Re: Cheating Destiny (book excerpt)
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Posted by klausen on 19:16:18 2006/07/10
In Reply to:
Re: Cheating Destiny (book excerpt) posted by Marie
Obviously, everyone tries to deal with life with as much resilience and sang froid as possible, but as all of us know who have dealt with serious medical problems, every misfortune takes its toll, nothing is cost-free. But just because life always involves some difficulties should not give anyone the moral license to impose any conceivable and calculable risks of serious illness on a future child.
Optimism, courage, and determination eventually give out at some point. When I was living in Europe a French medical student who was a type 1 diabetic, and who had obviously already achieved and overcome a lot in order even to get into a French medical school, which all have a highly competitive admissions process, shot himself after hearing a lecture on the importance of strict control of high blood sugar. His nerve finally could not stand the constant confrontation with the central problem of his life any longer, and he was only 26.
Where would you draw the line between optimism and prudence in the decision of what genetic risks to impose on your future children without their agreement? What if you had the gene for Hutchinson-Gilford's Disease, which is a form of progeria causing rapid aging. Not only does the disease produce five-year-olds with false teeth, cataracts, hearing aids, and no hair, but it accelerates the development of the intellect as well, so these poor kids can savour the full horror of their situation, just as though they were little adults. They are all dead by 20, usually of a heart attack. Would you say to these children and their parents, "Stiff upper lip now! Life's not so bad! Just whistle a happy tune, and every single time, the happiness in the tune, convinces me that I'm not afraid!" (The last part is to be sung.)
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