Cloning -- Procedure Is Just A New Form Of Test-Tube Conception And Poses No Harm To Humans

Editor, The Times:

Much public debate has started about what's wrong with human cloning. The rational way to approach such a debate, however, is not to just discuss everyone's gut feelings, but to understand how the technology works and determine whether any harm is done.

Cloning is not the mass production of humans, as some people seem to think. After fertilization, the egg is implanted in a woman's womb. Then follows (hopefully) a normal pregnancy, a normal childbirth, and a normal childhood. The person that results is no different than any other human being.

Cloning is a new form of test-tube babies, a new form of conception technology, logically similar to artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization and the use of sperm banks. Only instead of fertilizing an egg in a test tube with sperm, scientists fertilize an egg in a test tube with someone's genetic material.

Neither is cloning genetic engineering, as some people fear. It takes the natural genetic material of an individual and uses it, unchanged, to fertilize an egg. The genes are not spliced, diced or altered in any way.

Nor is the cloned human a carbon copy of its genetic source. Natural "identical" twins, just like clones, have the same genetic material. But they grow up to be quite distinguishable, both in appearance and behavior. Clones would be more dissimilar than identical twins, because they will be born at a different time than their genetic source.

Does cloning enable humans to be grown as organ donors? Bad people are currently stealing human organs to sell on the black market. The crime is no less and no more evil, illegal and punishable if the victim is a clone instead of an original.

Would human cloning allow someone to clone some very talented and profitable person in order to exploit them? Yes, it makes it possible to clone a Michael Jordan in order to invest in his career. But a little thought would show people that it's a poor investment. How many "identical" twins turn out with the same degree of the same talent?

What harm is caused by human cloning? None, that I can see. In short, I think human cloning is nothing more nor less than test-tube (not quite) "identical" twins. Francine Kitchen Seattle