Rescue Me: The Moral and Ethical Problems of

Creating Savior Siblings

Jennifer Lahl

LifeNews.com

August 8, 2008

Creating savior siblings has been a burning topic in society. In the

article entitled “Rescue Me: The Moral and Ethical Problems of Creating
Savior Siblings”, (published in LifeNews.com on August 8, 2008), the
author Jennifer Lahl - the founder and national director of the Center for
Bioethics and Culture Network – discusses ethical issues when creating
savior siblings. This essay is a response to Ms. Jennifer argument about
these ethical issues which she considered as serious in society.

In her article “Rescue Me: The Moral and Ethical Problems of

Creating Savior Siblings”, author Jennifer Lahl discusses the ethical
issues of creating savior siblings. The author addresses this problem by
presenting the situation in the best-selling novel: the tension in a family
and the conflict when the child knows his birth purpose. Behind this
situation is the real-life story of a child with anemia "Diamond Blackfan
(DBA)". The author raises a moral issue from the fact that the girl's
parents gave birth to another child to save her by medical intervention but
failed. Jennifer ended the article by mentioning the program to build a
National Cord Blood Stem Cell Bank - an opportunity to help patients
who really need it in the future.

The author of the article, Ms. Jennifer Lahl, is the the founder and
national director of the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network. In
addition, the article is published in LifeNews.com, an American-
independent pro-life news outlet with a team of experienced writers.
These two facts can make us feel more comfortable in receiving
information provided in the article.  
 The specific situation in a best-selling novel by famous writer Jodi
Picoult and behind it is a real-life story given by the author in the article.
These information may be the most reliable evidence to support the
author's argument about the ethical issues of creating savior siblings. Her
mention of a program to build a National Cord Blood Stem Cell Bank is
illustrated by figures: only about 3% of babies born in the U.S. have their
cord blood banked and the majority of this is banking is private. It is
almost a solution to help patients who really need it in the future and that
won't affect ethics. This is a good solution though I believe that it might
be not always feasible because the issue of stem cell laws in each country
is different and there are also many controversial issues related to this
law.

The language used in the article is formal. The author does not use
any specific jargons and technical terms which might hinder the audience
from understanding her points. Some conceptions being used are fully
explained and some examples are provided. Clear formal language and
simple style make the ideas in the article straightforward. All in all,
audience may find it fascinating to read this.

In conclusion, Jennifer Lahl in her article highlights the ethical issues

when creating savior siblings. This article may attract wide audience as it
discusses one of the burning issues in society – ethical issues with the
specific situation and real-life story. Her mention of the possible solution
to these issues, however, is still controversial.