Peter A. Brown

About the author: Peter A. Brown is an editorial page columnist for the Orlando Sentinel.

In November 2001, President George W. Bush called for a ban on research into human cloning. Such opposition to cloning research is based mostly on a belief that reproductive cloning is morally wrong. However, scientists are years away from being able to clone cells that will mature into a viable baby. Instead, cloning research is likely to first yield ways of cloning cells and growing them into specific organs, such as a heart or kidney, rather than living persons. Cloning research should not be banned because of far-fetched scenarios; instead it should be pursued because it could alleviate the organ shortage and save countless lives.

Everyone from President Bush to the pope is...