Genetic Engineering - An ethical argument
Uploaded by AjayK on Oct 12, 2002
As the author of ‘The decline and fall of the Roman Empire’, Edward Gibbon, stated ‘All that is human must retrograde if it does not advance.’
As we transcend into the 21st century, we can all look around us and see that transformations have been brought about in nearly every aspect of our lives. We are living in times where we constantly strive for new heights: to create the seemingly impossible, to break records, to make life easier. It is an undisputed fact that we have evolved in numerous ways and one can assuredly recognise the innumerous beneficial changes that the likes of science and technology has brought about in our world today.
The efforts of genetic engineers have made a great impact on our world today. In recent years, the development of cloning and genetically modified foods has been a breakthrough in modern science – marking our times as the technologically advanced era.
The idea that we may one day clone a human being has been a part of science fiction and scientific debate for generations. However, it was not until 1996, when a group at the Roslin Institute led by British scientist Ian Wilmut had cloned the first adult mammal, the now-famous Dolly the sheep that the world really changed the way it thought about human cloning. Instead of the question being, could we do it…the question now seems to be when will we do it?
One thing must be clarified. As Glenn Seaborg quite rightly stated, people must understand that science is inherently a potential to be harnessed by man to do his bidding. Therefore, the opposition’s perception that ‘genetic engineering’ itself creates more harm than good is profoundly invalid. In actual fact, there are innumerous cases to prove otherwise. We must keep in mind that genetic engineering is a relatively modern process, and just like the introduction of any new modern process in the context of their time, strong opposition will always be imminent. Therefore, whilst we concede that genetic engineering does have fallibilities, like the humans who created them, it is research and development that allows them to refine this technology. It is, thus, the product of these refinements that allows human beings to have more options in this world. And this is the stage that we are at. Options being the key word. Genetic Engineering has by no means taken away choice from individuals. Genetic...