Cloning

Genetic engineering can be used for many purposes and has
the capability to save lives, yet the concept of cloning is
a very controversial issue and is rejected by many.
 
Cloning has been used to produce some human hormones
(notably insulin), some proteins for vaccines, and
interferon, a substance with the potential to treat viral
infections. Other valuable aids to treatment are also
genitacially engineered, Factor VIII (a protein used to
treat Hemophilia) and TPA ( a substance that dussolves
blood clots).
 
"Many science and medical discoveries endorse some human
freedom or trancended narure. But for us to change
substantially the germ-lined DNA is to directly alter the
genitics of a human. In what ways do we, by manipulating
our genes in other than simple ways, change ourselves to
something less than human? If we accept this power do we
have the wisom to use it?... (World Council of Churches,
1992).
 
This is a common question amoung many people. Skeptics feel
that the human mind cannot possibly control such an awesome
responsibility. Nobody really knows if it can, but cloning
is becoming more and more popular. It is becoming more and
more common and the perplexity of its potential is no
longer being recongnized. People who favor cloning have no
idea of the potiential disaster that it could cause, and
people who are aganist the idea have no idea of what good
it could do, or how many lives it could save. Hopefully
people will realize the power and responsibility that comes
with cloning before its too late. Another controversy
surronding genetic engineering is that of ethics. The
biblical view of genitic engineering is seen as this:
 
"From Auschwitz to Hiroshima to love canal humanity has
been decisively demonstrated that its technological powers
overwhelm its capacties for moral judgment. The genetic
engineering of human life, if allowed to proceed, will
quickly trespass any well intentioned boundries and
guidelines" (Manipulating Life, pg. 48)
 
This view is shared by many. Again and again over the past
decade, science has declaired, "Look what we can do," and
the defenders of morals and ethics have answered, " Yes,
but maybe you shouldn't". It has happened over birth
control, organ transplant, test-tube babies, surrogate
mothers, mind altering medications, and now this genitic
engineering. Much to the dismay of many people their fights
usually follow this pattern:
 
Most people who are against cloning feel that it is a
process of simply nominating somebody to play god. This is
a topic that fights a constant battle with sucide, and this
is not what scientist want the idea of cloning to turn
into. Unfortunately for them, the idea of cloning defies
many peoples long standing ideas of morals and ethics. Many
feel that everyone of these breakthroughs in genitic
engineering will be of benifit someone, under some
circumstances, somewhere in society. Step by step , advance
by advance, human beings might well choose to trande away
spontaneity of natural life for the predictablity of
technological design. People fear that ultimately, we will
be formed into a product of our own creation. A creation in
which bears no longer resemble bears and trees no longer
resemble trees. Just because something can be done is no
longer adequate justification for assuming that it should
be done or that it cannot be stopped from being done. As
humans we have a scred oblication to say no when the
pursuit of a specific technological path threatens the very
existence of life.
 
The new technology of cloning, or geeitic engineering,
raises a realm of ethical, legal, medical, social, and
philosophical questions that force us as people to
re-evaluate our true value of human life. Programming
genetic traits into human sex cells, subjects the human
species to the art of technical manipulation and design.
With the arrival of genetic engineering, humanity
approaches a crossroad of its own technological history. It
will soon be possible to engineer and produce human beings
by the same technological design principles as we now
employ in our industrail process. Cloning can give a couple
the little boy or girl that they dreamed of, and it can
also result in the death by abortion of an innocent victim
merely because of its gender. Cloning can prevent people
fom disease and help those who have them, however, with one
simple mistake, it can creat an incurable deformity. 

In many cultures it is the answer for couples who wish to
have the preferred males, in others it is considered
playing god, a moral sin. The wholsale of human life raises
a funaimental question, presented by Nobil Laureate
biologist, Dr. Salvador Lauria when he questions, "When
does a repaired or manufactured man stop being a man... and
become a robot, an object, and industrial product?"
(Manipulating Life, pg 12).