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The Ethics of Genetics
By Rose Noir 
“Cloning represents a very clear, powerful, and immediate example in which we are in danger of turning procreation into manufacture” (Leon Kass). Many people would agree with this statement. Cloning is now and always will be unethical. Society bases its laws and lifestyles on the foundation of fairness and justice. Allowing human cloning would be having all our fairness take a dive overboard. Cloning would open doors for things such as slavery and human Gods. Then, where would we would be?
The idea of human cloning, which is now banned i the U.S. due to the Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2001, began in 1997 a year after Dolly the sheep was cloned on July 5, 1996. The process of cloning used was nuclear transfer. In this type of cloning two types of cells are required, a somatic cell and an egg cell. A somatic cell is a cell other than a sperm or egg cell that contains DNA that is taken from a “gene donor”. The nucleus of the egg cell is taken out and discarded. Next, somatic cell is inserted the egg and is fused together by electricity. As a result the egg cell contains the gene donor’s DNA. After, the fused egg cell is stimulated in order to activate and divide just as a normal egg cell would and is placed into a cultural medium. Then, the egg cell is transferred into a “surrogate mother” after it turns into a blastocyst (early-stage of an embryo). Finally, after 9 months the surrogate mother gives birth to an identical twin of the gene donor. The process seems simple enough but is it right?
Human cloning would be an essential addition to medical research, another step into curing diseases. People who volunteer to be cloned could hand doctors “test dummies” for which they could find the causes and solutions of diseases. They could also provide pieces of life. Human cloning would provide extra organs for people who need them. For example, if a person who smokes has kidney failure, they would no longer have to wait for a long time in order to receive a new kidney. Most medical research to cure disease is tested on animals. Sometimes, the cures work on animals, but have a negative effect on a human. If scientists were given the chance to actually test their solutions on actual humans, they’d be closer to finding cures. As a bonus, cloning would provide reasons for certain hereditary diseases. For example, if an offspring inherits a disease like sickle- cell but the cause is unknown, cloning the two parents would be an effective way to find out why. If the offspring’s father is cloned and the clone ends up with sickle-cell, then doctors would know the source of the disease. But with medical advancement comes human decline.
Human cloning could also lead to inequality and egocentric acts. As a clone, a human would owe their life to the person they are cloned from or to the person who cloned them. Society is not always of good nature so this would lead to possession of humans, or in other terms slavery. Human clones would have no rights but the rights that their original selves give them. They could also be told what to do at all times and become minions to their clone or the person who cloned them. Society has already decided that slavery is wrong, therefore cloning humans would be wrong as well. Also, with clones could bring the rise of more prejudice. Not all people will like the idea of artificial people walking among them therefore there would be a lot of discrimination. Clones might not be able to get jobs or even live “normal” lives. Cloning could also make serving justice very difficult. There would be people with the same fingerprints walking around, which would make solving crimes much harder.
Due to the fact that human cloning leads to slavery, many people include me believe it’s wrong. It would go against all the rules that society has set down for itself. Human cloning would lead to uprisings and the possession of humans or minions. If a person did not like what was going on around them, they would be allowed to clone themselves multiple times and force others to hear the thoughts. Cloning could also become a force of rape because not many people would want to become surrogate mothers. In the end of it all human cloning can be helpful but is and will always be unethical.
Devin Doherty
January 25, 2010 at 12:03 am
I don’t see the big deal. Cloning seems like a great idea. If we could advance cloning tech to a point where clones could be medical saviors, I would be the first one to get a clone.
Nicole
November 25, 2009 at 12:07 pm
This is a very thought-provoking article. I agree that humans should never be cloned. If perhaps there was a way to only clone part of a human being, like a fully-functioning heart, set of lungs, etc., then this could prove to be a solution to many of society’s most pressing medical problems. However, only organs which are in no way conscious beings could be made to serve society without there being a violation, in my opinion, of human rights. I am all for the advancement of science, but human cloning is one area I think we should stay away from. One thing… a clone wouldn’t have the same fingerprints as the person who was cloned because the unique fingerprints are established while the baby is developing inside the mother… it has nothing to do with DNA. Otherwise all identical twins would have the same fingerprints, and that would be a real problem! Great article.
Rose Noir
November 27, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Thank you! And you’re right, I’ll be sure to edit that.
Reina Desrouleaux
November 27, 2009 at 11:38 pm
but nicole there is no way to clone a human heart lets say without a full body. even though we use pig organs when we can’t get humans, what will we resort to when we can’t get pigs? even though it will end up being unethical, clones are necessary.
Rose Noir
November 22, 2009 at 3:47 pm
I said it COULD lead to slavery not that it would. The human mind is something that has no gurantees. At one point the act of cloning would be to save a person’s life and at another point it could be to get something that is wanted. Also you said ” doesn’t necessarily lead to slavery”, meaning there is a possibility, which is all I was stating.
Reina Desrouleaux
November 21, 2009 at 12:19 am
cloning doesn’t necessarily lead to slavery, it would just enforce the idea of who is better than the other or what not. the idea of using clones for organs would in a way be injustice to a human life. and it could also lead to a major war/holocaust. but not slavery.
dimitri halikias
November 26, 2009 at 10:21 pm
why would “using clones for organs” be an “injustice to a human life”? If it is medically beneficial, why not use it? Based on your article, I am curious what your views on stem cell research are.
Reina Desrouleaux
November 27, 2009 at 11:39 pm
it would be an injustice because we would just use them as organ farms. they will fall below in society as it is in our nature to put others that service us below us. but i do agree that it is necessary.
dimitri halikias
November 28, 2009 at 9:36 am
I’m not talking about cloning individuals to create organ farms, that would be truly be unethical. However, amazing scientific breakthroughs have revealed that cloning somatic cell embryos and stem cells has the incredible capability of curing many disabilities and diseases. It would be immoral if we DIDN’T capitalize on this incredible science.
Reina Desrouleaux
November 28, 2009 at 8:45 pm
I have to agree with you there