Funny how liberals, who tell us that we need abortion to prevent overpopulation are in favor of cloning.
Posted on 10/21/2004 8:33:01 PM PDT by endthematrix
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on Thursday fired another shot across the bow of US President George W. Bush in backing cloning for medical research, which the United States wants to ban worldwide.
The announcement by Annan, a regular critic of Bush policy, came as the UN's legal committee opened debate on human cloning with hopes of drafting an international treaty to address the divisive issue.
All 191 UN member nations have come out against reproductive cloning that could be used to make human beings, but many support so-called therapeutic cloning for research into debilitating diseases and spinal cord injuries.
The United States and Costa Rica have been joined by more than 50 nations, mostly Catholic or developing countries, in sponsoring a resolution calling for a total ban.
Their resolution calls cloning "unethical, morally reproachable and contrary to due respect" for human beings
"Obviously it's an issue for the member states to decide," Annan told reporters. "But as an individual and in my personal view, I think I will go for therapeutic cloning."
That announcement will have brought cheer to US opponents like Belgium, which is behind a rival resolution co-sponsored by more than 20 nations that would ban only reproductive cloning.
Many of the co-sponsors, including Britain, Denmark, Japan and South Korea, are also leading scientific nations. Their proposal would leave the decision on therapeutic cloning up to individual governments.
"Our proposal limits itself to acknowledging the differences of opinion that exist," Belgian diplomat Marc Pecsteen told the legal committee.
"Reproductive cloning would be banned without exception. When it comes to other forms of cloning, the states party to the future convention would have to choose (how to handle the question)," he said.
The United States will address the committee Friday. US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher however said in Washington that there "needs to be a convention to ban all human cloning." He called the position "pretty categorical."
The issue has taken on a visible role in the US presidential election campaign, particularly since the recent death of paralysed "Superman" actor Christopher Reeve, an advocate for therapeutic cloning or stem-cell research.
On Thursday, his widow gave an emotional endorsement to Bush's White House rival, Democratic challenger John Kerry.
Annan's support of cloning comes just weeks after he called the war in Iraq "illegal," but the UN chief denied he was taking sides in the US election.
"When I make these comments, I make them from my own knowledge and from my own experience. I am not saying them to support one side or the other," he said.
"I have comments that I make and these are comments that I would have made whether there were elections or not. So don't infer anything from the comments and the observations that I make," he said.
It was not immediately clear when the UN committee would take a vote on the competing resolutions. Many nations, including the Muslim bloc, spoke out Thursday in favour of delaying the issue -- the same outcome reached last year.
Seems only natural that the leader of the United Nations would endorse what may well be the height in the immoral application of medical research.
If Dr. Josef Mengele were alive today, he'd be a living hero to these monsters. He didn't see anything wrong with sacrificing the innocent to advance his work either.
"UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on Thursday fired another shot across the bow of US President George W. Bush in backing cloning for medical research, which the United States wants to ban worldwide. "
And here I thought blacks would be less tolerant of the selling of humans as property.
When is this a**hole's term over. I can't even remember who was in charge of the U.N. before Kofi. Don't these people have term limits. And who picked him in the first place. I guess he's better than Clinton, so I'll keep my mouth shut for now.
I'd rather image the US withdrawing from the UN and kicking the entire organization and it's sycophants out of the US (after they pay their NY/NJ parking tickets).
LOL Coughie is probably on the list..paying with his share of the food for oil scam.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan acknowledged on Thursday that continuing probes into and discussion on the now defunct UN oil-for-food program in Iraq hurt the United Nations.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1252913/posts
Why is Annan still drawing breaths?
If Goofy Inane wants to clone, let *him* pay for it.
Funny how liberals, who tell us that we need abortion to prevent overpopulation are in favor of cloning.
UNFPA Welcomes New European Contribution to Secure Reproductive Health Supplies
14 October 2004
UNITED NATIONS, New York — The European Union will give $75 million this year to UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, to provide reproductive health supplies needed by developing countries. UNFPA immediately welcomed the decision, announced today at a special meeting of the General Assembly, marking the tenth anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development
http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=515
No wonder the UN is pissed at the US...So much wealth but so little funding. The US didn't make the list, so sad.
There would be a surfeit of men's room attendants handing out towels..
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