Hacker News Reader

Comment by jschwartzi | Hacker News Reader

I don’t understand. Are you saying there’s some negative impact to allowing people to have children who otherwise couldn’t? What problems do you foresee?

View on HN

Once humans (and other animals) can be created without parents being involved, there will be many ethical issues.

At what point do they attain human rights? At conception? At "birth" from an artificial womb? What defines "human" in "human rights"? (Can they knock out a few genes and make a sentient creature that is capable of suffering but not human? We have sentient non-humans suffering in factory farms already.) How will we prevent people/corporations/governments/religions from just deciding to create a bunch of people? What does regulation look like in this inevitable future?

>At what point do they attain human rights? At conception? At "birth" from an artificial womb?

This is hardly a new issue

The issue is currently limited to pregnant women.

I commented above a few of the issues I see. For example, would Lebron James (or any celebrity or person that has genetics that are profitable) be afraid of giving blood for fear of someone making Lebron 2.0 without his permission?

Or, literally some kind of false paternity fraud - such a child would come with certain legal rights and privileges.

That's not a new problem, in the USA even a man who is raped can be forced to pay child support to his rapist.

Obviously these child support laws are in need of reform.

> Are you saying there’s some negative impact to allowing people to have children who otherwise couldn’t?

In and of itself, no. I'm saying there's issues with some particular ways of doing so.

Governments buying soldiers from birth.

Personally, I foresee breeding programs for armies to create perfect soldiers. I foresee breeding programs for a permanent slave underclass. How can you not see the problems?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com