Do we "own" our genes? I think so, but only up to a certain point. I don't want to sound crass, but would a prostitute "give" it away for free? I bring up prostitution because there is a reason it is known as the "world's oldest profession" and because I think as such it provides the greatest insight into the mindset I believe we have as a species when it comes to the services our bodies can supply. I can't stress that I'm not calling organ donors prostitutes (although if you sell your organs you kind of are) and that I'm not trying to insult any group I talk about below. At the end of the day, though, if you're talking about the rights to your fabric, I think the parallels emerge throughout the conversations. I liken tissue donation to sex because there is no state in the Union that we let others choose for a person they have intercourse with. You are the final arbiter of who gets to put what where (sexually speaking). Yes, there are still sodomy laws, but the point is that there is no law that says you have to sleep with Jenny on the block or Johnny the Mayor's son. And the jus primae noctis has existed for hundreds of years. So, if this is the case in our society, why should it be any different for textiles? Shouldn't you decide who gets your organs or your genes? As I see it, if we have rights to any of the routes by which we will pass on our genes or donate our organs, then we will have rights to all of the routes. Since there is already precedent in our culture (“My body is my choice!”) of autonomy regarding one's flesh, I don't see how a different argument can be made. That said, once you release your tissues and genes, I believe you will lose all rights to them from that point on. This might seem like the most obvious course of action when... middle of paper... anyone has the right to decide how to use the embryo, but the owners of the genetic material involved in its creation. Again, until the situation is different and we have a surplus of materials that we could use to further potentially life-saving research, the idea that we as a nation are not intentionally allowing the resource of materials to aid said research is criminal . No matter how much opponents want to marry the ESCR with abortion or pro-life debate, all they do is refuse to look at the reality in front of them. The potential good versus guaranteed nothing that comes from such stubbornness should alert all of us to the disservice we are doing ourselves through our representatives on this issue. It could save more tangible lives than we could imagine. It's definitely worth exploring when we get the opportunity.