Tidak ada kategori

Ours is the age of technology. Cyborgs, artificial intelligence, cloning, and genetic engineering—all are indicative of a swiftly moving reality we struggle to make sense of in the absence of traditional signposts and historical precedents. The underlying assumption in this revolutionary shift in orientation is the radical separation of technical and humanistic concerns. This divorce expresses itself in the widely held belief that technology is a neutral tool whose internal operations fall under a kind of immunity from the judgmental gaze of ethicists and metaphysicians, reducing their role, with few exceptions, to commentary on what is essentially a fait accompli. Environmental and medical ethics in particular rarely, if ever, get to question ongoing scientific research and its technological applications, but instead have been limited to reacting to discoveries and products and their possible ramifications on the natural and human worlds. The chapters in this book should be seen against this background. Specifically, they arose out of a conference in spring 2001 at the University of Scranton dedicated to posing two questions: (1) does genetic engineering of humans require a new understanding of what it means to be human, and (2) does what we already know suggest that there should be (and can be) effective limits to what can be done? With these considerations in mind, we brought together thinkers from a variety of disciplines for three days of intense discussion and exchange of ideas. The substance of each chapter remains philosophical, or at times theological, rather than technical. The issues discussed may touch on cloning, reproductive choices, or economic justice, but as examples and not as the purpose of the argument. Throughout, the focus remains on the question of what it is to be human and how just thinking about bioengineering alters our self-understanding. Clearly, if the success of the conference is any indication, there exists today an intellectual hunger to address in a public way the array of ontological and human issues clustered around bioengineering. The potential impact of these powerful technologies on humans whom we will never and can never know is so profound and far-reaching that the old disciplinary constraints can now only be seen as archaic and counterproductive. It is our hope that this collection will help to establish a model for addressing bioethical issues that finally razes these traditional barriers, and in doing so, moves the academy into the space of public discourse where the decisions about these vital matters will ultimately be made.