Abstract

There is no greater paradox in bioethics than its tendency to constantly rediscover, in every conceivable venue, that the only way to honor and preserve the dignity and freedom of huddled, exploited masses is to trim away their decisional authority and appoint panels of well-educated, rational thinkers (such as bioethicists) to lay down the reasonable options for them. Bioethics cannot claim to be the first field to impugn the rationality of the oppressed as a means of upholding their dignity. But it certainly has claims on bringing this process toward its ultimate perfection.