Enhancing Humans through Science Is Beneficial

Are designer babies the scientific answer to eliminating crucial diseasesthat are transmitted through genes or is it the Eugenics of the future? Since mankind now has the option to alter genes, sex, physical appearance and intellect, are we playing God? And what families and social class would be able to afford this type of procedure?
What constitutes good health is arguable.Scientists have various theories when it comes to genetic engineering for the cure of certain diseases. Inseveral countries in Europe, the practice of Eugenics is performed on parents who are susceptible to giving birth to Down Syndrome children. These tests are mandatory, and coercion is used on the parents to abort the fetus that has tested positive for Down Syndrome disease. The reasoning behind the coercion practiceis that it is cost efficient forthe government to eliminate these births for health insurance purposes and to maintain the mass population intelligence level. There are two modern examples of this. In the United States, the practice of Planned Parenthood was considered Eugenics and in Germany, Hitler practices of genocide were forms of Eugenics. Since genetic engineering is not a natural act, it is considered Eugenics.

For so many years, there were families who were unable to conceive children naturally; therefore, their alternative choices were to seek help from scientific labs that provide the technology to impregnate women. One of the ways is genetic engineering combined with IVF (In Vitro Fertilization). As scientists began focusing on genetic engineering, the bar was pushed to where parents are able to choose the sex of their baby. Scientists are experimenting with genes which will give parents a choice of choosingevery trait to make a perfect baby/child. The upside to this act is the chosen gene will not disease free. The downside is genetic engineering is altering the natural way of conception and parenting of children.

I find parents who use genetic engineering to designing their babies unethical. The fetus which receives these choice genes, have their future carved out for them by their parents. There are so many things that may go wrong with a designer baby. Who is to say the genes chosen, would produce the intended designer baby? The parents may get a child, a healthy baby, that is, disease free, but not of their choosing, such as eye and hair color or intellect. Lets say there is a possibility these babies will grow up and meet their parents initial potential, but find themselves superior to other children who do not perform academically as well as them. This can be the start of segregation among social classes.It could bring to life some science fiction literature as shown in novels like, Brave New World and The Hunger Games. When parents start to manipulate what is natural, they contribute to Darwins idea of perfection, an unblemished society.

Since parenting does not come with instructions, each stage of the of the newborns development is a trial and error. The definition of being a parent is nurturing and raising your baby to become a healthy and productive individual. (Farlex) In reality the only families that can afford to indulge in these scientific practices will be wealthy individuals. Scientific technology is already available for those who want to alter some part of their bodies in which they are dissatisfied with, and some health insurances cover some cosmetic surgeries, but I feel they should not cover individuals who want to design an embryo to rise as their own. The cost of manufacturing embryos,which includes choosing sexes, talents and race, will become very expensive. In reality the expense may lower the demand for the genetic engineering and the intent which it was meant, will no longer be valid.

Will the outcome of exploring these scientific developments wipe out disorders from the beginning? It has not been proven that using genetic engineering is safe to use on human beings to cure diseases. Whos to say that using this practice will not encourage prejudice, not among the races, but among those individuals who are deemed to be superior. It will set up a new class of genetically designed people and naturally made people. (Ahmad) This separation may cause another type of segregation which our society is not prepared to handle, which is prove by the facewe have not fully recovered when this occurred among the races.
Therefore, I am not convinced that genetic engineering is not the answer and should be available to individuals who choose this method to build the sex, eye and hair color or intelligence of their child. Its against the God, its genocide and it unnatural.