Let's Take a Poll About ESCR and Cloning
The last several years have been quite eventful in the field of biotechnology. President Bush was castigated for modest restrictions on federal funding of human ESCR and his policy is on the brink of being overturned. Several countries outlawed all human cloning. Some, like the UK moved full speed ahead into human SCNT. Hwang Wu-suk claimed to have created cloned human embryos, only later to have been proved a charlatan. California passed Proposition 71 which will pour $3 billion over 10 years into cloning and ESCR.
So, where will all of this lead? Take this poll and tell us what you think. (Feel free to explain your vote in the comments section.)
Labels: Cloning. ESCR. SHS Poll.
posted by Wesley J. Smith @ 9:11 AM
5 Comments
5 Comments:
I voted for fetal farming because far more "benefits" are probably obtainable from nascent life that has been gestated than from embryos in Petri dishes. Moreover, most of the same arguments heard today to justify ESCR and therapeutic clonign would also apply, e.g., they are not persons so they can be used, they will never be born so they are not really human, the benefit to be obtained is worth the lives of nascent life, etc.
I think you're certainly right about the benefits being greater from older fetuses. This only shows up the irony of the fact that the Right to Life movement has formally dropped its objections to government funding of research using tissue from aborted fetuses because of greater fears about ESCR. (This happened near the beginning of the Bush administration.)
My only question is whether the cloning techniques will work well enough with humans to allow implantation and gestation of cloned embryos to much later of a stage. I don't have a strong reason to think it _won't_ be possible. It's just that (fortunately) they haven't gotten very far in trying it yet, so I suppose it might fail or take a long time to get it to work.
There's also the question of how hard it will be in the U.S. (where people are by and large not so desperate for money, but where most of the money is for research) to get women to cooperate with going through artificial implantation, early pregnancy, and a pre-planned abortion. We can always hope they won't have a lot of takers in such a scheme.
I voted with you Wesley though they'll have to overcome the Fetus Farming Prohibition bill that passed. I think that vote was unanimous in the Senate. Hopefully Brownback, Santorum et al. have bought us some time and other research can come in and make the other unnecessary, or some big relatable atrocity will help us like partial birth abortion changed the debate on abortion. I hate to be pessimistic, but I think the conversation you had with the Canadian caller about being willing to do anything for his daughter is more typical than we'd believe. But we have hope.
If there are any radio hosts, program/station managers reading, get Wesley's one minute bioethical spots running. And tell your competitors. They are what you'd expect from Wesley Smith.
Don: The bill does not apply to artificial wombs, which would be the most likely gestating vehicle. Oops.
Thanks for the plug. I am impatiently awaiting the DI putting up a BioScience Views Web site so I can link the comments. Your support in this regard is most appreciated.
How well are scientists doing on developing an artificial womb?
I view that development with mixed feelings. Think of what it could mean if children could be transferred to an artificial womb from a woman's womb! While a woman wanting to have an abortion probably would be no more interested in such a transfer than in adoption after birth, there are pro-life women who have been put in situations where, e.g., they have cancer and are pressured to abort so that they can have chemo. If the child could be transferred safely to an artificial womb, they could consider that option instead of simply having to put off their own treatment. It could also be very helpful for very early preemies or for women who develop life-threatening high blood pressure as a result of the pregnancy.
But I have to say I can hardly believe that "putting them back" is going to be possible. My guess is they'll probably have to be gestated in any artificial womb that develops from the outset.
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