Nathaniel B.

Broyles
PHI 211 - Bioethics
ProI. Jason Ketelsen
November 22, 2011

A Reaction to ~Genetic Encores: The Ethics of Human Cloning

Cloning has long been a subject that has been debated and talked about in the world oI
science Iiction Ior many decades. Prior to the beginning oI the 'nuclear age, we never would
have dreamed that such a process would even be possible. In what has seemingly become the
norm, however, the imaginations oI popular novelists seem to Iuel real-liIe innovations and
inexorably move the inventions oI science Iiction to the realm oI science Iact. Perhaps the Iirst
major science Iiction novel to deal with the possibilities oI cloning human beings was 'The
World oI Null-A by A. E. Van Vogt in 1945. There have been numerous others, Irom Robert
Heinlein to Ben Bova to Joe Haldeman to Arthur C. Clarke and many other stories that have
been turned into movies such as Star Wars. The popularity oI such Iiction proves that the topic oI
cloning is one that we, as a part oI Western culture, are Iascinated with the possibilities that such
technology entails, as well as the ethical dilemmas posed by the practical use oI that technology.
Robert Wachbroit`s article on the ethical questions associated with human cloning provides an
interesting and reIreshing look at the ongoing debate on the topic and reaches a surprising
conclusion.

Wachbroit brings up some interesting points regarding the rights and interests oI the
individuals being cloned. At this point in time, science Iact has not entirely caught up to science
Iiction and there are simply Iar too many unknown dangers associated with the process oI
cloning a human being. There are possibilities oI mutation or cellular damage, as Wachbroit goes
on to say, because the technology has never been tested on human subjects beIore. Therein lays a
signiIicant obstacle that needs to be overcome. Scientists who wish to clone a human being in a
laboratory setting need clear consent Ior a human being to part oI an experiment oI this nature.
Where and who can provide that clear and unambiguous inIormed consent Ior such a dangerous
procedure?

More interestingly, cloning brings up Iar more questions dealing with potential
psychological and emotional health and well-being. A cloned person is not the mixture oI two
genetically diverse individuals. Instead, a clone is a genetic duplicate oI the donor oI their
genetic material. In eIIect, they are the twin oI the donor instead oI simply a child. There would
inevitably be questions oI genetic determination applied to the young clone. For instance, iI the
genetic donor was a Iamous sports star, might not the clone be pushed into Iollowing in his or
her 'parent`s Iootsteps? What happens iI and when the clone Iails to live up to their expected
genetic legacy?

Regardless oI the potential Ior physical or psychological harm to the potential clone,
which in and oI itselI is an argument against the practical application oI cloning, the larger
question still remains: Does the practice oI cloning technology promote the greater good? The
answer to that question must be a resounding 'No. In this, I agree wholeheartedly with Mr.
Wachbroit`s conclusions. Using the theory oI Kantian Deontology, we can unequivocally say
that the 'golden rule would not be in eIIect Ior everyone concerned were cloning technology to
advance to the point where science Iiction began to resemble science Iact. It is easy to envision a
world were clones were treated as second (or even third) class citizens because they were not
'real and only 'copies oI the real thing. People can be cruel and one only needs to look at how
Jim Crow laws were instituted to protect the 'rights oI white people to imagine how laws might
be passed to protect the rights oI 'original humans. II the argument were to be made that
cloning might only be used in the case oI, Ior instance, a person needing a bone marrow
transplant cloning himselI so that he would be able to have a perIect donor available then that,
too would be violating the Kantian imperative to never treat humanity as a means to an end.

In any case, whilst cloning is an interesting intellectual and scientiIic exercise, there exist
other technologies that will, in all likelihood, surpass the utility oIIered by the potential Ior
cloning. In particular, the technology oI genetic engineering is proceeding at such a pace that we
are already able to do things such as determine hair and eye color. All too soon, it is likely that
scientists will be able to eliminate with 100 accuracy the predispositions Ior things such
obesity, diabetes, poor eyesight, heart disease, and much more. II such a thing were to actually
happen, it is unlikely that we would Iind ourselves living in a world akin to that portrayed in the
movie attaca but can anyone truly imagine a parent not doing their best to ensure that their
child was as perIect as their genes would allow? I imagine that we all know the answer to that
question.




orks Cited

Wachbroit, Robert. 'Genetic Encores: The Ethics oI Human Cloning. #054rt fr42 th0 Institut0
f4r Phil4s45hy & Public P4licy, vol. 17, no. 4, Fall 1997, pp. 1-7.