Fertility Doc Promises Cloned Babies Within Two Years

[Earnest Cavalli]

Fertility Doc Promises Cloned Babies Within Two Years

A controversial fertility doctor has announced that he will be able to clone human infants within the next two years, offering hope for scatterbrained parents prone to misplacing their newborns.

Over the last few years, Dr. Panayiotis Zavos has been conducting experiments into human cloning in a secret lab believed to be located in a Middle Eastern country. So far Dr. Zavos claims to have cloned 14 human embryos, 11 of which have been transferred into the wombs of female patients, reports Sky Online [http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Baby-Cloning-Possible-In-Two-Years-Says-Controversial-Fertility-Doctor-Panayiotis-Zavos/Article/200904415266774?lpos=World_News_First_Home_Article_Teaser_Region_7&lid=ARTICLE_15266774_Baby_Cloning_Possible_In_Two_Years_Says_Controversial_Fertility_Doctor_Panayiotis_Zavos].

"We are not interested in cloning the Michael Jordans and the Michael Jacksons of this world," the doctor stated, adding "The rich and the famous don't participate in this ... My ambition is to help people."

The doctor's promise -- that of cloning an actual, living human baby within two years -- is the result of his having supposedly witnessed "vigorous growth in 30 cell embryos" prior to their being implanted in a living womb.

Assuming Dr. Zavos' claims are legit, his research still faces a number of legal hurdles. Not only is cloning humans illegal in most first world countries, the religious factions ruling the vast majority of second and third world countries have expressed objections based on their respective holy texts.

Even forgetting that however, Zavos' research raises an endless number of ethical and moral questions, not the least of which is whether a human clone is actually a human.

Do clones have souls? Do clones deserve the same rights offered to humans created through more traditional genital-based methods?

And, most importantly, if you found out you had a clone, would you make out with yourself?

(Image) [http://www.flickr.com/photos/orangeacid/273899875/]

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[The_root_of_all_evil]

Gotta be this song (c) Isaac Asimov

Oh, give me a clone
Of my own flesh and bone
With its Y-chromosome changed to X
And when it is grown
Then my own little clone
Will be of the opposite sex.

Clone, clone of my own,
With your Y-Chromosome changed to X
And when I'm alone
With my own little clone
We will both think of nothing but sex.

I thank yew.

 

[Dogstile]

i would so make out with myself, i'm just THAT sexy

 

[Doug]

Even forgetting that however, Zavos' research raises an endless number of ethical and moral questions, not the least of which is whether a human clone is actually a human.

Do clones have souls? Do clones deserve the same rights offered to humans created through more traditional genital-based methods?

If souls exist, Yes they do. And yes, they have rights too - just because they were created unethnically doesn't mean they should be treated as less than other embryos.

And, most importantly, if you found out you had a clone, would you make out with yourself?

No, no I wouldn't.

Anywho, the biggest ethnical problem to all this is "ITS NOT SAFE YOU QUACK!" Remember Dolly, the cloned sheep? Well, the clone had a very unhappy live of chronic disease and defects and died very early on. Why? Because the process of cloning is very new and very sensitive, and hence big errors are easy to make. This 'doctor' should be strung up for inflicting who knows how much misery on his victims.

 

[Nimbus]

Isn't a clone basically the same thing as a twin, only with the whole man-made thing?

Also, eww.

 

[Dogstile]

Even forgetting that however, Zavos' research raises an endless number of ethical and moral questions, not the least of which is whether a human clone is actually a human.

Do clones have souls? Do clones deserve the same rights offered to humans created through more traditional genital-based methods?

If souls exist, Yes they do. And yes, they have rights too - just because they were created unethnically doesn't mean they should be treated as less than other embryos.

And, most importantly, if you found out you had a clone, would you make out with yourself?

No, no I wouldn't.

Anywho, the biggest ethnical problem to all this is "ITS NOT SAFE YOU QUACK!" Remember Dolly, the cloned sheep? Well, the clone had a very unhappy live of chronic disease and defects and died very early on. Why? Because the process of cloning is very new and very sensitive, and hence big errors are easy to make. This 'doctor' should be strung up for inflicting who knows how much misery on his victims.

every great advancement in science has had its risks

and its only a puny human, who cares.

 

[Beffudled Sheep]

Soon the worlds current armies will be replaced by mass produced clone ones. I can't wait!
Oh and whether they have souls is none of my concern, and I would clone armies so I don't care about the rights part.

 

[G1eet]

Gotta be this song (c) Isaac Asimov

Oh, give me a clone
Of my own flesh and bone
With its Y-chromosome changed to X
And when it is grown
Then my own little clone
Will be of the opposite sex.

Clone, clone of my own,
With your Y-Chromosome changed to X
And when I'm alone
With my own little clone
We will both think of nothing but sex.

I thank yew.

This reminds me of "All You Zombies", by Robert Heinlein.
In short, it's about a time traveler who, through the paradoxes of time and space, becomes his own father and mother.

 

[thenumberthirteen]

Why the hell would you want to clone Michael Jackson? Actually i would like to see what his career would be like if he didn't go insane.

 

[GothmogII]

Clones do not have souls, no.
Or at least, I do not think so, but then again, I don't believe in souls.

The thing is this, though: We don't need more people.
We need less.
Unless you're going to be cloning scientists, in which case, go for it. We need more geniuses.

Just cloning a smart person isn't a guarantee that you're going to end up with a genius. I mean...I know we'd all like to think a clone of Einstein or Gandhi is going to be just like them, but, more realistically how they are raised is going to be a large factor. Not least of all, imagine how they will feel with that kind of expectation put upon them from birth? Hell, I could tomorrow find out I'm Jesus Christ re-incarnate, doesn't mean I'm going to try and continue his work, nor feel pressured to do so.

 

[olicon]

Apart from harvesting organs (which doesn't seem ethical) and for the hell of it, what is the point of cloning someone when the world is already overpopulated?

 

[Glerken]

Isn't a clone basically the same thing as a twin, only with the whole man-made thing?

Also, eww.

Actually, I think technically, twins are clones.
Or something along those lines...

 

[super_smash_jesus]

If there is no cloning of any Michaels whatsoever, then I just simply don't want it.

 

[ConnorCool]

I dont think clones would be that brilliant, unnecessary. Maybe cloning an organ for an implant but not a whole person, there's simply no need to do it.

But why would you make out with yourself? why did you even think to ask that?!?

 

[Nimbus]

Isn't a clone basically the same thing as a twin, only with the whole man-made thing?

Also, eww.

Actually, I think technically, twins are clones.
Or something along those lines...

That's either pedantic or insightful.

 

[GothmogII]

Apart from harvesting organs (which doesn't seem ethical) and for the hell of it, what is the point of cloning someone when the world is already overpopulated?

Actually, I think there is the possibility of cloning and growing just the organs themselves rather than resorting to cloning whole persons...though, the most I saw of that was the human ear they grew on the back of a rat...so, not so useful so far unless you've lost an ear.

 

[Trivun]

I refer you all to the film The Sixth Day, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in a later role (hear me out, this isn't like his turn as Mr Freeze, he was actually good in this role!)

Basically, he plays a pilot working for an extreme sports company in the near future. Technology is mostly the same as now but cloning has reached new levels of sophistication to the point that embryos and cloned humans can be genetically sped up, as it were, to reach adulthood in just a few days, before a trigger stops the rapid growth and normal growth continues. Human cloning is strictly illegal, but animal cloning is now commercial to the point that companies offer clones to replace dead animals, something Arnie's character does early on when his daughter's dog dies. Despite this, Arnie is extremely skeptical of cloning, and his fears are founded when he returns home one day to find an illegal clone of him has taken over his lif, and the clone thinks he is the real deal. With his family unknowing of the clone, and assassins after him, Arnie tries to find out what's going on and basically bust open this conspiracy. The film has some humour in it when the assassins are killed off in various odd ways, yet return as they are all pre-made clones of different actual assassins (also dead).

The plot sounds silly, but it was shown to us in a Religous Studies class a few years ago, and raises some very interesting questions about cloning and the ideas of whether or not a cloned human would have a soul or spirit, or any moral rights. I advise you all see that film, it's worth a look and is actually very interesting. Incidentally, it was named after the Sixth Day of the Bible, when God created mankind after creating the universe, for anyone interested.