The president's council on bioethics, led by Leon Kass, is taking heat from liberals and libertarians upset that it is allegedly stacked with supporters of the president's policies.* The president's council on bioethics bioethics, in philosophy, a branch of ethics concerned with issues surrounding health care and the biological sciences. These issues include the morality of abortion, euthanasia, in vitro fertilization, and organ transplants (see transplantation, medical). , led by Leon Kass Leon Kass (born February 12 1939) is an American bioethicist, best known as a leader in the effort to stop human embryonic stem cell and cloning research as former chair of the President's Council on Bioethics from 2002–2005.[1] He obtained S.B. and M.D. , is taking heat from liberals and libertarians upset that it is allegedly stacked with supporters of the president's policies. They are complaining that it is getting more stacked, with opponents of those policies being kicked off the council and supporters being put on. In truth, the council is hardly in lockstep lock·step n. 1. A way of marching in which the marchers follow each other as closely as possible. 2. A standardized procedure that is closely, often mindlessly followed. Noun 1. with the administration. Supporters of the president's policy were in the minority on the council when it considered the most controversial issue before it, human cloning Although genes are recognized as influencing behavior and cognition, "genetically identical" does not mean altogether identical; identical twins, despite being natural human clones with near identical DNA, are separate people, with separate experiences and not altogether . A majority of the council advocated a moratorium A suspension of activity or an authorized period of delay or waiting. A moratorium is sometimes agreed upon by the interested parties, or it may be authorized or imposed by operation of law. on cloning rather than the outright ban the president has sought. Seven of the 17 members of the council came out for research cloning. That is a lot more diversity than previous bioethics panels, such as the one established by President Clinton, have displayed. None of Kass's critics complained about those panels, and some of them served on them. In any case, the council has turned from the issue of cloning to other matters, such as the treatment of the aged. It is not at all clear what the new members of the council think about these issues; perhaps the critics should wait to find out before condemning them. |
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