4.19.2006

The New Chinese Export

Econo-Girl listened with horror as she heard a news program on the BBC report about the latest Chinese export: human organs. I actually turned off the radio at the point.

Of course, they have a lot of people to spare over there. Econo-Girl guesses that's the rationale behind this behaviour. It's disgusting. Imagine the desparate people who are doing to selling. This is their entry into capitalism?

Econo-Girl points to situations like these when she says that unfettered capitalism is wrong. Organ selling is wrong. People should not be allowed to cut out a piece of themselves and sell it, pressed by poverty and possibly their families. It's gross.

9 comments:

The Lazy Iguana said...

Who said they were willing sellers? Amnesty International has for a long time maintained that people in Chinese jails are often converted into spare parts for other people. The LAST THING you want to find out if you are in a Chinese jail is that your liver is a good match for the President's liver.

The Lazy Iguana said...

And we do business with them because our version of capitalism NEEDS cheap labor to exploit.

When we look at China, we are really looking in a fun house mirror. The reflection is of us, but it is distorted.

Nothing will change. Washington will not place too many demands on China, and China will continue to ignore any US demands without having to worry about any action being taken against them.

Anonymous said...

Actually a lot of these organs are sourced from unwilling donors in chinese prisons. There has been news recently that they are mostly selecting imprisoned Falun Gong practitioners for this.

NotPhil said...

It's not just going on in China, people are selling their "spare" organs throughout the Third World.

Look up "human organ trafficking" in a Web search engine. It's appalling.

And there are economists who say this is a good thing. I think economists need to start thinking about people instead of thinking with their spreadsheets.

Anonymous said...

Person A has no money, and two good kidneys. Person B has lots of money, and zero good kidneys. What exactly is the problem with person A selling one of their kidneys to person B?

There are obvious problems if people are forced to sell their organs, but that isn't a reason to illegalise the consensual selling of human organs. It's roughly equivalent to illegalising sex simply because rape exists.

Anonymous said...

We have a ' body ' exibit in the mosi museum in Tampa. Abandoned bodies from China. I have nothing against voluntary donating of bodies. It is educational. Those persons did not give consent. So, that was okay and so now with the organ sales. What is next?

Anonymous said...

You guys are naive if you think this is limited to chinese prisons. It is done right here in the USA - Lexington Federal Medical Facility outside hospital (Chandler Medical Center) recently took my friend's brain without his or my permission after they tortured him.

Econo girl, this is Wrong too and like you, I am not afraid to speak out against Wrongful Conduct in our Government.

http://journals.aol.com/janerothman/FMCLexington-USATortureChamber/

NotPhil said...

The problem is that people are not products, and the term "human resourses" is not meant to be taken literally.

Economies are supposed to benefit people, not drive them to mutilate themselves so they can eat for a few more months.

Anonymous said...

Sure economies should not drive people to mutilate themselves for money but people should have the right to sell organs if they want.

Its just that ideally they would not ever have to consider that option.

But a lot of the organ sales from china are not voluntary. They are forced donations from prison inamtes. That is much much worse than a person exercising their right to do what they choose with their body. It is forced and it is wrong.