Against Cloning Term Paper

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against human cloning. The writer explores both sides of the issue and comes down against its use or possibility of its use. There were four sources used to complete this paper.

Over the past few decades, medical advances have made life better than ever before. People are living longer, their health is better and their quality of life is above any previous standard. Today, people can be cured of illnesses that used to mean death while at the same time practicing preventative medicine that will provide them with a longer life. Advances in the medical field have provided many benefits to human life but the question becomes, how much is too much? The ability to clone humans and human parts is just on the horizon. Steps have been taken to push it through the FDA regulations and the public is being told the ability is just around the corner. Cloning, while on the surface has many benefits, is something that should not be allowed to occur. While medical science has provided many positive contributions to society, the ability to clone is going over the line and should never be legislated to happen.

"Cloning, as a scientific technique, is not new. Genetically identical copies of whole organisms in horticulture (known as varieties) are commonplace. In addition, some forms of invertebrates (ie earth worms, and the like), can regenerate themselves quite readily. While vertebrates do not have this ability, the "cloning" of vertebrates does occur naturally through the formation and birth of identical twins with the chance separation of a single embryo into halves during early development.

Indeed, the first case of an artificially occurring clone dates back to the 1960s where the transplantation of cell nuclei was successfully used to clone frogs J1 Although the frogs never reached adulthood, the technology was lauded as a tremendous breakthrough.

After a drought in cloning advances in the 1980s, the world's attention focused sharply on the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland, when in 1997, a research team announced the successful cloning of a sheep, Dolly, by modifying the technology developed decades earlier. The technique used to create Dolly is known as nuclear transplantation cloning (13) of which there are five steps:

(i) acquiring acceptable donor and recipient eggs;

(ii) nuclear transfer;

(iii) cellular fusion;

(iv) activation; and (v) implantation (Keough, 2003).

Recently, politicians have been lining up on both sides of the cloning debate. Those who are advocating for it believe it will advance medical science in a positive manner, while those who are against it believe just the opposite (Abrams, 2005). Cloning has received a lot of attention, including the recent birth of a sheep that was cloned as a scientific experiment that garnered worldwide attention.

Politicians who are against cloning are using other nations as reasons to stop its process. "Therapeutic cloning is the purposeful creation for purposeful destruction of human life," said Weldon, whose bill has 115 co-sponsors. "This is abhorrent science, and the U.N., France and Germany agree with my position and it is time America do the same (Abrams, 2005)."

Cloning is something that has garnered world wide attention. Different nations are racing to both be the first to be able to clone humans as well as be the first to ban its ability. It is much like the creation of nuclear weapons as once it has been done there will be no going back.

Once nuclear weapons were invented the only thing the world could do was race against itself to get better and more destructive weapons than other nations were getting.

Cloning is going to work much the same way . Once it is completed there will be no way to undo it. Companies that develop the ability to clone will be competing to sell it on the open market. The competition will become fierce and there will be a market for black market cloning to occur.

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Cloning does have the potential to benefit mankind but the potential for harm is much greater, therefore it must be blocked before it is allowed to become legal.

On the surface, cloning will provide the ability to make human parts that will be able to save lives, cure disabilities and change disfigurements. The ultimate goal however is to be able to make designer babies from scratch. When the ability to clone is fully realized parents will be able to fill out a form about the type of child they wish to have and have that child designed for them. Whether they want blonde hair, a genius IQ, or amazing sports abilities the designer babies that will be possible through cloning will be able to fulfill those desires. In a world where cloning is available honest competition and human differences may eventually disappear and that will have a very negative impact on the world and mankind (Kunich, 2003).

When Dolly the clone material sheep was born the world collectively held its breath. At first glance she was an amazing creation that offered hope for future medical issues. As time went forward however and Dolly developed problems including aging at an accelerated rate from what she should have been the world saw the dangers of cloning first hand.

Cloning carries with it physical and moral problems that have not been fully examined at this point and the medical field is already trying to push it through and get it allowed ( Lillis, 2005).

"The prospect of creating children through cloning has caused widespread concern, much of it based on the nature of fears about the possible harm to the children who may be born as a result. Concerns exist as to possible physical harms from the manipulation of the ova, nuclei and embryo as part of the process of cloning. Most scientists agree that, currently, cloning technology has not advanced enough to ensure its safe use in humans. The long-term effects on animals created through cloning have not been determined -- with some literature indicating that the cells of clones age more quickly than those produced through sexual reproduction. Similarly, other studies have suggested major long-term side effects, such as the effects of mutations on the health of a clone, as a basis for concern. Other possible physical harms relate to psychological harm in the form of a diminished sense of individual and personal autonomy on the part of the cloned child ( Keough, 2003)."

One of the things that make the world the diverse interesting place that it is has to do with differences of individuals that live here. Individual personalities, abilities and desires create a world where people are appreciated for who they are. Weaknesses are as important as strengths in a world where individualism is valued ( Keough, 2003). The problem with cloning will be that parents will want children with perfect traits. This will cause problems in several areas. Cloning will not be inexpensive, therefore there will be parents who can afford to have designer children while others cannot. Those who have their children the conventional way will suffer the consequences of not providing their sons and daughters with exceptional abilities.

This will play havoc when it comes to all areas of life. Children who compete in sports, school activities, grade point averages and modeling contests will be pitted against the designer "super babies" who were created from a form in a doctor's office.

Children who are cloned will suffer as well. There will be resentment that they were given the "perfect genes" and even if they excel in an area that came to them naturally and not through the cloning process, they will be ridiculed and not credited with the hard work they actually do.

"A major concern with cloning is the confusion that it could create in family lineage.....

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