Basic HTML Version
genetic di seases can be
ascertained through prenatal
diagnosis, in time to provide
critica! information about
the likely quality of life of a
prospect ive human being,
for parcnts and less likely,
for socicty, to make deci–
sions as whether to continue
or to te rmínate a pregnan–
cy," asse rt s Dr. Marc
Lappe.
Listen to these stunning
words by the same author!
"As a resu
lt
of genetic
knowledge, we live in a uní–
verse whcre many more
judgmcnts will have to be
made- judgments as to
where genetics rightfully
affects our choices of spouse
or profession, or where we
Delicate strands of DNA bear the molecular
blueprint for cell r eproduction.
shou ld compensate (or penalize)
one ethnic group for an inherited
disability and not another"
(Ge–
netic Politics-The Limits of Bio–
logical Control,
page 28).
Far-reaching words, these! l f
these words were put into practice
by a govcrnment, one race or group
of people found to be carriers o f
sickle-cell anemia, hereditary pre–
disposition for alcoholism or other
characteristics, could--or perhaps,
under this type o f d a ngerous
thought,
should-be
restrained
from passing on such "defective"
genes.
Despite such ominous implica–
tions, genetic advances offer scien–
tis ts great and desirable control
over individual and collective lifc.
But consider what has happened
in the pas t! Does humanity possess
the innate ability to act properly on
such genetic knowledge? Wha t
does the record say?
The Dark Side of Genetics
Eugen ics, a term not heard very
often today, was a popular concept
in the lirst half of this century.
(Thc word c ugenics comes from
the Greck word
eugenes,
which
means "wellborn.")
Early geneticists, following in
the footsteps of Darwi nism, began
lobbying for applicat ion of "posi–
tive and negative eugenics." They
meant to e ncourage genetically
superior humans to mate and to
June
1984
discourage genetically
inferior
hu–
mans from bringing forth off–
spring.
This concept spread like wildfire
with the advent of Social Darwin–
ism as espoused by Hcrbcrt Spen–
cer. Simply put, Social Darwinism
bel ieved that genetically inferior
humans should be allowcd to
die
out ,
rather than continuc transmit–
ting their defective genes. The
solution ?
Sterilize
such genetical ly
"infe r ior" bei ngs as mentally
retarded individuals and the like.
Could this really happcn?
It
did!
Multiple
thousands
of individuals
wcre actually sterilized in thc name
o f eugenics in the United States
early
in this century.
Ever hear thc terms "blue
blood" and "bad blood"? These
pseudoscienti fic terms were ram–
pant in the l920s, and many U.S.
congressmen swallowed the fable
that sorne European immigrants
brought genetic impurities with
thcm. This led to the U.S. lmmi–
gration Act of 1924, whic h strongly
inAuenced immigration policy until
as late as 1965.
During this samc, sad time,
many were sterilized agains t their
wills! The U.S. Suprcme Court , in
a landmark case, even ruled that
the s tate of Virginia had the
legal
right
to arder sterilization of one
rural woman, Car ric Buck, who
rcsisted!
A majar financi a! magazine, still
published today, recom–
mended in 1947 that mental
defectives be sterilized. Jn
1924, Albert Edward Wig–
gam declared in
The New
Decalogue of Science:
"Nothing is more certain in
seience than that godly par–
ents beget godly children
and ungodly stock spawns a
god less brood."
Such misguided thought
was not limited to the
U nited S tates. 1n 1982,
records surfaced of the ma–
levolent bi ological experi–
ments in wartime by J apa–
nese scientists in Manchu–
ria.
A nd few need t o be
reminded of what might be
the ultimate expression of
negative eugenics: Nazi Germany's
" Master Race" experiments.
We can thus see that this so–
called enlightened age has also
been a dark age!
What about today?
As-yet-unsolved questions re–
ma in for the fled g ling biotech
industry: What would happen if it
became technologically possiblc for
science to
radical/y
change the
genet ic composition of humanity?
Or for gene-splicers to produce an
uncontrollably lethal substance that
could significan tly alter delicate
ecological balances?
The Forgotten Realm
Few conside r the
real
underlying
reason why such research is even
necessary!
The problems humanity today
faces are not primarily physical but
spiriLUal
in nature! Scientists
understand that parents transmi t
defective genes from generation to
generation- yct it is beyond physi–
cal or scient ific means to fully com–
prehe nd why.
l n explaining genetic damage, it
is seldom conside red how and why
human cond uct dramatically im–
pacts futurc gcnerations.
Sexually transmittcd diseases,
drug experimentation, poor nutri–
tion and needlcss exposure to com–
mercially produced radiation nega–
tively affect gene reproduction. But
what is done to correct it? Man
29