[close04]

There are so many things wrong with the conclusion that whoever can make more value from something is entitled to take it, especially when we're talking about a human being.

I'll tone down the analogy so we don't go into abject examples that would still perfectly fit your point. You probably don't create that much value from your house, land, car, etc. But companies still aren't entitled to take them from you simply because they can make more money from them. If you are not willing to give them up for free you're contradicting your own point.

There's the mistaken impression that this is a 0 sum game and for companies to win, Henrietta Lacks and her family have to lose, it's expected of them. Or that the profits have to be exclusively on the company's side.

[diamondlovesyou]

Privacy implications aside, we're actually not talking about a human being. We're talking about a(n) (abnormal) cluster of non-critical cells in a human. You and I shed millions of these (all-be-it normal) cells everyday, in the form of skin flakes and hair. Similar if your skin is pierced, causing a bleed. Semen if male, mucosal tissue if female (and possibly the egg), feces, urine, all contain human cells. This isn't robbery.

[UI_at_80x24]

Nobody is arguing that skin-cells that they picked-up off the floor is the same ballpark as a tissue sample that was taken in a biopsy, studied, and profited from.

This wasn't accidentally obtained. They stole a winning lottery ticket and didn't share the winnings.

[close04]

This is a very downplayed interpretation. During your whole life you will only use 2-3 of your sperm/egg cells "productively". The rest are literally thrown away, just like your shedding skin cells. Would you be OK with someone taking and using them for decades without you having a say?

There are 2 aspects here. One is about ethics and privacy, someone took and continues to use these cells with no restrictions, like saying it's OK to have a slave because it was legal when you bought it. What other things are perfectly normal to take because you have more?

The second is financial, you're expected to pay through your nose for using a 5s song snippet but use a piece of someone's body should only benefit the the ones who took it. Blood donors get paid and that's nowhere near as unique as this.

I've seen people rationalize the Tuskegee syphilis experiment (people get syphilis every day anyway). Were you in her place you'd expect more of everything. More rights, more respect, more privacy, more money, etc. And I don't see anyone trying to fix past mistakes.