Editorial: Ethics Of Cloning: From a dog's ear

Images of a cute, cloned Afghan hound puppy named Snuppy hit the news wires Tuesday to coos from dog lovers and wows from scientists.

Yes, it's impressive what can be done with cells scraped from a dog's ear and empty egg (which is how Snuppy came to be in Seoul), but there's a danger of looking away from the messy, ethical questions tied to this whiz-bang world of research. How far will we really go?

As researchers close the cloning gap between mice and men in the name of stem cell research, it's important to keep what possibility lies at the end of this road in mind: cloning humans. Whole ones, not just the bits of tissue and sinew required to treat or prevent such diseases as diabetes or neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson's. Suddenly, the premises of sci-fi flicks such as "The Island" -- which focuses on the plight of cloned beings -- seem more sci, less fi. So how will we, as a world community, regulate this sort of research without hindering it for the wrong reasons?

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