[REVIEW] End of Month Reviews #36 - December 2006 [spoilers]

[Dave Van Domelen]

In article <BAY106-F232781EA0A9E1ED221E47BCABB0 at phx.gbl>,
Saxon Brenton <saxonbrenton at hotmail.com> wrote:
>Academy of Super Heroes #75
>'Eyes Of Evil'  (Metropolis V)
>An Academy of Super-Heroes [ASH] series
>by Dave Van Domelen
[snip]
>     Meanwhile, cyborgs.  So, the Santari and consequently the Planetary
>Confederation of which the Santari is one of the two dominant political
>forces treat cyborgs as property (unless I've got the causal relationship
>around the wrong way).  Okay, that ties in with the Pranir organlegging
>operations, but that in turn suggests to me that there should be lots
>of cloning for spare parts, ala the Byrne-era Krypton, since we know
>that the Scytharian corporations have cloning abilities.  But that in
>turn would argue against a need for organlegging from Earth in the
>first place.  Dave, do the Santari have some something against organ
>replacements using cloned issue (whether as a minor social stigma or
>a full blown law equating cloned tissue as being as 'artificial' as
>cyborging?)  I've done a google search but can't seem to find anything.
>And running off on a tangent, it also occurs to me that underhanded
>political shenanigans involving involuntary cyborging give the
>Scytharians an overtone of Baron Kaza's body banks...

     No, I never really addressed the cloning loophole.  It's likely that the
process used for cloning can create viable tissue, but also runs afoul of the
donor rejection problem Santari have.  In other words, even clones of your
own tissue get tweaked in some minor way that causes your immune system to
attack them.
     Alternately, the ultra-rich may be able to afford to keep growing spare
parts, but short of a Clonus: the Parts Horror situation where you clone
entire people, you can only keep a cloned part on the shelf for so long.
Meanwhile, Terran parts work for anyone, and are generally available on short
notice.  If you know you'll need a new kidney in a year, you can grow one.
If your kidney suddenly failed, you don't have time, and it's either
artificials or organleggers.

     Dave Van Domelen, wonders if the real purpose of the Vivarium is to
develop rapid-grow cloning techniques that can then be marketed in the PC....