Discrimination and Self Esteem
Every human being on this planet is different. Whether it is eyes, hair, or skin, no one is exactly the same, and no trait is better or worse than any other.
If all wealthy parents choose to have beautiful, intelligent, athletic children with blonde hair and blue eyes, society would view children with those traits as superior. A child with darker hair and eyes could be considered second rate to the fair haired child. Because these traits were chosen and not inherited, many people would not see this as discrimination, but it is. Designer babies could create a world in which one can tell at a glance whether someone was born wealthy or not.
Nicholas Agar, a PhD and senior lecturer at Victoria University of Wellington says that designer babies could lead to, "a future in which genetically enhanced people take the lead, viewing unenhanced people as fit only to clean up after them." A person's value to society should not be based on whether their parents had enough money to make them a perfect version of themselves.
For people to "play God" and decide what attributes are desirable versus undesirable is morally wrong and will hurt everyone in our society. Especially in a society such as ours in which the standards for beauty are already somewhat unattainable for the masses. Dr. Philip Kitcher, a professor of philosophy at Columbia University and author of The Genetic Revolution and Human Possibilities says, "It's horrendous to me to envisage a world in which we all have to try to conform to some rather narrow range of features."
Currently in our culture there is already a problem with self esteem in children due to the pressures of conformity. This would intensify if more regular people could conform to what society deems to be normal and beautiful. Children who could not conform could feel left out and depressed because their parents did not have the money to "design" them.
If all wealthy parents choose to have beautiful, intelligent, athletic children with blonde hair and blue eyes, society would view children with those traits as superior. A child with darker hair and eyes could be considered second rate to the fair haired child. Because these traits were chosen and not inherited, many people would not see this as discrimination, but it is. Designer babies could create a world in which one can tell at a glance whether someone was born wealthy or not.
Nicholas Agar, a PhD and senior lecturer at Victoria University of Wellington says that designer babies could lead to, "a future in which genetically enhanced people take the lead, viewing unenhanced people as fit only to clean up after them." A person's value to society should not be based on whether their parents had enough money to make them a perfect version of themselves.
For people to "play God" and decide what attributes are desirable versus undesirable is morally wrong and will hurt everyone in our society. Especially in a society such as ours in which the standards for beauty are already somewhat unattainable for the masses. Dr. Philip Kitcher, a professor of philosophy at Columbia University and author of The Genetic Revolution and Human Possibilities says, "It's horrendous to me to envisage a world in which we all have to try to conform to some rather narrow range of features."
Currently in our culture there is already a problem with self esteem in children due to the pressures of conformity. This would intensify if more regular people could conform to what society deems to be normal and beautiful. Children who could not conform could feel left out and depressed because their parents did not have the money to "design" them.