[Lunatic Fringe]

It's a man-made evolution.

[meanie monster]

good grief, will we abort babies now that have the dandruff gene?

[muawiyah]

Cystic fibrosis is not a "disease", per se.

Check:

http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/biology/b103/f02/web1/emyers.html

[little jeremiah]

This is evil.

[the invisib1e hand]

what a boon that'll be to the abortion industry.

[coconutt2000]

Every miracle deserves their chance to bask in the sunlight.

Is the desire to avoid the pain of having a child that may suffer from an incurable, genetically caused disability sufficient cause for an abortion?

I had a baby sister who was born with Pfeiffer's Syndrome. She passed away at 18 months. Should she have been deprived the opportunity to be loved by her family? She was cherished every moment of her life. She'd light up when she recognized me, and through all the pain her disability doubtless caused, she still smiled. She loved the sun and the wind.

Before I knew my baby sister, I would've said that the screening was okay. But after having known her for her brief span, I must dissent with any effort to turn the screening results into a reason for an abortion.

My two pence.

[LibertarianInExile]

[khnyny]

Some of the most saintly, special people I've ever known in my entire life have had some of these "diseases". The possibility that they wouldn't exist in a pseudo Utopian time in the future because it might become common practice to murder them in the womb, just blows my mind. I'm not sure if I am interpreting the intent of this article correctly, so that is my disclaimer, but souls have a right to be born and exist as human beings and other human beings have no business questioning and manipulating the will of God to suit their personal convenience.

[Crazieman]

The search for Nazistic perfection. Just on the unborn instead, so its more "clean and acceptable"

Disgusting.

[Tench_Coxe]

A Brave New World

[khnyny]

"Gattaca" 1997

I highly recommend that everyone rent this movie, so prescient.

Taglines from the movie:

"There Is No Gene For The Human Spirit."

"Do you hide when you're running from yourself?"

"Only one criterion : genetic perfection"
<
"Only the strong succeed"
The world is on a dangerous and really evil course, there really is no way of "sugar-coating" it. To think that the Nazi mind-set was defeated in 1945 is to be sadly naive.

[cantfindagoodscreenname]

pinging me

[bannie]

They'll be isolating the "pretty" genes next.

[newzjunkey]

Cool.

[neverdem]

Embryology, totipotent or pleuripotent stem cell ping!

I am curious about removing one of eight cells from a three-day-old embryo. How do they know that it doesn't cause harm? Although this would seem to promote more docs playing God and abortions, my gut tells me that 6000 inherited diseases will be getting intense scrutiny.

Even though knowledge may be obtained unethically from preimplantation genetic haplotyping, how do you ignore it when it may be used to do good, whether it's genetic counseling or treating the sick? BTW, I'm not advocating abortions.

[PGalt]

Outstanding FReeper comments bump!

[Rutles4Ever]

The implications are not just that this gives more reason to treat human beings like commodities, but if this becomes "effective", IVF will be touted as the "humane" method of procreation, since the embryo can be screened for disease. On top of that, the number of discarded or frozen, unborn embryos (human beings) will jump considerably.

[Dr. Scarpetta]

Unbelievable

[cpforlife.org]

"...a diagnosis must not be the equivalent of a death sentence."

2274 Since it must be treated from conception as a person, the embryo must be defended in its integrity, cared for, and healed, as far as possible, like any other human being. Prenatal diagnosis is morally licit, "if it respects the life and integrity of the embryo and the human fetus and is directed toward its safe guarding or healing as an individual. . . . It is gravely opposed to the moral law when this is done with the thought of possibly inducing an abortion, depending upon the results: a diagnosis must not be the equivalent of a death sentence." http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art5.htm#2274

[I'm ALL Right!]

Huxley would be proud.