Debate of the Week 2: Stem Cell Research
Do you think stem research is ethical? If yes why? If no why? If the answer is more complicated than that then how?
Here’s my stance. No human life should ever be created for the sole purpose of being destroyed. To create human embryos just to kill them for research is absolutely monstrous. However, what about the embryos that are being discarded by parents who went through in-vitro and decided they had enough kids so they are getting rid of the leftovers? Would it not be better to allow these people to decide if the embryos they are killing anyway should be used for potentially life saving research and treatments? I think it would. While I personally would opt for embryo adoption rather than killing my kids, not everybody would want to let someone else birth and raise their unwanted children. While this is selfish in my view it is within the law. So I say ban the creation of embryos for research and medicine, but allow parents a choice for the embryos they intend to discard.
What do you think?
Here’s my stance. No human life should ever be created for the sole purpose of being destroyed. To create human embryos just to kill them for research is absolutely monstrous. However, what about the embryos that are being discarded by parents who went through in-vitro and decided they had enough kids so they are getting rid of the leftovers? Would it not be better to allow these people to decide if the embryos they are killing anyway should be used for potentially life saving research and treatments? I think it would. While I personally would opt for embryo adoption rather than killing my kids, not everybody would want to let someone else birth and raise their unwanted children. While this is selfish in my view it is within the law. So I say ban the creation of embryos for research and medicine, but allow parents a choice for the embryos they intend to discard.
What do you think?
posted by Daniel Levesque at
12:02 PM
4 Comments:
I would hope people would go into invitro with pure intentions, but I'm afraid this would open a market for people to sell their embryos without ever having the intention of having a child.
By
Dr. Phat Tony, at 12:14 PM
You have a point. As much as I am against excessive legislation what I have proposed would require a law stating that no embryos may be donated for research until a child has come of the procedure. Another point to consider woould be the expense involved in in-vitro. It costs $10,000 or more to do a single cycle and there are no refunds for failure. I sincerely doubt most people would even consider spending that kind of money just to kill off their own babies. Of course, it's possible some group on the lunatic fringe, like MoveOn.org might set up a fund that pays people to do just that.
By
Daniel Levesque, at 12:59 PM
Hmmm, Phantom, you have hit on a touchy subject by calling in-vitro fertilization Orwellian to Frankensteinian. My wife and I are an infertile couple who have gone through what has become 2 failed attempts at in-vitro with the loss of this baby. While I totally agree with you about adoption, and my wife and I are determined to adopt, we want to have a child or children of our own first, then adopt. It is going through this process that got me thinking about the subject of stem cell research to begin with.
There is another problem you have not addressed. The cost of adoption has become prohibitive. Somehow the placement of children in loving homes has become a for-profit business that excludes many prospective parents on the basis of their inability to afford the huge fees. It's so expensive that prospective parents could pay for a cycle of in-vitro and possibly get al the kids they could ever want for the price of adopting one child. If you want to encourage adoption you should write your elected representatives to urge them to force the price of adption down to the affordable range.
By
Daniel Levesque, at 7:20 PM
Thanks for the adoption tip. As far as Marijuanha laws go, you'll discover my position in a posting soon to come.
By
Daniel Levesque, at 8:57 PM
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