In ancient Greece, young humans that were unhealthy or deformed would sometimes be put in a clay jar and deserted outside the front door or on the roadway until they died. In modern America, young humans that are unhealthy or deformed are sometimes put in a petri dish and deserted inside, behind the doors of an IVF clinic until they die. This is called “progress.”
Indeed, biotechnological advances have made it possible to create and kill humans in the earliest stages of their life while skipping the messy process of pregnancy :
Filming human embryos used for in vitro fertilisation (IVF) at an early stage in their development has allowed scientists to select those with the best chance of going on to develop into healthy babies with an accuracy of more than 93%.
Once the technique is available for use in IVF clinics it should eliminate the need to simultaneously implant several embryos into the uterus – a practice used to increase the chances of successful pregnancy. It could also prevent the problems associated with multiple pregnancy, which occurs when several of the implanted embryos go on to develop successfully.
Multiple pregnancies often lead to miscarriage or the need for foetal reduction – surgical removal of some of the developing foetuses.
So creating more children than you can carry in your womb creates the need for fetal reduction? Create and kill, for we can’t have another Octomom.
We live in an age where our talent for creative barbarism is outmatched only by our genius for euphemism.
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