Those who make policy about the use of genetic information cannot agree that unborn babies are human persons who at least deserve not to be unnecessarily harmed. They cannot agree that human beings and their body parts should not be owned through the patent process. They cannot agree that the disabled, infirm, and aged should be cared for in a dignified and humane manner, rather than being snuffed out by euthanasia. Technological progress like the Human Genome Project requires an equally stout set of moral and ethical guidelines to govern it. Unfortunately, we are a culture dominated by technological giants and ethical pygmies.
Genetic discrimination is a real and potentially devastating possibility.
Yet, we have no national policy which prohibits discriminating against persons on the basis of their genetic code. Gene therapy without appropriate protocols of informed consent and research protection have already resulted in the loss of the life of young Jesse Gelsinger. Food and agricultural biotechnology is being pushed down the throats of a highly suspicious public. We're one tragic incident away from a major backlash against the biotech industry. This new era of genetic advancement may signal gargantuan leaps in the treatment and cure of human illnesses and diseases.