So, the discussion about eugenics, which we got into here yesterday, has continued at The Corner today, and I got into the mix. For those interested, and to avoid a lot of scrolling, here is how it generally went: Derbyshire: “Re Eugenics” and “More Eugenics.” Followed by . . . . Continue Reading »
Gary Francione is an animal rights absolutist who believes that there should be no domesticated animals and no human use of animals for any purpose. I disagree, obviously. But as I have written, he walks the talk: He seeks to lead by example by promoting a 100% vegan lifestyle and he forcefully . . . . Continue Reading »
The media and politicians continue to pretend that ESCR will generally be restricted to frozen leftover embryos that are “going to be discarded anyway.” As I have been arguing for several years, this “limited” permissibility is, at most, just a way-station to gain public . . . . Continue Reading »
The CBC asked me make some predictions for 2007 in the fields of bioethics and biotechnology. Here it is for those who may be . . . . Continue Reading »
Dolly was born ten years ago (last July). Many think she was the first cloned mammal. Not true. She was the first mammal cloned with an adult cell. But that is neither here nor there. The point is that Dolly’s birth changed everything.The Scotsman reports about how a party is planned to . . . . Continue Reading »
John Derbyshire’s style of arguing is often to breezily skip past concrete issues rather than actually grappling with them intellectually. He does it again in the ongoing discussion at The Corner over eugenics, where he dismisses worries that eugenics thinking could result in the eradication . . . . Continue Reading »
Over at The Corner, there is some back and forth going on about the James Watson Esquire interview that I posted earlier today. John Derbyshire sniffs that the worry about eugenics is overblown, so long as it isn’t state imposed: “If you don’t like eugenics, you are not going to . . . . Continue Reading »
I have noticed a weird trend: When somebody has been a great scientist, for some reason we assume their ideas on morality should be given as much respect as their scientific acumen. But science and morality lie in two different human spheres. Indeed, science can’t tell us right from wrong, . . . . Continue Reading »
Transhumanism is, in my view, a branch of scientism, that is, a quasi religion that seeks to use science in ways for which the great method is not meant. Here’s a little proof. A transhumanist named Giulio Prisco is optimistic about the future of the great post human movement. And he describes . . . . Continue Reading »
In writing the last post, I discovered Edge, an online community for “the third culture” that claims modestly, “Its informal membership includes of some of the most interesting minds in the world.” Edge asserts that “third culture” intellectuals “are taking . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
