Letter to the Editor: Popsicle Politics

Both "Breeder Reaction" and "Souls on Ice" begin to tackle the profound issues and difficult questions raised by new human biotechnologies: How do we take reproductive and genetic technologies out of the free-market realm of anything-goes-for-those-who-can-pay, while making sure that we protect reproductive rights? How do we reap the potential benefits of human biotech, while making sure that we're not on the road either to a brave new world of designer babies or to ever greater health inequities because of hugely expensive designer medicine?

A number of countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom, have put in place comprehensive policies to regulate assisted reproduction and research that involves human embryos. But not the United States—here again, we're a Wild West, with scant public oversight.