The year 2003 is already in danger of getting off on the wrong foot, with the news that a group claims it’s created the first human clone. It was inevitable that somebody somewhere would do it, but that doesn’t make it any less disturbing.

The technology that allows scientists to create a human being who is a perfect genetic match to another has been radpidly developing, and some scientists on the fringe have been threatening to apply it to humans for months.

This week’s claim to the first human clone, by a company called Cloinaid, will be subject to verification to see if it’s true. If it is, it will mark a sad moment in human history.

Cloning, as much as any scientific advancement we’ve seen, holds the potential for abuse and unintended consequences. The chance for mutations in clones has been well documented. And the power to create humans is not something that belongs in our hands. It only takes one or two unstable groups or people &045; think Saddam Hussein or Adolf Hitler &045; to use the technology for all the wrong reasons and create disaster.

Which brings us to Clonaid. What’s particulary scary about their announcement is that the company has ties to a radical religous group that claims space aliens planted life on earth. That kind of doctrine, though it’s considered extreme, is relatively harmless, but if this group can get its hands on the power to clone humans, the technology could also fall into the hands of more dangerous groups with untold unethical applications in mind.

Unfortunately, now that the technology exists, there’s little that can be done to stop it from being used. Even if governments ban the practice, those who want to clone will find somewhere and some way to do it.

Tribune editorials represent the opinion of the newspaper’s management and editorial staff.