State of the Union - Ban on Human Cloning

[krsna77]

I’m a little confused.

GWB stated in his address that we should ban all human cloning.

Does he mean ALL human cloning?

Or does he mean banning all REPRODUCTIVE cloning?

(Leaving the door open for therapeutic cloning – the cloning of healthy tissues for transplant or replacement of damaged cells)

Does the president have a stance on THERAPEUTIC cloning? Does he even know the difference between reproductive and therapeutic cloning?

Is there any valid case for an argument AGAINST research into therapeutic cloning? I’m no expert, but I cannot think of any at the moment…

Just curious.

[bibliophage]

From Remarks by the President on Stem Cell Research

I strongly oppose human cloning, as do most Americans. We recoil at the idea of growing human beings for spare body parts, or creating life for our convenience.

Whether or not that constitutes a “valid case for an argument AGAINST research into therapeutic cloning” is a matter for Great Debates, not General Questions. We can discuss what the President’s stand is in this thread, but anyone wanting to discuss whether his stand is the right one or not should start a separate thread in GD.

[krsna77]

Well, that answers my question, at least in part. Thanks.

[Fear_Itself]

Bush may be against all forms of cloning, but his argument against it flys in the face of the administration’s view on in vitro fertilization, which destroys many embryos for each successful pregnancy produced. From Slate, The Incoherent Embryophile

President Bush has done nothing to stop or even discourage these various government promotions of in vitro fertilization. In his Aug. 9 TV address on stem-cell research, Bush actually praised IVF as a “process … which helps so many couples conceive children.” Yet the unavoidable assumption built into his policies on the use of embryos in medical research is that in vitro fertilization is deeply evil.

Clearly, Bush knows that those who can afford in vitro ferilization included well heeled conservatives desparate for children, so he will talk out of both sides of his mouth to appeal to all ends of the conservative spectrum, no matter how contradictory the messages are, nor how transparently political the motives appear.