Virginia Postrel covers the current state of the cloning debate in a nutshell. I don't think this Raelian thing has helped the pro-cloning side.


Maybe this will be the only way to bring the birthrate in some developed countries back up to maintenance levels, but it's pretty sad that these children would be born into homes as weird and self-obsessed as these people appear to be.


The kids are supposed to be the ticket to eternal life for the true believers, but I wonder how they'll be treated when it becomes obvious that they are not the same people as their parent/twins or that they are not perfect, but subject to premature aging, as is Dolly the sheep, or some other defect that isn't immediately apparent. It's not like you could perform post-partum abortions. If aliens are behind this thing, it would be a good idea for them to speak to the U.N. before their disciples are rounded up and institutionalized. More likely, though, we'll be treated to another Heaven's Gate type fiasco.