apegripe

A rather intriguing conundrum was brought to my attention today, and I must admit I’m still a tad on the fence about the whole issue.

A co-worker of mine found out recently that she has signs of MS surfacing in her central nervous system. Naturally, she went online to find out as much as she could about the disease in an effort to ensure both her mental and physical stability. Apparently, the MS Foundation of North America was just approved for federal aid to build and run research and testing facilities in hopes of finding a cure.

And here’s where the issue at hand arises…

Most research facilities that focus on neurological testing involve primates, primarily because apes and monkeys share genetic traits and DNA that is nearly identical to that of human beings. And, as a result, this means that the MS Foundation of North America was just approved to join the anti-PETA cause… subconsciously of course. So she asked me, point blank, what my thoughts were on the whole animal use in science thing. And I’d be lying if I came right out and said it was bad and this and that. I was speechless to be completely truthful. It’s a catch-22; I mean, no one wants to see their loved ones agonize, or even feel the pain and anxiety themselves, so of course they’d encourage and back any foundation or medical testing organization that is working diligently to find a way to stop such ailments in their tracks. And then there’s those on the other side of the fence that think using live animals under testing environments is cruel and inhumane… which it can be.

Sure, there are alternatives to testing. And yes, some of the experiments used on wildlife, such as non-human primates, has helped pave the way for HIV/AIDS research and cancer prevention. I don’t believe anyone can truly answer this question indefinitely. I wouldn’t say it’s on a case-by-case basis, nor would I concede to the idea that one side of the argument is completely right when compared to the other. And, if the situation faced me right here and now, who’s to say that I wouldn’t abandon my strong will for animal rights and want to do anything possible to save my loved one’s life… or even my own. I would like to think that it’s okay to assume that I’ll never be faced with such a complex situation, but remaining naive to the issue would harm me more than tailing onto an extremists’ debate of the topic.

I don’t want to totally come out with what I think, but if a non-animal form of research exists exclusively for MS, autism, cancer, etc. testing, I would most definitely be on the front line supporting and campaigning for it.

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