Bicho the Inhaler
Daedalian Member
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 Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2003 7:32 pm Post subject: 1 |
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http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993889
Scientists have recently discovered that it may be possible to harvest ovarian tissue from aborted fetuses, tissue that can eventually yield mature egg cells to be donated to women with fertility problems.
I consider myself an advocate of reproductive freedom, and also of stem cell research, but I have a visceral reaction to this new idea. I realize there are legitimate reasons for not supporting it. As mentioned in the article, for example: would someone be able to accept that his or her biological mother was an aborted fetus? I think this is largely a transient argument, though, considering that over time, the practice would gain acceptance and it wouldn't be as big a deal, and influential people would find ways to spin it positively and downplay the role of the biological mother, etc., all of which would make it much easier for people to cope. Ultimately, it's not a chain of reasoning that influences my opinion the most; it's the general sickness I feel when thinking about it.
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| Anti-abortion groups attacked the research, calling it "macabre". |
I think "macabre" just about says it for me, loth though I am to throw my hat in with anti-abortion groups. While I do realize the benefit to women with fertility issues, I would say that end does not justify these means.
Other thoughts on this issue? Am I being old-fashioned, just an obstacle in the path of progress? Also, what is the value of such nondefensible (or weakly defensible) unscientific opinions? In my opinion, though nearly worthless in rational debate (like aesthetic arguments), unscientific opinions are invaluable, even in science. Without them, our ideas would never get off the ground, mainly because of the burden of evidence needed to justify scientific opinions. Intuition is a great example of this. |
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