frame

Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

DebateIsland.com is the largest online debate website globally where anyone can anonymously and easily debate online, casually or formally, while connecting with their friends and others. Users, regardless of debating skill level, can civilly debate just about anything online in a text-based online debate website that supports five easy-to-use and fun debating formats ranging from Casual, to Formalish, to Lincoln-Douglas Formal. In addition, people can improve their debating skills with the help of revolutionary artificial intelligence-powered technology on our debate website. DebateIsland is totally free and provides the best online debate experience of any debate website.


Communities




Is Cloning Humans A Good Idea

Debate Information

   Let me know what you guys think. I think that it is an ok idea because cloning humans could help with curing diseases and such but it also could have serious defects and you would have to do it a ton of times to be able to actually clone a fetus.
joecavalryislander507
  1. Live Poll

    Is Human Cloning A Good Idea?

    6 votes
    1. Yes!
      100.00%
    2. No.
        0.00%



Debra AI Prediction

Predicted To Win
Predicted 2nd Place
44%
Margin

Details +




Post Argument Now Debate Details +

    Arguments


  • NopeNope 397 Pts   -  
    How are you going to know which clone is which? How safe is the process of cloning? How much cloning is aloud as not to over populate with clones? How can be cloned? Can people who do bad things be cloned? How will the clones be raised if the are cloned to be a baby of the person who has been cloned? If one clone is harm by an unexpected genetic issue should the other clones be notified encase they have the same issue? Should you allow cloning of humans for science? Just some thought for food. : )
    agsr
  • whiteflamewhiteflame 689 Pts   -  
    @Nope

    I think we can make some basic assumptions about how cloning will work in the future, though it's difficult to say precisely. We haven't started cloning humans yet, we don't know what regulations will be built around that technology once it becomes available, and we don't know how people will use it. Just the same, I think it's possible to answer at least some of your questions.

    "How are you going to know which clone is which?"

    The same way we tell the difference between twins. Just because they're genetically identical doesn't mean that there's absolutely no difference between them.

    "How safe is the process of cloning?"

    It's not. That's why it's not done in humans just yet. We can manage it in some animals, though there are issues with the clones having extremely short lifespans. I don't think what we're discussing here is the current state of the tech. I think we're discussing the need to pursue human cloning by improving the technology to the point that it can be done safely and efficiently.

    "How much cloning is aloud as not to over populate with clones?"

    With the current technology, there's no chance whatsoever that there will be overpopulation. The process is too time, labor and cost intensive to become widely used. If your question is, once it becomes widely available, how do we not overpopulate, I'd ask the same question of why pregnancy hasn't resulted in overpopulation. It's not like we're talking about growing humans in a lab, any more than we're talking about in vitro fertilization as growing humans in a lab. A clone would be implanted into a uterus and come to term.

    "How can be cloned?"

    I think you mean "who". Presumably, people with the resources and access to the scientific tech. There are likely to be some regulations that prevent certain people from cloning themselves, particularly when it comes to treating them as organ farms, but that's more about the usage of the clone than who gets to do so. Particularly when the technology is new, it will be available solely to the very rich.

    "Can people who do bad things be cloned?"

    I don't see why not. Are you expressing concerns over the capacity of someone to pass on "evil genes"? On that basis, should we allow people who do bad things to breed?

    "How will the clones be raised if the are cloned to be a baby of the person who has been cloned?"

    Presumably as an infant. I don't see how the fact that it is a clone fundamentally alters the fact that it is birthed into the world by a mother.

    "If one clone is harm by an unexpected genetic issue should the other clones be notified encase they have the same issue?"

    They would all have the same genetics, and presumably, so would the person from whom the clone is derived. If that's true, then yes, everyone should be notified. If there's some genetic issue arising from the cloning process, then that's also a good reason to notify them.

    "Should you allow cloning of humans for science?"

    That's how the first human clone will come into existence - for science. If your concern is that they're going to be used in a similar manner to lab rats, I'd say that the fact that they are human precludes such an instance. 
    agsrislander507
  • You could breed an entire army of fighting men. The Super Race. Make them white, blonde hair and blue eyes. Call them The Aryans.
    islander507
  • FredsnephewFredsnephew 361 Pts   -  
    Humans do things simply because they can.
    Inevitably, one day soon we will successfully clone ourselves.
    Whether this is a good idea or not, is irrelevant.
    islander507
  • joecavalryjoecavalry 430 Pts   -  
    I don’t belive that cloning humans or animals should be done. Cloning items, food, etc. may be a good idea.
    DebateIslander and a DebateIsland.com lover. 
  • agsragsr 881 Pts   -  
    @whiteflame, you made good points regarding each stated cloning consideration. I guess my biggest concern is that such technology if become mainstream can quickly spin out of control to have drastic ethical issues most of us to be uncomfortable with.  It will be difficult to regulate and may create essentially a slave race.
    islander507
    Live Long and Prosper
  • whiteflamewhiteflame 689 Pts   -  
    @agsr, there's a lot of uncertainty regarding what the future will bring for cloning. Scientists can and have regularly cloned cells and certain animals (particularly mice), which really hasn't done a lot to push ethical boundaries. Cloning humans would be a step into brand new territory, and one I don't think scientists (or the government for that matter) would take lightly. I think regulations would be relatively straightforward at first, though: once a clone is born into the world, that clone is human, and is afforded the same rights as any other human.

    Admittedly, though, the situation gets more complex as we think about the ways people might use cloning to generate something that isn't quite human. For example, I've debated before whether it would be a good idea to make human clones that are essentially just organ factories, born into the world without any substantial neural faculties. Would we define that life as human? Would that life be subject to the same protections as a human? This pushes the issue out to what makes a human being human, and I don't think there's a solid answer for that yet.

    That being said, I don't think cloning is ever likely to generate much of a "slave race." It would have to become a lot cheaper, faster and more mass producible (growing a human life in growth chambers would have to become a thing) before we could ever see something like that. At that future point, perhaps some countries would use the technology to generate a population of human beings for a given purpose without affording them basic rights.
    islander507
  • agsragsr 881 Pts   -  
    @whiteflame, makes sense that at this time there is no immediate threat.  But lets fast forward to when technology is readily available for mass market.  There is little government can do to regulate these sub-species and will likely result in ethical abuse.  I wouldn't want someone to clone me illegally and harvest for organs.  The clones may become like tilapia, produced for commercial purpose. We have seen too many movies about whan can go wrong with clones....
    Live Long and Prosper
  • love2debatelove2debate 186 Pts   -  
    I agree with @whiteflame that cloning humans overall may have positive impact if done carefully with proper controls.  At the same time I am not sure how it will be possible to control it once it hits black market
  • whiteflamewhiteflame 689 Pts   -   edited February 2018
    @agsr and @love2debate, I get the idea that there's concerns ahead for the misuse of clones, and I get where you're both coming from, but there's a reason I phrased my concerns as I did above. The issue is not with the mistreatment of what are clearly humans - it's with the mistreatment of clones that may not be classified as human by virtue of what they are designed to lack. We would essentially be creating sub-human entities that could not be defended under the law. I do think there's a lot of important ethical concerns to be had with that.

    The reason I'm not concerned with the treatment of clones that would be clearly human is that we already do that with actual human beings. Clones, so long as they bear all of the traits of a human being, could not be classified as a sub-species - they would be human, and deserving of the same rights as any other human. Will some be sold into slavery on the black market? Probably, though I'd say that's less likely to happen than selling children conceived naturally into slavery, which happens right now, particularly with sex slaves. No matter how mass market cloning gets, it's still likely to be more expensive and demanding than basic conception, and since they will all have to be born into the world via uterus (at least for the conceivable future), they have all the same costs as a normal pregnancy on top of that. That's a very expensive way to make a slave. If we're talking about the possible future in which clones are made and grown in vitro (i.e. outside a human being), then that would also likely be much more expensive than pregnancy, and even if it was cheaper, people would do it to have children without cloning. If people were growing babies for super cheap, then that would be the problem, not cloning itself.

    Last thing. @agsr, you said "I wouldn't want someone to clone me illegally and harvest for organs." No one would do that. The reason that someone would grow a clone in order to harvest organs is to clone themselves so that the organs are genetically identical to themselves. If they cloned you to harvest your clones' organs, it would defeat the purpose because you are not genetically identical to them.
    agsrale5
  • agsragsr 881 Pts   -  
    @whiteflame, I think that you fairly acknowledge ethical concerns about potential of cloning.  You also offer a practical perspective and to your point it's similar to some of the ethical issues we face today.  Than you.
    Live Long and Prosper
  • whiteflamewhiteflame 689 Pts   -  
    @agsr, always happy to discuss issues like this. Thank you for offering your perspective.
  • ale5ale5 263 Pts   -  
    Human cloning has enormous potential benefit to our society.  It's true that it has risks and ethical concerns, but I support it overall under a reasonable set of rules controlled by the government.  If we restrict it too much then we will limit progress and will lose opportunity to save lives.  Both @agsr and @whiteflame  made great points.
    It's kind of fun to do the impossible
    - Walt Disney
  • Darwin's premise is that everything living and breeding another generation very very slowly mutates a favorable change making that species better or at least more adapted to its environment.  Cloning can speed up natural selection. Making an exact copy of an animal is already done in farm animals and plants (DNA?).  Without thinking about the ethics or morality of cloning humans, we all know if it can be done, someone somewhere will do it (or already has).
  • ale5ale5 263 Pts   -  
    @onemorething, there is no doubt that it's going to be feasible. The debate is should cloning humans pulled back under tight regulations or just let it happen
    It's kind of fun to do the impossible
    - Walt Disney
Sign In or Register to comment.

Back To Top

DebateIsland.com

| The Best Online Debate Experience!
© 2023 DebateIsland.com, all rights reserved. DebateIsland.com | The Best Online Debate Experience! Debate topics you care about in a friendly and fun way. Come try us out now. We are totally free!

Contact us

customerservice@debateisland.com
Terms of Service

Get In Touch