THE ROUTE TO A 'PERFECT' SOCIETY
- Mar 23, 2016
- 2 min read
Diversity. I love diversty in citizenry. I can sit on a bench and watch people for hours. It is fascinating to see how many different kind of people there are. And the most engrossing thing is that no one is perfect. And in my eyes, despite technology, no one ever will be perfect. Well, at least not objectively. Because, what is perfect?
The EO is broadcasting a serie called De Laatse Downer (the last downer) and in this serie two people with the down syndrome are investigating their insecure future regarding work and independence. I now have watched two episodes and found it very confronting. Technology made it possible to trace if a woman is pregnant from a child carrying the down syndrome with the NIPT. Which is amazing, right? That means that there will be a lot less or even no children born with this deviation. But can we call it a deviation? It basically means different than normal. But than again, what is normal? Does that matter if they are happy? It was especially confronting because Sjoerd and Eveline, the two people asking questions in this serie about people with down in society, are touched by the answers on their questions: ''Would you given birth to me if you knew I was going to be like this?''. Besides, they experience new development as the extermination of 'their people'. This moment made me realize that this new technology is one big ethical issue. And that we should not forget that despite the benefits, this is a group of approximately 27.000 people we are talking about. From whom are a lot happy and healthy regarding the new definition of health .
I must say, that there are a lot of factors that do benefit from technologies like the NIPT. The serie also shows that healthcare costs for people with Down are significantly higher than for healthy people. It also shows how hard it can be to take care for such children and how it effects the life of the parents. Even though they love their children to death, this has not been their choice. But, correct me if I'm wrong, isn't that the case with all ill people? So if the NIPT is only the start, than where are we going? Will we be able to prevent all sorts of diseases before birth, and if we can, what are the consequences? Is this the route to a 'perfect' society?
One thing is for sure, De Laatste Downer provides food for thought.
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