Andrea Bonnicksen's contribution (1994) to the political debate on human germ-line gene therapy contains important words of caution against over­hasty, worldwide, anticipatory regulation of this still­futuristic practice and argues persuasively that individual nations provide a more appropria te forum for debate and regulation at the present time. However, some will probably wonder whether germ-line therapy is a debatable issue at all. While many ethicists have seized upon the tapie of germ-line therapy as a fascinating opportunity. to discuss basic ethical problems, such as our responsibility for the genetic health.offuture gener­ations, scientific opinion remains deeply divided as to its prospects as a workable therapeutic approach even in the remote future.