Wesley J. Smith

This blog has received a formal review by Yale University bioethicist Stephen R. Latham. I am most pleased that it is a mixed review with some very nice compliments as well as pointed criticisms, and I very much appreciate Latham’s even handedness. (When Culture of Death came out, I recall one . . . . Continue Reading »

I first posted this disability rights protest song about euthanasia a few years ago. Given the flow of events, and the many new SHSers who might not have seen it, I decided it was worth repeating. . . . . Continue Reading »

China’s notorious one child policy has led to eugenics, sex selection abortion, female infanticide, and other horrors. Now, we are being pushed in that same direction in the West by radical environmentalists in the name of going Green. From the story:COUPLES who have more than two children are . . . . Continue Reading »

The news wires are buzzing about Nadya Suleman, the woman who had eight babies through IVF. Questions are being raised about the ethics of the case, both because of her circumstances—she already has six children—and the number of children born. From the story: Fertility experts have . . . . Continue Reading »

One of the purposes of professional medical organizations is to stand up for proper ethical policies and laws. Lately, we have seen too many such organizations going “neutral,” on assisted suicide. How an organization dedicated to defending doctors and patients can be indifferent to one . . . . Continue Reading »

Well, this is very refreshing. An article published two years ago in the journal Chest ( 2007; 132:1987–1993) suggests that coercive medical futility be replaced with a different—and from my perspective, far more positive—approach to handling intractable disputes between a medical . . . . Continue Reading »

Can you imagine the banner headlines if this were an embryonic stem cell success? From the story: [Adult]Stem cells transplanted into early-phase multiple sclerosis patients stabilised, and in some cases reversed, the debilitating neurological disorder, according to a study published Friday...In . . . . Continue Reading »

When the FDA approved Geron’s application to conduct human trials of their embryonic stem cell treatment for acute spinal cord injury, some noted that it might be political, coming as it did within days of the change of the presidential guard. I wasn’t among those, but perhaps I should . . . . Continue Reading »

About seven weeks ago I began tracking the locales from which Secondhand Smoke is accessed. In that time,we have been visited by people interested in bioethics and human exceptionalism from 139 countries. Our newest “flag” is Ethiopia. Thanks to . . . . Continue Reading »

Great news from the uncontroversial biotech file: “Bubble Boy” disease, named after David Vetter who became famous because he had to be isolated behind plastic shields to prevent infection from a genetic disease that causes severe defects in the immune system, has been effectively . . . . Continue Reading »