Genetic Engineering Essay, Research Paper
One issue that interests me is genetic engineering. I feel the possibilities and potential of genetic engineering make it the most exciting and helpful technology we have in the world. To be able to tell a couple that you can completely erase the possibility that their child will have a higher chance of getting Alzheimer’s disease when it is older would be a wonderful experience.
Think about an entire family that suffers from anemia. It would be wonderful to be able to fix the defective gene that causes anemia so that their children will live longer and healthier lives. Diabetes is another genetic disorder that could be helped through genetic engineering. Don’t the children of these people deserve to live happy, productive, healthy lives? Genetic engineering would be for the good of mankind and essential to wiping out fatal genetic diseases.
Some will say that people will abuse this technology, or that they will create blue eyed and blonde haired children because that is what they want, and pretty soon it will lead to a race of superhumans that are more intelligent and stronger. This is a major concern, but I feel that if certain guidelines are set up as to what can be genetically altered this concern can be forgotten. I do not feel intelligence should be altered, or anything cosmetic. The technology could only be used to genetically alter a person so that they would not be affected by the diseases that their parents had and so they could live longer, healthier lives.
Another strong point in favor of genetic engineering is that not only could we come up with this state of the art technology, but it would also save money. It costs less to genetically alter something about a person then it would to treat it when they are older. This means that not only would they be living longer, it would also save money on medical costs.
There is a lot of opposition to this because many people think that it is against God’s will, and therefore wrong. This is not the case. If genetic engineering were against God’s will, then why would he have given us the technology to begin with? Why would he have made these things available if he did not want us to make use of them? I think God wants us to improve our lives, and that is why he has given us the opportunity to do so.
Genetic engineering could become a valuable asset for everyone that has ever been affected by a genetic disorder. Not only would it save money, but it would also save lives and many people could be happier. Why anyone would not want to make use of this technology is absurd. With a few rules and some laws in place to insure that the technology will not be abused, it can become one of the most valuable medical procedures we have. Many people believe that prevention is half of the cure, but with genetic engineering prevention could be the entire cure.