A Nobel Peace Prize Modeled After Henry Ford's Assembly Line

A Nobel Prize has been awarded to Robert Edwards, who is known as the father of the test-tube baby, and the inventor of in-vitro-fertilization (IVF). His Nobel prize was awarded for Physiology or Medicine for his IVF work.

What exactly is IVF, and why is there a controversy over the awarding of this Nobel Prize? Starting at the beginning; in-vitro-fertilization is literally fertilization in a glass. Why? Because the uniting of the sperm and egg is done in a petri dish. The sperm is most often obtained from masturbation; while obtaining the egg is more complex. Medicine can use powerful drugs to hyper-stimulate the ovaries, so that multiple eggs can be produced for harvesting. After fertilization, in the dish, the embryos are grown, checked for defects and often screened for sex and physical characteristics. The participants in IVF then choose, how many embryos to implant in the woman's uterus. Another technique for reproductive success is to implant an embryo or embryos, in a surrogate's womb. Henry Ford, the inventor of the assembly line for the Model T, would be proud. Now comes another dilemma. The embryos who appear normal are usually frozen for later use; although the participant may choose to discard any unused embryos.

To think that this technique of IVF is making dollars for clinics. I'm sure none of these dollars are being spent if there are complications for the woman; and there are complications. These complications go far deeper than mere physical. With IVF we have turned human beings into mere market products. Where's the natural process here, and how does that affect the woman's female physiology? It's all technology.

And what about the risks? IVF pregnancies carry a higher risk of ectopic pregnancies, as well as gestational diabetes for the mother, high blood pressure and bleeding, not to mention the severe health risks to the babies. More importantly, during the process, the parents are repeatedly put in the position of consenting to the death of one or more of their children because of an embryo who may have a defect or the wrong sex, or simply perceived as "superfluous".

Now, our society has awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize to Robert Edwards, inventor of the IVF. Commenting on the prize, Bishop Ignacio Carrasco de Paula, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, said, "Without Edwards, there would be no market for human eggs; without Edwards, there would not be freezers full of embryos waiting to be transferred to a uterus, or more likely; used for research or left to die, abandoned and forgotten about by all." This is another example of medical science taking advantage of the heartbreak of humanity, by pitting the rights of the infertile parent against the rights of the child. Cardinal Antonellie, speaking on the Church's position on IVF stated, "The rights of a child dictates that a person cannot be produced, acquired and owned as an object for ones own self gratification".

Reasons why the Nobel Prize should not have been awarded, says Monsignor Ignacio Barreiro-Carambula who said, "The scientist is regarded as a hero, but what he has really done is to create a market for manufactured humanity. This is not a gift to humanity; it is a death sentence to millions of tiny human beings, who are created only to be destroyed. Edwards' supposed great accomplishment has also created a means for the ultra-rich to tamper with every genetic aspect of the person, creating designer human beings." Brings to mind Henry Ford, who created an assembly line for his designer Model T car. This is a Nobel Peace Prize on a par with Al Gore and his desire to save the environment by eliminating humanity.