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Would you genetically engineer your unborn child?

Smoke

Done here.
It depends. I think engineering for eye color and other cosmetic purposes would be ridiculously shallow and a waste of time, money, and resources. On the other hand, if your potential child were at risk for sickle cell anemia, cystic fibrosis or hemophilia and you had the option to eliminate that risk through genetic engineering, I think it would be crazy not to.
 

MSizer

MSizer
My child is lucky s/he doesn't exist, 'cuz the froggies I dissected in grade ten biology looked nothing like frogs when I was done. If I tried to genetically engineer my child, it would not survive the operation.
 

Tiapan

Grumpy Old Man
I think Gattaga shows the inherent moral problem of such a process, however it is an inevitable advantage that humans will adopt as we transition to a more advanced form, because it enhances our survivability. Hence as an evolutionary process nothing will stop it.

Cheers
 

Falvlun

Earthbending Lemur
Premium Member
I think the transition would be a really rough time in human history: the transition from non-engineered people to some engineered people to all engineered people. Kids whose parents opted out of being engineered would be at a huge disadvantage, and when you then include the human prejudice and/or discriminatory laws that would crop up, non-engineered kids would become outcasts, stuck on the fringes of society. From the get-go, genetic engineering would have to be offered free of charge, or very cheaply; otherwise, we would essentially create a two caste society based upon whether your ancestors had wealth or not right at the beginning of the engineering wave.

I'm pretty leary of genetic engineering. As most, I agree that getting rid of hereditary diseases or predispositions to cancer would be a good thing. But going past that, into the realm of physical and mental enhancements, well, it just seems dicey.

It does seem inevitable, though. I really can't say whether I'd do it to my kid. I think it would largely depend on how society deals with genetically enhanced people vs unenhanced people.
 

rojse

RF Addict
I think Gattaga shows the inherent moral problem of such a process, however it is an inevitable advantage that humans will adopt as we transition to a more advanced form, because it enhances our survivability. Hence as an evolutionary process nothing will stop it.

Cheers

An alternative perspective of the movie Gattaca is that the genetic requirements for astronauts were present because of the strenuous physical requirements of space travel, and are required to ensure the safety of all crew on ship, and the fact that Ethan deliberately circumvented the rules could well put the rest of the crew in danger.

That said, I thought Gattaca was an excellent big-budget SF movie. But the alternative perspective is there.
 

Smoke

Done here.
I think the transition would be a really rough time in human history: the transition from non-engineered people to some engineered people to all engineered people. Kids whose parents opted out of being engineered would be at a huge disadvantage, and when you then include the human prejudice and/or discriminatory laws that would crop up, non-engineered kids would become outcasts, stuck on the fringes of society. From the get-go, genetic engineering would have to be offered free of charge, or very cheaply; otherwise, we would essentially create a two caste society based upon whether your ancestors had wealth or not right at the beginning of the engineering wave.
Or, the wealthy who got in on the ground floor would be, as is usual with early adopters, the ones who paid the most exorbitant prices for an inferior product.

A lot of wealthy little Barbies and Kens would probably have unforeseen genetic complications before most of the wrinkles got ironed out.
 

Falvlun

Earthbending Lemur
Premium Member
Or, the wealthy who got in on the ground floor would be, as is usual with early adopters, the ones who paid the most exorbitant prices for an inferior product.

A lot of wealthy little Barbies and Kens would probably have unforeseen genetic complications before most of the wrinkles got ironed out.

That's probably true. I guess it depends on whether the prices stay prohibitively high for a little bit after the kinks are worked out. It would really only take one or two cohorts for the caste system to take hold.
 

Erebus

Well-Known Member
Suppose science advances to the level where you can select (or leave out) certain traits (physical and mental) for your new baby. Imagine you walk into your doctor's office for prenatal care and you are given a sort of informational/brochure packet and a checklist.

You have have two initial choices:
__ No, I'd rather not genetically enhance my child.
__ Yes, I'd like to genetically enhance my child. Please see the checklist below.

The checklist for the latter choice includes such physical options as... eye color, hair color, skin color, height, optimal metabolism, acne protection, general health/disease resistance, vision (20/20 or better), ambidexterity, agility, stamina, endurance, etc. Mental options could be things like...memory enhancement, increased IQ, improved creativity, emotional stability, and so forth.

What would you choose. If you choose not to alter your child, would you worry that s/he would probably not perform/succeed as well as his/her enhanced classmates? Would not enhancing a child become a voluntary form of handicapping and possible child abuse?

I would want to create the healthiest, most intelligent, attractive, good natured and happy child science could possibly offer. This is not only because I would want my child to have as many advantages in life as possible, but also because I firmly believe that scientific research should aim to improve humanity as much as possible.
 

DallasApple

Depends Upon My Mood..
Yes..

I would genetically engineer my child to know math.(only because all 3 of my boys struggled in math and it gave me an ulcer ).

Love

Dallas
 

Kungfuzed

Student Nurse
I've got alot more questions than answers. If the parents decided to change everything about their baby, who would be the biological parents at that point? Would the child be considered adopted? If you run a paternity/maternity test on a genetically engineered child, wouldn't it be the child of a company? I wonder if he/she would even be considered human at that point, especially if the changes were obvious and far superior to natural human looks, intelligence, and/or capabilities. It could have a major impact on how the genetically engineered person percieves himself/herself and others, as well as how others treat that person. But then again, we're all bound to be liked/hated by somebody regardless. I'm in favor of genetic engineering and improving humanity, but I hope it doesn't go in the direction of Nazi Eugenics.
 

Neo-Logic

Reality Checker
I wouldn't want to have a baby that has down's syndrome, or any sort of rare physical or mental defects/ abnormalities. I think parenting would be hard enough but dealing with things like that on top of regular parenting would be too much for me. Kudos to all the parents out there that are raising or have raised children in those circumstances.

If it were possible and if I knew about it early, I'd totally fix it. Screw ethics, God, and morality of it all. I want my kid to have the best possible everything.
 

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd
Suppose science advances to the level where you can select (or leave out) certain traits (physical and mental) for your new baby. Imagine you walk into your doctor's office for prenatal care and you are given a sort of informational/brochure packet and a checklist.

You have have two initial choices:
__ No, I'd rather not genetically enhance my child.
__ Yes, I'd like to genetically enhance my child. Please see the checklist below.

The checklist for the latter choice includes such physical options as... eye color, hair color, skin color, height, optimal metabolism, acne protection, general health/disease resistance, vision (20/20 or better), ambidexterity, agility, stamina, endurance, etc. Mental options could be things like...memory enhancement, increased IQ, improved creativity, emotional stability, and so forth.

What would you choose. If you choose not to alter your child, would you worry that s/he would probably not perform/succeed as well as his/her enhanced classmates? Would not enhancing a child become a voluntary form of handicapping and possible child abuse?
Hmm... well, at this stage in my life (I haven't had kids yet) I would opt for the ability to genetically engineer my children. However, among the things you listed, the only real things I would change would be in the "health" area. I mean, I'd rather have a child that's predisposed to be genetically and mentally healthy than anything else. I would want it to be a surprise how it looks, or what it thinks. *shrug* I can't imagine that as being abusive... but I suppose you could view it that way if you were looking for something to criticize it.
 

MissAlice

Well-Known Member
I don't know as genetic mutation would probably prevent born babies to evolve in their changing environment.

As far as abnormalities go well I fit in with that description but sometimes I think society rather than biology construct this notion of what is normal and what is abnormal. I know from my own personal point of view that having aspergers has been a struggle as far as the education and social system go. But I can also see the strengths in areas I am strong in.

In short, there are ups and downs and I'd probably be more inclined if the said baby didn't suffer from something fatal or painful. Other than that, I love diversity and I would love to see what intersting aspects my child would inherit. Like maybe artistic abilities even though it's a trait much looked down upon in our academia society. The key I guess would be resources and society's attitude of better understanding said "abnormalties" and weaknesses that recognize no strenghts. But I'm not about to have children anytime soon.
 
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