Is Genetic Enhancement an Unacceptable Use of Technology? Zach Robinson October 12, 2014
1. Summary of the yes side.
Michael J. Sandel is a political philosopher who stands by the yes side that genetic enhancement is unacceptable. He suggests that genetic enhancement is wrong because it makes us better than we normally are. He claims that genetic enhancement is a flawed attempt at overcoming certain diseases and flaws in the human body that were just meant to be (Levine, 2012). Sandel argues that genetic enhancement diminishes the gift of life. He presented facts about the off label growth hormones that are given to kids to make them taller and how they are taken for no actual medical reason, just for the parents own personal reasoning. Another example that Sandel presented was the use of a drug to help prevent Alzheimers in people who were genetically linked to inherit the disease.
2. Summary of the no side. The no side of this argument is presented by a man named Howard Trachtman. He is a physician and he argues that genetic enhancements are a never-ending quest for people to who seek to be healthy, healthier than what they were genetically given (Levine 2012). He views genetic enhancements as a positive embark that the medical faction and even the general population should welcome. The facts he presents include that whenever new medical advancements are made, there are always going to be people who are skeptical, as there should be. The ideas are new and the medications are imperfect. There is an opinion presented that suggests that we as people are always looking for advances in education and technology, so why should the advancement of genes be looked at any differently? 3. My opinion on the matter. I personally believe that genetic enhancements can be a good thing and a bad thing. The reason it is a good thing is because it can be used to deny the effects of Alzheimers or dementia as we age. My mom is a genetic counselor and she looks at childrens genes and explains them to the parents. She technically doesnt do anything having to do with genetic enhancement, but she still works with genes. The reason as to why genetic enhancements could be bad is because it clearly alters something in the bodys system. You are built the way you are because of your parents/grandparents/great grandparents genes. If that is altered, such as growth hormones, you could be altering it for good. Not saying that being tall is a bad thing, but I believe growth hormones should be given only when necessary. For example, my girlfriends little brother is 7 years old and he is the size of a 4 year old. He is in the 1% for kids his age. He doesnt mind being small, he actually embraces it and enjoys being smaller than everyone else because he is faster in soccer and more limber in gymnastics. Their mom has been talking to doctors and they want to put him on growth hormones, but she wont agree to do it until he wants to. That is just bad genes, the mom is 52 and the dad is 56, my girlfriend is 58 though, therefore she received the taller genes from either side. For reasons like that I can see growth hormones and other gene modifications/enhancements as being ok, but if used in the wrong situation I think that it could evolve into a bigger deal. If everyone took growth hormones, and it was going on for generations, the new average height could jump by 6 inches or more.
Work Cited Levine. (2012). Biology 1090, Human Biology SLCC - Taking Sides readings (p. 20- 36).
Reflection
I believe that this assignment was rather challenging. It didnt require too much time to complete, but I struggle with writing papers. I end up writing a good paper usually, it just takes me some time to sit down and get all of my thoughts out onto paper. All in all I believe this assignment is a good example of my work and shows what I have learned not only from the reading, but also what I have learned from my writing class when it comes to piecing a paper together and showing other peoples arguments.
Summary of Dirty Genes: by Ben Lynch ND. - A Breakthrough Program to Treat the Root Cause of Illness and Optimize Your Health - A Comprehensive Summary