The worlds of science and medicine have done much to improve our lives.
When I was young, my parents were terrified that I may become a victim of polio. When I was about 21, there was a polio vaccine.
Not too many years ago, if it was determined you may have appendicitis, your appendix was removed even if you had no appendicitis. I mean, why not? You were already opened up. Today, you are scanned and you know for sure without any operation.
That is just a taste of what modern medicine and science have given us.
Is There a Downside?
In a way, there is a downside. Not because of the wonderful innovations, but because of the way those innovations have been used. And the way future innovations could be used.
The Near Future
There is already talk of genetically changing a child in the womb. You know, “Want blue eyes? Sure thing.” “Want blond hair? Sure thing.” I could go on, but I think you get the idea. There is a danger there. Fooling with your child’s eyes is risky business. Could your child end up with purple hair?
The Distant Future
Science moves on. For example, “Want your baby to grow into a six foot six inch man weighing 250 pound, and a genius? Sure thing.” Those parents are flirting with danger. Why? Because the parents are asking doctors to fool around with things which shouldn’t be fooled around with.
Let me tell you why. The outcome is not a sure thing. What if the fetus were meant to be a rather small man of average intelligence? Who knows what the results of genetic engineering would produce? There could be many horrible outcomes. Maybe a huge man with a bone structure and internal organs not capable of handling a body that large. Maybe the proverbial “mad scientist”.
Today
There is already talk of parents aborting a child of one sex when they want a child of the other sex. You know, kill this one and try again.
Children are being chemically and surgically mutilated to perform a sex change. The child’s future is perilous.
I believe this to be bad judgement at any age, but with children it is criminal abuse.
Think about it.
If your five-year-old boy says, “I want to be president.” The parents say something on the order of, “Just work real hard and you could be president.”
If your five-year-old boy says, “I don’t want to go to bed.” The parents say something on the order of, “It’s late. Go to bed.”
If your five-year-old boy says, “I want to be a girl.” Do the parents really say, “Sure, honey, we will castrate you and change you forever, not really knowing the outcome. We will do it with surgery, chemicals, and anything else necessary.” Not any parents I know would say that.
Always Remember
We were warned about this a long time ago. Mary Shelley warned us in her 1818 novel “Frankenstein”.
