[DaProdigy]

The fact remains that people need to die of something. The western world has a severely aging population and it would only exacerbate the problem if they found a cure for cancer. More old unproductive people blowing out health budgets and being supported by the younger workers isn't necessarily a good thing.
Curing childhood cancers would be ace but extending a 75 year olds life for another ten years of misery is cruel.

Also, the stem cell research issue seems to be a very slippery slope indeed. I'm not even religious but I do recognize that conception is quite amazing, even miraculous. We need to think long and hard about the ethics of using potential humans as some kind of mere exploitable resource.

Minus the Tim Burton reference, this kind of sums up my fear of technology. As humans I don't think we understand ourselves enough to be making huge technological leaps forward.

[XitUp]

Conception isn't amazing or miraculous at all. If it was we wouldn't have the over population problems we do.

I fully support stem cell research as I come from Grimsby and I think it could be a boost to our economy thanks to all our teen abortions.

[FullMetal]

Originally Posted by cplmac

If down the road the test subjects develop some kind of devastating ailments, or if the known side effects are permanent, or if it causes genetic mutations, I don't know. There might not be any disastrous consequences outside of what this patient has suffered. I'm just saying it's possible and only time will tell. They used to think Radium cured everything, oops. It's just too early to tell, but by all means we should be fully exploring this technology to see if it can be the cure all it looks to be. As far as I know it's the only known way to actually grow/regenerate lost brain cells which is pretty huge in and of itself. Drunks around the world rejoice.

So it'd be fair to assume that stem cell research may cause the zombie apocalypse.

[*TN*]

Originally Posted by cplmac

This could be a history changing medical breakthrough, and it could be a disaster that has yet to unfold. I'm personally all for stem cell research, we should be investing all the wasted "green technology" money on stem cell research and let the private sector develop green technology. There seems to be a lot of promise in stem cell research, and the idea that a form of cancer can be cured is simply incredible. We need to wait and see the extent of the side effects of this treatment before declaring it a success, so far the side effects seem pretty brutal.

What?! Why should green energybe left to the market and not medicine?

Unlike medicine, energy usage is subject to the fallacy of division. Just because it doesn't make sense for society for us to pollute like mad and keep using dangerous, non-renewable sources doesn't mean it doesn't make sense for any individual in that society.

I can free ride on my neighbours choice to power his car with potato juice. I can't do the same for his choice to purchase stem cell related medical treatment. (Or only to a much, much more limited degree.)

THAT'S the justification for government involvement in green energy.

[MilesHackett]

Originally Posted by DaProdigy

The fact remains that people need to die of something. The western world has a severely aging population and it would only exacerbate the problem if they found a cure for cancer. More old unproductive people blowing out health budgets and being supported by the younger workers isn't necessarily a good thing.
Curing childhood cancers would be ace but extending a 75 year olds life for another ten years of misery is cruel.

Who are you to make that evaluation? Why are you assuming that it would be 10 more years of 'misery'?

[DaProdigy]

Originally Posted by MilesHackett

Who are you to make that evaluation? Why are you assuming that it would be 10 more years of 'misery'?

Yeah. I probably worded that badly.
I should have said that we would need to have a much more rational attitude toward euthanasia before a cure for cancer could be introduced without creating huge negative consequences.

[Aaron]

Very, very, very few 75+ year olds would rather die than live in their current state. Anyone who thinks they should be encouraged to end their life is an idiot.

[DaProdigy]

Originally Posted by Aaron

Very, very, very few 75+ year olds would rather die than live in their current state. Anyone who thinks they should be encouraged to end their life is an idiot.

Setting aside our irrational fear of death, Who do you think should pay for the medical costs of all these old people Aaron?
Have you been to any retirement homes Aaron? They are absolute hell holes populated by miserable old people with scattered brains and staffed by miserable young people with shitty pay checks.
I never said anything about "encouraging" people to end their life either. However, it would be better for everyone if people who no longer wanted to live could opt for Euthanasia without feeling like they were going to go straight to hell because of it.

[FullMetal]

Maybe we should put old people into camps.

[DaProdigy]

Originally Posted by FullMetal

Maybe we should put old people into camps.

We already do. They are called "nursing homes" or "retirement villages".