The early rush to ban such use is going to fall by the wayside very quickly as governments realize that banning the technology for human use domestically will only put their people at a huge disadvantage going forward.
As I have been explaining at my blog for years and explained in my chapter of The Future of Business
:CrispR Cas9 will make all sorts new industries possible that are focused on genetic modification of superficial (phenotype) traits that are "low hanging fruit" modifications. It heralds the "cosmecutical" industry as I like to call it. I've written on this subject for quite some time having prognosticated its emergence going back a decade.
Research teams all over the world are probably already at work (bolstered by entrepreneurs and business people who have come across these ideas) will require a few months to years of focused research identifying the important gene networks, characterizing their variation and then will strike "gold" in the form of gene editing mods to switch individual network pathways to desired output forms either somatically (which isn't permanent nor does it transfer to progeny) or germ line (which is both).
The existing industry for cosmetics will flower with these new non invasive and extremely safe future means of effecting things like skin color change, hair color change, hair texture change and eye color change. Taken together I've researched that this industry is at least a trillion dollar potential.
Beyond the money however I see it as mans final domination of much of the source of xenophobia in human society. It is based on identification of apparent physical difference and creating arbitrary distinctions of ability, merit and association from them...what happens when technology can truly turn a black person white or a white person black?
All sorts of awakenings happen in the social landscape. The coming together of humans of shared experience which the internet started, the web accelerated and mobile web kicked into high gear...will be boosted yet again when superficial markers become totally and completely a fashion choice...an accessory to wear and take off ...not a symbol of identity to fight and kill and oppress over.
The dawn of the age of Neapolitan people:
http://sent2null.blogspot.com/2015/06/neopolitan-people-and-rachel-dolezal.html
The obfuscation, if not end of skin based privileges and the attendant evils that they have created and maintain in many parts of the world is nigh using such technology and for that alone it may be worth all the risks.
For me this is the greatest power in the unleashing of such technologies and why it is CRITICAL we let it happen no matter what short term consequences result ....and be sure some will, teams will make mistakes in their characterizing of various pathways....teams will not produce guide RNA that are specific enough in their identification of extant pathways and result in undesired modifications.
If testing (likely in animal models) is not fully performed, these may impact the deployment of the technology in the first nations to go live with human tests; so it is important that during this research process that it is:
a) visible to regulation and
b) complete to cover as many edge cases as possible.
Making such modifications illegal makes both a) impossible and b) unlikely (up to the ethical fiat of the "gene kiddies" running basement biolabs who would other wise be trying). So early embrace and control and guidance is the only rational choice for any government.
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