Brad - Some food for thought:
We're already seeing Western parents weeding out foetuses by gender.
People with disabilities have a strong case, which disability activists
do present, that genetic selection against any disability will affect
the way we treat all disabilities or perhaps even negatively-viewed
differences.
Who has the ethical right to chose that a child or children e.g. with a
less-than-average or average intelligence, not be born? The government?
Your insurance company? Your employer? Some particularly heartless
people give the argument that children with disabilities are a financial
burden on all of society.
The slippery slope includes societal pressures which could become ever
more stringent. This is not an impossibility. We are aware that in
certain Asian countries, infant girls were victims even of infanticide -
and this not only with social approbation, but encouragement.
P.S. I'm not convinced that this is an appropriate subject for the
Futurework listserve.
Susan (Toronto)
Brad McCormick, Ed.D. wrote:
>
> "S. Lerner" wrote:
> >
> > Of possible interest to FWers....
> >
> > >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > >Subject: (Fwd) Techno-Eugenics Email List newsletter #3
> > >Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 07:39:05 -0800
> > >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > >X-Loop: 700000438
> > >
> > >Hi - thought this might be of interest to you. to subscribe send a
> > >message to marcy (bottom of newsletter).
> > >
> > >mike
> [snip]
> > > "We cannot find our humanity in our genes. But because
> > > of the increasing progress in genetic diagnostics and
> > > manipulation, we will increasingly confront genetic
> > > questions and problems that *challenge* our humanity."
> [snip]
>
> No doubt it is true that genetic engineering -- especially
> under conditions of late-capitalism, will create
> many not just problems, but straightforward
> injury and harm. But I fail to see where
> the pre- diagnosed/manipulated genes that cause
> hemophilia, various cancers, cystic fibrosis [what's
> the point: there are so *many* of them!!!] *enhance*
> anybody's humanity, except on the
> "conservative" only-torture-builds-
> strong-characters-12-ways-and/or-enables-you-to-
> go-to-heaven-or-at-least-be-certified-by-your-
> society-of-origin-as-a-hero ideology.
>
> I think we
> need to keep always in mind that, as Stephen Jay Gould said:
> Nature is in love with the *idea* of the individual,
> *not* with particular individuals. *You* are the
> indifference -- except insofar as you pass your genes on
> to the next round of indifferences (and Nature doesn't
> even care about that, really, since it is not
> intentional being and so doesn't care, *period*).
> Only persons (and
> perhaps higher animals, ETs, etc.) can *care* about
> anything, although, of course, much human activity
> it hurtful to people (the kind of care a stalker has for
> his victim, e.g., is still *care* of *a* sort...).
>
> Perhaps one day we will be able to find humanity in our
> genes: when children are born who will discover that
> all the impediments to their possibility for fullest
> elaboration of their potential have been engineered
> out of their genome by not just affectively, but
> also *effectively* loving parents.
>
> We cannot find humanity in our genes because
> we did not create them....
>
> Etc.
>
> \brad mccormick
>
> --
> Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. (1 Thes 5:21)
>
> Brad McCormick, Ed.D. / [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 914.238.0788 / 27 Poillon Rd, Chappaqua NY 10514-3403 USA
> -------------------------------------------------------
> <![%THINK;[XML]]> Visit my website: http://www.cloud9.net/~bradmcc/
