This chapter begins with the discovery of human gene editing, and how the immediate ethical response used the existing weakened barriers. The chapter then turns to a detailed analysis of how an influential report by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine advocated taking down the somatic/germline barrier. The replacement barrier proposed by the National Academies is deemed unstable, and in its place this chapter describes a strong barrier located at the median trait in a population. That is, people could modify their children to take them up to the median value on any trait but not above the median. This would satisfy the dominant contemporary value of justice or fairness, which would require the genetically disadvantaged to overcome their disadvantage, but not allow anyone to use genetics to gain advantage over others.
Is Enhancement the Price of Prevention in Human Gene Editing?
