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April 21, 2005
Keep an eye on the UK
By Anders Sandberg
Readers of my weekly column on The Pulse might have noticed that I have done a lot of references to reports and studies done in the United Kingdom. Why so many stories about the UK?
Besides the fact that I like the BMJ, I think it is because the UK has one of the more active and vibrant bioethical debates. In most other EU countries the debate is largely dead- people are stuck in an imagined consensus and nobody can rock the boat. There might be debates, but they are traditional trench warfare between groups with fixed positions. There are few new ideas thrown around. The UK seems to have more dynamics in the biopolitical debate, and that is a good sign since it can be exported. "Look what the British are thinking!" is of course a bit like the catch-phrase "The Japanese are doing it" of the 80's, but if it works to get a more dynamic bioethical debate going I'm all for it.
Posted by Waldemar at April 21, 2005 09:00 PM