Gallup Poll: Suicide, Human Cloning Immoral, Stem Cell Research, Animal Testing Moral
A recent Gallup Poll rated the views of the American people on key moral issues. Here are the results regarding issues of concern here at SHS. The first number reflects "Morally Acceptable," the second "Morally Wrong:"
- Medical research using stem cells obtained from human embryos: 64%-30%Some thoughts: The attitudes toward the human use of animals seems very consistent with approximately 59% favoring and 37% opposing. In this regard, I would have been interested to see a poll on the morality of eating meat.
- Suicide: 16%-78%
- Cloning humans: 11%-86%
- Medical testing on animals: 59%-37%
- Buying and wearing clothing made from animal fur: 59%-37%
- Cloning animals: 36%-59%
- Doctor assisted suicide-49%-44%
- Abortion: 40%-51%
Thoughts on suicide are conflicted: Suicide is deemed immoral, but doctor-assisted suicide is close to evenly split. To me, this shows the power of a doctor's authority. Also, it demonstrates that assisted suicide is not as wildly popular as its proponents pretend.
The cloning number is dramatic, but may refer in people's minds to reproductive cloning. Still, in other polls, majorities also opposed creating human cloned embryos for use in research. Finally, while we don't deal with abortion here generally, the poll seems to indicate that the nation is more closely split on the issue than I would have thought.
Finally, this poll does not measure whether a particular activity should be legal. Many might feel that an act is immoral, but should be legal.
Labels: Gallup Poll.
posted by Wesley J. Smith @ 9:14 AM
5 Comments
5 Comments:
Of course cloning refers to reproductive cloning. And surely they'd be similarly opposed to creating "near-clones", where a gene or two has been altered, and also similarly opposed to genetic engineering of designer babies. It is true though there are lots of people who would say that it is OK to correct a genetic defect before making an embryo, but they haven't read "Enough" or the PCBE reports that explain why we need to prohibit even that. There are also lots of eager transhumanists, though those people probably would not have said cloning was wrong in this poll, so hopefully there are not very many of them.
This is where the debate needs to be now, Wesley. Should genetic engineering designer babies continue to be legal? Should same-sex conception continue to be legal? It is not far-off, the leading researcher says he expects it in just a year or two now. How come you never talk about this? You've done way more thinking about it than most people, so it is hard to believe, and disturbing, that you haven't come to a conclusion. What are you waiting for? Do you really oppose a ban on creating genetically engineered people? Do you really think that the public shouldn't be aware of this issue, and that we shouldn't know how the candidates feel about it?
Genetic engineering is an important issue. Same sex conception is impossible at the moment, until and unless cloning can be developed in the human.
I think the public should be aware of these issues. I have written repeatedly about genetic engineering. I have written repeatedly about human cloning. Not sure what you expect me to do. The people in charge of Congress have no intention of doing as you suggest.
And how many of those who think using stem cells obtained from human embryos mean "from human embryos who must be destroyed." Plenty are either unaware of this fact, or have fallen for the ACT propaganda that they're obtaining ESCs without harming embryos.
Say that you think Congress should enact a law like the PCBE recommended, that would prohibit creating people that are not the product of a woman's egg and a man's sperm. And then try to get the candidates to tell us if they are for genetic engineering or if they are for a ban on it. Wouldn't it be bad to be electing people who won't take the right action when the time comes?
And regarding same-sex conception, why do you not believe Dr. Richard Scott, who is one of the top researchers in the field, and a respected professional, when he predicted a same-sex conceived child in three to five years? And what difference does it make if he's being overly optimistic? He's working on it now, and we should ban it now. Why wait?
bmmg39, I think most people are aware that there is a controversy about stem cell research, and they know the opposition is upset because they consider embryos human beings.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home