness
through systematic and deliberate
subjugation and marginalization of
groups of people.
Oppression is the specific
tool of the powerful to maintain
powerlessness. Oppression in turn
maintains the corruption that
stems from powerlessness, and
makes it so powerless and disad-
vantaged people must maintain
some level of corruption (as neces-

choose between doing something sitated by oppression) in order to
good or bad. In almost every survive in societies in which they
situation, the powerless dont have
any choice, because their agency is
Oppression is are oppressed.
When corruption of
limited or restricted by the power-
ful. Corruption as a result of power
the specific tool the powerless is discussed, we of-
ten reference increased rates of
exists more than that of the pow-
erless. Powerlessness originates
of the powerful theft or disorderly conduct, but in
the majority of cases these exist
from the existence of the powerful-
without the corruption of the pow-
to maintain because the system encourages it
and leaves people with no choice.
erful, there would be no corruption
of the powerless.
powerlessness The many examples of this dichot-
omy between the Powerful and

The corruption of a per-
sons morals when they have little
to no autonomy or means to survive
originates in the pursual of some-
thing essential to survival, like
Chicago slums. Photo courtesy of The Atlantic. food or water. The corruption the
powerless experience as a result of
their powerlessness isnt true cor-
HUMAN DNA ruption, because it is a result of op-
pression by the powerful. The ba-
FA B R I C A T I O N sic human instinct is survival, and
in many instances the corruption of
Prompt: Building on recent successes in DNA researchincluding ge- the powerless stems from basic hu-
netically modified crops, the creation of insulin within genetically mod- man necessities, which we all share
ified cells, and the sequencing of the human genomescientists have For example, one could
begun discussions about the fabrication of all DNA present in human say that the formation of gangs in
chromosomes. Some foresee dramatic breakthroughs for humankind, impoverished city neighborhoods
while others worry that the knowledge would give parents the ability like Compton, Detroit, and Chica-
to select the traits of their offspring and perhaps allow for the creation go are prime examples of corrup-
of humans without biological parents. There is widespread agreement
that the research touches ethical as well as scientific questions. In your
view, do the potential benefits outweigh its risks? If so, how should its
risks be addressed?
cessitates powerless people to do
what they need to do to live, eat,
and be safe. Because the power-
less are often neglected in society,
and not cared for or accounted for,
they are forced to resort to drastic
measures to secure the necessities
that are food, water, and safety.
By doing this, they may do some-
thing that is deemed corrupt, like
breaking the law, but their cor-
ruption originates from the power
other people exert over them, and it
isnt on their own behalf. Corrup-
tion of the powerless is frequently
the result of a corrupt system, a
Powerless include the Holocaust
(criminalization of Jewish people),
Rwandan genocide (Hutus and
Tutsis), and Whites and their slaves
in early 17th century and beyond.
Power corrupts more than
powerlessness, because the cor-
ruption of the powerless isnt real
corruption - it is necessitated by
oppression. The pseudo-corrup-
tion experienced by the powerless
is solely a product of systematic
oppression and a lack of agency.
The corruption of the powerless
wouldnt exist if it werent for the
corruption of the powerful, show-
ing decisively that Power corrupts
more often, and corrupts more peo-
ple, than Powerlessness.

The ethical question of ally select traits deemed favorable,

DNA fabrication is a complex and
far-reaching one. When examin-
ing benefits in relation to risks, it
becomes clear that the potential
benefits of human DNA fabrication
do not outweigh the many risks. A
preliminary assessment of the risks
(discussed below), and application
of governmental regulation on said
DNA fabrication are crucial in ad-
dressing these risks and preventing
abuse of the power which humans
are granted when allowed to fabri-
cate DNA.
selection patterns will inevitably
arise from concentrated societies.
A Western-based scien-
tific revolution dealing with de-
liberate DNA trait selection will
result in a dominance of Western-
The more homogenous
the human race is, the
Photo courtesy of Mashable.
more vulnerable it be-
its eugenically based Biological their natural DNA. A widespread increase elitism. In addition, if
comes
State, in which they proceeded to flare up of ableism would be in- this technology became more ac-

The risks are many and
extensive. The prompt suggests
that the Western world is at the
forefront of this scientific devel-
opment, implying that selection of
specific traits in humans without
biological parents would be on
the Western rubric - not only for
medical research purposes, but
also for cosmetic purposes. With
the Western world leading this
scientific movement, it will cre-
ate tension between Eastern and
Western cultures, especially in our
increasingly eurocentric world. hair. The desire to weed out traits
Human DNA fabrication will cre-
ate new and larger scaled social in-
equalities, different from the ones
that exist today. As humans manu-
preferred trait selections, and will
surely result a widening of the rift
which already separates developed
and undeveloped nations. If the
power to select traits in unborn
children lies in the hands of the
Western world, there will be an in-
crease in children who cosmetical-
ly match western beauty trends and
ideals. For example, there would be
a palpable spike in the number of
children with blue eyes and blonde
that are objectionable may origi-
nate with well-meaning intentions,
but its comparable to the desires
of the Third Reich, when forming
outcrop genetic aberrations, claim-
ing it was a matter of genetic hy-
giene.
The ability to fabricate
DNA will not only widen the divide
between East and West, but would
decrease Human biodiversity (as
a result of selection trends), thus
resulting in more homogenous so-
cieties. The more homogenous the
human race is, the more vulnerable
it becomes to one individual threat
taking it out in one fell swoop,
much like humans almost experi-
enced with the Black Death. In ad-
dition to a decrease of biodiversity,
it would instill harder stereotyping
on people with natural disabilities
and chronic diseases because of
escapable. A dichotomy forming
between people who have been ge-
netically modified and people who
are natural is very realistic. We do
not want to risk the production of
a dystopian society modeling what
we only see in movies or books to-
day, having similarities to Aldous
Huxleys Brave New World, or Su-
zanne Collins trilogy, The Hunger
Games. However extreme that may
seem, it is a very substantial risk
and possibility.
These complex DNA fab-
rication-based medical procedures
would be expensive, meaning they
would be used primarily by the
upper class. This would contrib-
ute to the rift between classes and
cessible but heavily regulated, a
situation may arise, similar to the
United States issue with back-alley
abortions - people attempting to
replicate complex medical proce-
dures with little success, simultane-
ously putting their lives in danger.
Though one could argue that the
benefits are worth it, that is un-
true. This DNA fabrication could
prevent many deaths, yes, but at
what cost? The societal inequali-
ties which would arise, resulting in
further oppression of already dis-
advantaged minority groups, along
with the possibility of another Bi-
ological State are not worth it.
Both essays written by Lizzy Elkins