Human Genetic Engineering
Azizjon Azimi
Bioethics
Long Stance Paper on Human Genetic Engineering The debate on whether human genetic engineering should be researched and used as the main alternative solution to disease have been going on since the creation of the "human genetic engineering" phenomenon. The ethical question is clear: should money be invested in human genetic engineering and should we research it at all, even if it is formally criticized by all monotheistic religions? The ethical principles in conflict are beneficence (people with fatal diseases could be cured) and non-maleficence (undermines the will of God, according to religious groups and in addition, there is no guarantee of successful results). My stance on this debated topic is that human genetic engineering should not be funded or researched, as there is no 100% guarantee that it will be successful, and in addition, I am a very religious person, and in my opinion, the body that a person has is a gift of God, and it should not be changed in any ways. However, there are still thousands of people with fatal diseases who have no hope for surviving, and human genetic engineering could serve as the only hope for them. There are many sides that can be affected either positively or negatively if human genetic engineering is funded and researched, however, the major stakeholders are primarily the government of US and private companies who fund all the experiments, people with fatal diseases who hope for any type of cure., and the science in general, because if human genetic engineering will be proven beneficial, it will be a catalyst for further innovations in science. The formal definition of genetic engineering given is “the directed alteration of genetic material by intervention in genetic processes”. Stated in another way, it is a scientific alteration of the structure of genetic material in a living organism. There are many different methods in genetic engineering, but the goal of all the methods is to manipulate
Bioethics
Long Stance Paper on Human Genetic Engineering The debate on whether human genetic engineering should be researched and used as the main alternative solution to disease have been going on since the creation of the "human genetic engineering" phenomenon. The ethical question is clear: should money be invested in human genetic engineering and should we research it at all, even if it is formally criticized by all monotheistic religions? The ethical principles in conflict are beneficence (people with fatal diseases could be cured) and non-maleficence (undermines the will of God, according to religious groups and in addition, there is no guarantee of successful results). My stance on this debated topic is that human genetic engineering should not be funded or researched, as there is no 100% guarantee that it will be successful, and in addition, I am a very religious person, and in my opinion, the body that a person has is a gift of God, and it should not be changed in any ways. However, there are still thousands of people with fatal diseases who have no hope for surviving, and human genetic engineering could serve as the only hope for them. There are many sides that can be affected either positively or negatively if human genetic engineering is funded and researched, however, the major stakeholders are primarily the government of US and private companies who fund all the experiments, people with fatal diseases who hope for any type of cure., and the science in general, because if human genetic engineering will be proven beneficial, it will be a catalyst for further innovations in science. The formal definition of genetic engineering given is “the directed alteration of genetic material by intervention in genetic processes”. Stated in another way, it is a scientific alteration of the structure of genetic material in a living organism. There are many different methods in genetic engineering, but the goal of all the methods is to manipulate
Bibliography: * Human Genetic Engineering-Wikipedia **Presentation on Human Genetic Engineering by Devin, Me and Alex on 1/2 ***Jesse Gelsinger-Wikipedia **** "Possible Harms of Genetic Engineering" Megan Bichsel, page 69, 2008 ***** "Human Genetic Engineering-a panacea or a killer?" New York Times article from September 20 2008, Mike Anderson ****** "Jesse Gelsinger-an innocent victim of strange circumstances," Josh Bergman, Los Angeles Times, September 22 1999 ******* "Should US government spend federal money on genetic engineering during the financial crisis?" Lisa Arnall, Boston Journal, December 29, 2010 ******** "Genetic Engineering-Science 's Nuclear Weapon" Dr. Bradley Thompson, 2007, page 77 ********* "Religion vs. Human Genetic Engineering-Who is Right?" David Brooks, 2009, page 5 ********** "Obama decides to finance stem cell research" New York Times, Bryan Banson, March 15 2009