Letter: Genetics and the origin of human life
A child plays with DNA blocks. Credit: iStock
A letter writer stated, “The writer’s position that zygotes and humans are identical is cogent only if everyone is forced to accept her belief that sentient human life begins at conception” [“A false argument to oppose abortion,” March 3]. This is neither forthright nor believable.
The idea that there is sentient life in any living organism at conception is insulting and downright disingenuous. But the writer’s argument falls apart when she denies that the genetic makeup of a zygote and a human isn’t identical. Considering that a baby’s DNA is the same before and after birth, is she suggesting that it is OK to kill someone at age 60 even though his or her DNA was the same at birth?
John Savin, Massapequa
