Thinking About Public Bioethics

April 15, 2010

We all have a stake in how public bioethical debate is structured. Indeed, it may be that we should care more about how it is structured than about what is decided on any given occasion. The conversation and the arguments never reach a definitive end. But a public conversation that leaves policy making to elected officials who can be held accountable, a conversation that is designed to focus, not just on means, but also on the ends or goals of biotechnological advance provides all citizens an opportunity to reflect upon who we are as a people and how we may best structure our common life on matters of great moral significance. (GEN)