Modern Eugenics: Our Brave New World
By Ken Connor
Christian Post Guest Columnist
Fri, Sep. 29 2006

The New York Times has seen the future. According to a recent, ominously titled article, "Couples Cull Embryos to Halt Heritage of Cancer," it will not be long before a parent can choose her child the way a diner chooses her meal at a restaurant.

"Soon...prospective parents may be able to choose between an embryo that could become a child with a lower risk of colon cancer who is likely to be fat, or one who is likely to be thin but has a slightly elevated risk of Alzheimer's, or a boy likely to be short with low cholesterol but a significant risk of Parkinson's, or a girl likely to be tall with a moderate risk of diabetes."

What the article does not emphasize is that if the tall girl with a risk of diabetes is chosen, the other three will likely be left to die.

Many newspapers are reporting that preimplantation genetic diagnosis, or P.G.D., is growing in popularity. P.G.D. is a process that begins with in vitro fertilization, where eggs are removed from the mother's body and fertilized by sperm in a petri dish, creating a set of human embryos. When these embryos are three to five days old they consist of eight cells. One of those cells is removed and genetically tested for diseases, such as colon cancer, breast cancer, Down syndrome, or cystic fibrosis. Scientists can also determine whether the tiny embryo is a boy or a girl. Based on this information, parents can decide which embryos they want to keep, abandoning the rest. the rest