National Academy of Sciences Meeting Dubbed a “Circus”
WASHINGTON, Aug 8, 2001 (LSN.ca) – Dr. Severino Antinori, one of the pro-cloning participants in yesterday’s cloning debate before a panel of the National Academy of Sciences, has called Pope John Paul “criminal” for his opposition to human cloning. One of the witnesses at the cloning debate called the meeting a “circus” after the media followed Antinori’s every move. The Telegraph relates that the media raced after him as he left the meeting at one point but “It turned out he was going to the lavatory, from which he emerged after a few minutes to give an impromptu press conference.”
The circus-like atmosphere was enhanced by the presence of cloning advocate Brigitte Boisselier, a former chemistry professor who is attempting to clone humans for a Canadian-based cult called the Raelians. The cult claims humans were genetically manufactured by aliens and is popular due to its permissive and organized sexual encounters. Boisselier claimed her group had carried out the first stage of human cloning – transferring human genetic material into an empty ovum and allowing it to develop into an early embryo.
During his post-lavatory press conference Antinori said if a “law against cloning is approved, it would be a return to the Dark Ages.” In a tirade against his chosen enemies he said: “The Pope is screaming at me. He wants to avoid the condom and IVF. Nobody announced the criminal when President Bush met in Rome the Pope. Vatican is behind the Bush, Vatican is criminal.”
Antinori’s partner, Prof Panos Zavos, who runs a Kentucky fertility clinic, described infertility as a “disease”.
See related coverage: https://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1477000/1477476.stm https://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/08/08/wclon08.xml&sSheet=/news/2001/08/08/ixhomer.html https://english.hk.dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/technology/afp/article.html?s=hke/headlines/010808/technology/afp/Cloning_labs_already_in_place_and_set_for_human_experiments__Zavos.html