Re: Animal Research
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BF,
The important thing is that its very possible and imaginable for conditions where testing babies is feasible to exist.
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We're still waiting to hear some examples beyond 'suspension of disbelief'.
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My position is that if rat research is justified, baby research is justified for the same reasons. I've said why I think this. Its your job to say where you disagree and why.
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You may have missed this so I will repeat my earlier response: Research is done on humans all the time as clinical trials. Why are you focusing on early developed humans ("babies")? Is there some reason you think "babies" are useful for research?
Basically, you are comparing research on developed rats vs undeveloped humans ("babies"). Why? Research is generally not performed on undeveloped rats ("baby rats") so the comparison is odd, to me. And as I indicated above, research is done on humans. So I just don't see your argument or it's point.
But I accept that you are not being argumentative for the sake of it [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
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Of course research is performed on baby rats, probably moreso than on adult rats. We genetically engineer knockout mice and rats all the time, and they aren't even babies yet.
Also, there is no comparison between this type of experimentation and the human testing we do. We do not subject humans to anything that is likely to be unpleasant unless it is demonstrated to also be very likely to save their lives or greatly improve quality of life. Knockout mice >>>> Phase III clinical trial, in terms of suffering.
That being said, I have little problem with testing on rats, mice, flies, yeast and so on, and the answer for this has been mentioned and should be obvious. I don't empathize with mice. This is a dangerous proposition if carried too far, however. Different people have larger or smaller 'spheres of empathy,' in that some empathize only with themselves, or their family, or their nationality, or their race, or their species, and so on. As the sphere gets bigger, behavior changes. It isn't too long ago that research was performed on other human beings because some weren't capable of empathizing with them. We all draw the line somewhere, and the vast majority of us draw it above rats. I draw it below primates, for example.
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