Looking for Biopolitical Trouble

Researchers at Cornell university have developed a genetically modified human embryo expressing a green fluorescent protein. This is a technology already demonstrated in animals (and plants), including monkeys. But the news that it had been done to a human embryo has stirred up reactions worrying about designer babies. Are we already in a brave new world of designer babies? And how should we handle the biopolitical debate?

It should be noted that the research was reported last autumn at a scientific conference, but became news thanks to a Sunday Times news story linked to the current controversy surrounding the UK reproduction and embryo bill. The researchers were not too keen on how they work had been misrepresented, and several bioethicists also pointed out that there was a big difference between adding a marker gene in an embryo and actually modifying humans. The embryo was not even a viable embryo (it had two extra sets of chromosomes), so there was at no point any possibility of it developing into a human.

While the experiment did not aim at designer children in any way (it was looking at early embryonic development) it did demonstrate the unsurprising fact that methods that work in other species work on human cells. Given that transgenic human cells are widely used in research, both as cell cultures, in animal models and gene therapy in living humans, and that our skills at inserting and regulating genes are growing, transgenic humans are certainly possible. Current methods of germline modification are crude and would limit the applicability (not to mention the morality) of doing it, but it is not far outside our capabilities.

The big problem is that the ethical debate (both professional and public) about “designer babies” often use rationalisations and surface issues rather than attempting to deal with the thick value differences that actually underlie the controversy. People have strong convictions about new technology more based on cultural and political ideas than facts and rational assessments. Even if the debate about when an embryo gains personhood/a soul could be resolved it is highly doubtful that people would give up their pro- or anti- stances: they are based on something deeper than ideas of personhood. The real battle is between different conceptions of what a human being is – an embodiment of an eternal core or a changing biological process, and biopolitical views of whether there exists a natural order that must not be changed or whether everything is up for liberal freedom. It is a struggle about sacred, often badly articulated, values.

Deep value differences can be brought to light and discussed sanely by people of good will. The real trick is to agree on how to live in the same society as people who have fundamentally different views on what is acceptable. Compromising on sacred values is not something anybody does lightly, yet that is likely what liberal democracies will have to do. The first step towards that is to admit that this is a biopolitical value debate, not a straightforward political debate.

Biopolitical value differences do not correspond to the traditional political ideological differences. Bioconservatism (we should not tamper with the given) can be found across the political spectrum, as can various kinds of  bioliberalism (we are allowed to change nature when we think it is good, either collectively or individually). This makes many political parties unwilling to even touch these issues, since they would break party discipline.

These views link to other views on what the relationship between humans and nature should be (stewards? A humble species among others? Masters? Gardeners? Co-creators?), human nature (fixed or changeable?) and technology (a force for good? Evil? Autonomous or a tool for society?) that have plenty of political importance in more traditional issues. Maybe the way out is to recognize that as biotechnology amplifies the importance of biopolitics it will in the long run become impossible to shove it under the rug in preference for traditional political values. The political groups to first articulate consistent biopolitical values will have a good chance of setting the agenda of tomorrow. Hence it is in the interest of all political groups (and for the overall democratic discourse on technology) to try to formulate biopolitics.

Whether that will happen before or after the grown-up designer babies are of voting age is another matter.