X-Message-Number: 20780
From: "John de Rivaz" <>
References: <>
Subject: Re: Cloning
Date: Sat, 4 Jan 2003 10:35:22 -0000

I am surprised at the Florida lawyer story. Is it really possible for
someone with no family interest in a child to file such a claim? Looks like
legalised kidnapping to me. Seems odd - my cynical mind suggests that it is
a good wheeze to produce a plausible reason not to do the DNA tests. A
through check on the background and connections of the lawyer concerned
could be very interesting! Similarities are disturbing: It looks as though
it was intended that the cloned baby was to be born on December 25. The
lawyer story sounds a little like King Herod.

But if it is possible for any citizen to make such claims and file such
cases and take away other people's children (or cause them to be taken away)
then I can sympathise with the mother wanting to remain untraceable. In fact
she should leave US jurisdiction before she could be identified.

In general terms I cannot see what the fuss is about -- a cloned baby is
just an artificial twin of the original, it has no continuity of
consciousness.

However, on http://www.clonaid.com/ it says that "Cloning will enable
mankind to reach eternal life. The next step, like the Elohim do with their
25,000 years of scientific advance, will be to directly clone an adult
person without having to go through the growth process and to transfer
memory and personality in this person. Then, we wake up after death in a
brand new body just like after a good night sleep!" Ra l

I have to say that I have a problem with this idea. Assuming the cloned
adult person has a brain (which it would have to if the scenario is to be
correct) what would it think of having its "soul" (ie program and data)
replaced by someone else's? Also, after transfer what remains in the old
body?

Nevertheless, this organisation exists, and in financial terms it appears to
be far greater than all the cryonics service providers put together.

--
Sincerely, John de Rivaz:  http://John.deRivaz.com for websites including
Cryonics Europe, Longevity Report, The Venturists, Porthtowan, Alec Harley
Reeves - inventor, Arthur Bowker - potter, Holistics, de Rivaz genealogy,
Nomad .. and more

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