Moral repugnance, moral distress, and organ sales. 2015

James Stacey Taylor
The College of New Jersey, Ewing Township, New Jersey, USA jtaylor@tcnj.edu.

Many still oppose legalizing markets in human organs on the grounds that they are morally repugnant. I will argue in this paper that the repugnance felt by some persons towards sales of human organs is insufficient to justify their prohibition. Yet this rejection of the view that markets in human organs should be prohibited because some persons find them to be morally repugnant does not imply that persons' feelings of distress at the possibility of organ sales are irrational. Eduardo Rivera-Lopez argues that such instinctive distress is an appropriate response to the (rationally defensible) perception that certain kinds of arguments that are offered in favor of legalizing organ sales are "in an important sense, illegitimate." Having argued that repugnance should not ground the prohibition of markets in human organs, I will also argue that the moral distress that some feel towards certain arguments that favor such markets is not rationally defensible, either.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D009014 Morals Standards of conduct that distinguish right from wrong. Morality
D009927 Tissue and Organ Procurement The administrative procedures involved with acquiring TISSUES or organs for TRANSPLANTATION through various programs, systems, or organizations. These procedures include obtaining consent from TISSUE DONORS and arranging for transportation of donated tissues and organs, after TISSUE HARVESTING, to HOSPITALS for processing and transplantation. Organ Procurement,Organ Procurement Systems,Organ Shortage,Tissue Procurement,Tissue Shortage,Donor Cards,Organ Donation,Required Organ Donation Request,Required Request,Tissue Donation,Donor Card,Organ Donations,Organ Procurement System,Organ Procurements,Required Requests,Shortage, Tissue,Tissue Donations,Tissue Procurements,Tissue Shortages
D003132 Commerce The interchange of goods or commodities, especially on a large scale, between different countries or between populations within the same country. It includes trade (the buying, selling, or exchanging of commodities, whether wholesale or retail) and business (the purchase and sale of goods to make a profit). (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed, p411, p2005 & p283) Business,Commercial Sector,Prices,Sales,Vendors,Businesses,Commerces,Commercial Sectors,Price,Sale,Sector, Commercial,Sectors, Commercial,Vendor
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D013997 Time Factors Elements of limited time intervals, contributing to particular results or situations. Time Series,Factor, Time,Time Factor
D018864 Cultural Diversity Coexistence of numerous distinct ethnic, racial, religious, or cultural groups within one social unit, organization, or population. (From American Heritage Dictionary, 2d college ed., 1982, p955) Multiculturalism,Pluralism,Cultural Pluralism,Cultural Diversities,Diversities, Cultural,Diversity, Cultural,Multiculturalisms,Pluralism, Cultural,Pluralisms
D019520 Living Donors Non-cadaveric providers of organs for transplant to related or non-related recipients. Donors, Living,Donor, Living,Living Donor
D026684 Personal Autonomy Self-directing freedom and especially moral independence. An ethical principle holds that the autonomy of persons ought to be respected. (Bioethics Thesaurus) Autonomy, Personal,Free Will,Self Determination

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