There are at this time three major ethical concerns with cloning. Two of them will probably go away in time.
First, the process is still largely experimental. We don't know what the long-term effects of cloning a creature or an organ will be. Some have theorized that because of the way cloning is performed, produced tissues may be prematurely aged. It also bears mention that usually only a fraction of a percent of implanted clones are ever born and the rest are miscarried. Even the ones that are carried to term seem to manifest unusual pregnancies. In all, it's a risky procedure with questionable outcomes right now. But of course we're not likely to learn more unless we keep trying to some extent.
Second, as far as human and animal clones are concerned, there is a concern that the clone will be viewed by society as being identical to the original. Which, due to environmental factors (and the nature of cloning right now!) is certainly not the case. In many senses a clone is even less like the original than one identical twin is to another. A clone of Einstein might not even be interested in physics, and there's concern that he might be pressured and outed by a society that expects him to be. Not to mention the whole issue of parents cloning a 'replacement' child or pet when one dies. But again, most of these concerns spring, if anything, from a societal ignorance of the nature of clones, and is likely to go away when more clones are around for people to have experience with.
The last concern is in many ways the most nebulous. What, exactly, is life and death? Most cloned tissues used for medical research these days are obtained by removing cells from an embryo and sucking out its DNA. This essentially means the much of what made the embryo distinct no longer exists, even though all the cells remain alive. Arguably, this is a better fate than probably awaited the vast majority of such embryos, which are usually the result of abortions and are destroyed completely afterward. Is it moral to do this to an embryo? Does the fact that it would have died change things? These are questions that sharply divide people, and unlike the others are not likely to be resolved any time soon. If ever.
Hope that helps!
2006-08-03 17:24:52
·
answer #1
·
answered by Doctor Why 7
·
1⤊
0⤋
The upside is usually touted as autologous organ donation, i.e. if a liver, heart, kidney, etc. is cloned from your cells, it is as much "you" as the organ inside your body. Inasmuch as you'd be donating your lung to yourself to yourself, the rejection factor would be virtually zero.
On the downside, if I make a car, it is mine, I own it. So in that same vein, if a scientist clones or makes a human, does he own that person?
2006-08-02 00:04:24
·
answer #2
·
answered by Anonymous
·
0⤊
0⤋
There is no cloning mentioned in the bible. Therefore it is the work of the devil.
2006-08-07 04:12:30
·
answer #3
·
answered by Hate Boy! 5
·
0⤊
1⤋
can u accept another"you" share the exactly same thing u have?
It is about the privacy.
2006-08-01 23:23:30
·
answer #4
·
answered by soulsourcel 2
·
0⤊
0⤋