[ WP ] In the near future , any hereditary disease can be cured before birth . Scientists have just discovered Sin is a genetic disease .

“ Personally, I ’ m still surprised the church is opposed, ” said Dr. Abbot in an off hand manner that seemed distracted. 
 
 “ The Catholic Church feels that removing the temptation of sin will destroy any possibility of redemption, ” an old black man with white hair wrapped around the sides of his head said. “ Redemption is only- ” 
 
 A sharp snicker sliced the sentence from his mouth. “ Don ’ t be naïve Dr. Thurman. ” The remark caught the father off guard and he turned his head towards the speaker, The “ Honorable ” Mr. Leonard. “ Just because they sent you here as their representative doesn ’ t mean you have to be their puppet. ” His thin rimmed glasses hung low on the man ’ s long nose and the pretentious look he gave over them would rival any. 
 
 Father Thurman let out a long sigh before he responded, “ I do not take kindly to that accusation Mr. Leonard. I am here, the same as you. We have a decision to make and it will not be made, by slanderous statements. The Lord has- ” 
 
 “ That would be where we differ Dr. Thurman. I don ’ t think there is a decision to be made. We have the chance here to eliminate sin! Not just the fluffy kind that gets children a slap on the wrist but real sin that makes men steal from grandmothers and rape children and serial killers! We can get rid of serial killers. What kind of decision is there to make, ” he asked with animation. 
 
 “ Please restrain your comments congressmen, ” Dr. Abbot interjected. 
 
 “ No. I can tolerate people making life choices based on religion and living their own lives. Whatever. But this is inexcusable. You want to hold on to the evils of the world just so you and your church can keep your grip on the lives of the weak minded. You all want you big slice of power and you ’ ll be damned if we stop your flow of pilgrims and donations for- ” 
 
 “ Congressman, ” She shouted. “ That is quite enough. ” He relaxed, tapping a pen lightly on the table in front of him, pouting like a scolded child. No one spoke for some time. The twelfth hour of the ninth day of the hearings had long since passed, and no decision had been made. 
 
 Dr. Whalen, a short, thin man with short black hair and a round face stood up from his seat. With the full attention of the room, he walked over to the ravaged catering table and poured himself another cup of coffee. 
 
 “ I would advise against another cup, Julius. I imagine everyone in this room is nearing the lethal dosage of caffeine, ” said one of the members, eliciting a small chuckle from the rest. 
 
 Dr. Whalen spoke with ease from behind his steaming mug. “ So the consensus, I believe, is four in favor, four opposed, and one undecided. Am I correct? ” 
 
 “ Twenty-seven votes Dr. Whalen, do you really need to ask that, ” said Mr. Leonard. 
 
 “ No, but I did. Father Thurman is, of course, opposed on religious grounds. Dr. Lee fears the psychological implications. And Mr. Cook and Dr. Goodman are opposed on economic reasons. ” 
 
 “ Please Doctor. You sell our reasoning short, ” Mr. Cook responded. “ This decision could and would eliminate 450 million jobs globally. No more sin means no more crime which means no more police. No more security guards. No more crime means no more knife and gun wounds so hospitals become ghost towns. No more crime means no more lawyers and judges. These skills are not transferable. Then there are the millions of people who will stop pushing the bounds of the stock market and investment if they are not pushed by greed. Investment plummets. Growth stagnates and the future of our global economy is uncertain. ” 
 
 Mr. Leonard stood up from his seat and cursed under his breath. After a few paces behind his seat, “ These people won ’ t be unemployed tomorrow. It will take fifty years, by the doctor ’ best estimations, to implement this technology globally. We can fade down these professions. There won ’ t be any soup lines of doctors, nurses, and cops. ” 
 
 “ I represent these people- ” 
 
 “ You represent no one. We here represent ALL of humanity. ” Mr. Leonard stormed out of the conference room and his last shout echoed through the corridor, “ Look at the greater good you closed minded fools! ” Dr. Lee visibly shuttered in her seat. The only noise now was Dr. Whalen sipping on his coffee. 
 
 Silence, like this, is one of the hardest things in the world to describe because one is, in effect, describing nothing. This quiet wasn ’ t awkward since no one felt compelled to fill it out of some social necessity. It wasn ’ t enlightening because after nine days of rigorous debate, not one mind in this room was near conceding to the other side. Even God himself would convince the good father. It wasn ’ t romantic, there was enough hatred and anger swimming around in this room to boil a dozen eggs. The silence wasn ’ t serene, not in the least. Perhaps this was just regular plain old silence, the kind that comes when words have exhausted themselves. 
 
 Dr. Whalen spoke at last, “ He is right. As much as he has been wrong, he is right. This project is my only child. Dr. Abbot and I have been working on it since the 90 ’ s. We thought we would change the world. We had grand fantasies of peace, and compassion between man. Maybe one day. I see this is not as simple as eliminating sin, we first have to defeat it. ” 
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 Comments/critiques/suggestions welcome 

