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nvading the Borders of Ethics

In the technologically advanced world we live in today, it has become a rarity to encounter someone who has not heard of Genetically Modified Organisms. Food products and livestock have become the subjects of genetic breakthroughs and the guinea pigs towards the enhancement of food production. However, the pioneers of gene modification, who have shifted their focus onto human subjects, are starting to slowly cross the line of ethics.

The modification of the human genome could offer breakthrough medical treatment for genetic disorders; therefore it is an innovation that won’t be ignored by the scientific community. But, the fact that this treatment could enhance humans past their naturally inherited physical and mental abilities strikes worry throughout the scientific spectrum. With the adaptation of genetic modification, comes the possibility of abuse, especially in the military realm. Although the pros of gene modification far outweigh the cons, medically speaking, a moral compass needs to be established to prevent military manipulation of potential genetically modified recruits.

Biological Warfare has been a prominent tactic in military strategy for eons. Evidence of it can be found in European history, “…attempted use of biological warfare occurred between 1754 and 1767 when the British infiltrated smallpox-infested blankets to unsuspecting American Indians during the French and Indian war.” Now that gene modification is a becoming a potential contender in the warfare equation, experts are becoming weary. According to Tony Wang, an undergraduate in the field of Bioethics, “Given recent advances in genetic knowledge, it is feasible to genetically enhance soldiers (or insurgents in non-state contexts) to be capable of surviving tougher conditions and possessing greater destructive capabilities than ever before.”
In order to maintain control over the manipulation of genetic modification, Wang offers some ethical suggestions in his article, “Towards a Military Medical Ethics Framework for Genetic Human Enhancement”. The first of his criterion involves creating an ethical framework that respects both military and medicine by, “embedding medical values within a military perspective… if we can demonstrate that from a military perspective a medical consideration must be respected, then we can construct a pragmatic military medical framework that will actually be followed and not ignored in the face of military necessity.”
His second suggestion towards providing an ethical framework is his idea that, “any moral constraint we place upon human genetic modification for military use should uphold values fundamental to the military.” This means that even if a soldier gets an order to perform an action from his or her superior, the soldier itself is still held responsible for the action and any moral constraint should uphold this value, “therefore, any form of genetic enhancement that would render soldiers not fully capable of making moral judgments is off limits.”
Wang includes two more suggestions in which he states that, in order to maintain ethical consistency, soldiers cannot be modified into “non-humans” and modifications cannot be high-risk or life threatening. Wang includes “non-human” subjects for he states that their right to return to civilian life would be revoked because they would not be socially accepted as “human”. He includes the example of human-animal hybrids and how such a creation would be unethical;

For physical transformations, if a soldier were to be half-human, half-animal, then he could not be reasonably expected to return to a civilian capacity. For ex- ample, if a human were genetically modified to grow scales, then he would most likely be shunned by society upon attempted re-entry. Even if he could function in a civilian setting, he would face stigma, avoidance, and fear by the general population.

Wang mentions that performing a modification that could potentially end in fatality also crosses the boundaries of ethics;

…the military cannot use such genetic modifications if the side effects are known to have a reasonably high risk of causing a severe effect because this violates the principles of allowing soldiers to return to a normal civilian life and preventing unnecessary harm. This is clear in the case of fatal or debilitating side effects but still applies to harmful and lasting modifications to the soldier’s gametes, or reproductive cells. It is a violation of the right for a soldier to return to civilian life if his genetic modifications cause deleterious side effects to his progeny.

As an outsider looking in, it is evident that ethical consideration is essential in preventing the abuse of genetic modification, especially concerning military matters. In order to maintain military etiquette in the field of biological warfare, Wang’s suggestions seem to provide an adequate framework. The medical attributes of genetic modification are so potent that this is a field of genetic manipulation that will be exploited. However, only the extent in the application ethics will determine how it will be utilized.

http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&hid=102&sid=a344008b-7908-486f-bdee-541a3cfa253a%40sessionmgr115

http://telemedicine.org/biowar/biologic.htm


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