There’s also the anaphylactic shock issue—how many people would this kill outright? From the sound of it, some meat allergies’ onset are unexplained, so if the tick explains them, there may be an unknown number of deaths also explainable by the tick.
However, a mad vegetarian utilitarian might still want to fund research on how to weaponize the tick’s saliva and measure the effect: can it be broadened to react to other forms of protein? Can the intensity of the reaction be toned down? What if the reaction is weakened to the point that it merely causes a vague sort of unease or feeling of unwellbeing—over a population, how many would that convert to vegetarianism and is the lower yield more than offset by the few deaths and lowered risk of detection?
There’s also the anaphylactic shock issue—how many people would this kill outright? From the sound of it, some meat allergies’ onset are unexplained, so if the tick explains them, there may be an unknown number of deaths also explainable by the tick.
However, a mad vegetarian utilitarian might still want to fund research on how to weaponize the tick’s saliva and measure the effect: can it be broadened to react to other forms of protein? Can the intensity of the reaction be toned down? What if the reaction is weakened to the point that it merely causes a vague sort of unease or feeling of unwellbeing—over a population, how many would that convert to vegetarianism and is the lower yield more than offset by the few deaths and lowered risk of detection?