As students of a high school summer genetic engineering course, we have decided that human genetic engineering is immoral for the following reasons: It would eliminate talent; as stated in The Incredibles, If everyones super, then no one will be. And Playing God is a dangerous game that inevitably ends with a monster.- AnonymousEveryone will be the same, parents will want the perfect child, therefore, everyone will have the same talents and advantages, so it will not make a big difference in society. If a group of people begins to make superior changes in their offspring, the rest of the population will be left with inferior children unless they too join in the practice of designing their baby. Therefore, the company that produces these changes will be in control of the population.If human genetic engineering were to happen, the various figures of god, which millions of people around the world rely on every day would collapse and becomes us, therefore, reducing faith by having us play the role of a god-like figure. While creating the perfect immune system, only diseases that are already known will be prevented. When a new disease comes along, our immune system will not be comparatively as strong. We came to the opinion that genetically engineering designer babies is wrong because the social-economic divide would become increasingly more noticeable and potentially more hostile.Genetically engineering a privileged embryo to be immune to all known diseases would cause the downfall of the pharmaceutics industry, and consequently the deaths of a great number of underprivileged citizens.
When we try to engineer a child, for that is what an embryo is, a child, we change God's plan for the child. If that child was meant to be born with dyslexia, and you take it from them, not only are we taking away something that they will grow through, but we ourselves are playing god. A parent raises a child with unconditional love. If that child is chosen to be a certain sex, hair color, eye color, IQ and all imperfections have been taken out, how can the love of their parents ever be unconditional?
It is meddling with something beyond our grasp, we are not meant to play God and try to create life in the way we wish it to be. We are all formed in our mothers womb just as he wants us to be. "Ps 139:13 - For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb." "Isaiah 44:24 - Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself."
I believe it is unethical because it goes against the Bible. I believe that only God can truly affect the genetics of a human being and the science doesn't stand a chance. It is morally wrong and takes God out of it. After all we are talking about a human life here. No matter what people say, the cells science messes with are human beings.
In the bible it says that we were created in gods image. If we genetic engineer on some one then we are tarnishing the image of God. In the move Gattaca they show that only people of higher class and are modified can be great, but look at steven hawking. Steven hawking has helped contrubute so much and look at his diabilaties.
When will we learn the simple fact that everything man has tried to improve on relating to mother nature and creation has ultimately ended up being a step in the wrong direction? Sometimes irreversible changes we could not have forseen show up decades later. When you put something on this earth that never has and never was intended to be here, you can't possibly see the repercussions it will bring about. There is so much we will never understand about the human body, mind and soul. It is foolish and arrogant to think we can experiment with the human race on this level and say we understand it all. When will we learn? We are not God. If you don't believe in the God who created everything, then most likely you will think man is smart enough and powerful enough to cure any disease, engineer life to last indefinitely, and anything else our heart desires, without any consequences. I'm all for advances in healthcare, but we can't possibly think we can improve on what God created can we? In his ultimate wisdom he created the human race, and the universe. Let's just figure out how to build a car that will last more than 10 years before we start engineering the perfect human race. What do you say?
It leaves people to decide what the "ultimate race" would be like. Genetic engineering doesn't cure diseases as people claim. Genetics in one of the most misunderstood realms of science. (Not that I understand it, but the leading scientist can't come to consensus either.) It is used for growth hormone, insulin production, fertility drugs, and vaccines. Since genetics is so risky and these risks are not fully understood, GE on humans should be restricted to research and experimentation in life or death situations.
Why spend money on creating your own child from chosen traits? Let mother nature take its course. Okay? So people... Dont customize your own child, thats just wrong. It may seem appealing at first because you want your child to be so-called perfect, but hey, no one's perfect. Okay?
In the 21st century, we have seen the vast differences in technological advancements in the developed and developing countries in the world. The poor citizens of developing countries generally have less sophisticated technological gadgets compared to those that are wealthier. If we were to allow genetic engineering, it will certainly create an even larger inequality between the rich and the poor. The affluent ones can simply pay to get muscle enhancements or increase their IQ genetically. However, the poor ones will have to toll and work very hard simply to match up to their rich counterparts. This would certainly create an unbalanced society where the rich will continue to advance and become richer whereas the poor will be left behind in this fast-paced race. Thus, this clear distinction between the two groups: the Genetically Modified and the normal being is known as the Genetic Divide. In such a society, the poor will be extremely disadvantaged and it will be even harder to adopt a meritocratic system. Thus, an equal starting platform will no longer exist. Therefore, genetic engineering should not be pursued as it has the potential to cause an unwanted genetic divide in the society.
Though there are many naysayers out there God does exist. He has more power and love than we could possibly imagine. He has a divine plan for every person and tragedy happens for a reason, the ripple effect is endless even if we are too stubborn to see. We do not have the right to play God. If diseases happen they happen for a reason and though tragic there is always something good that comes out of it. Plus, messing with genetics and increasing lifespans in an unnatural way only contributes to overpopulation that much more.
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Is human genetic engineering ethical? | Debate.org
Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith
