Imagine how much further along stem cell research would be if our luddite president had not vetoed stem cell research.
Stem cells made from human embryos can home in on damaged eyes, hearts and arteries of mice and rats, and appear to start repairs, a US company says.
Massachusetts-based Advanced Cell Technology said it had devised a straightforward way to make blood vessel precursor cells out of the stem cells and plans to test them in humans.
Way to choose your words carefully, Oliver.
Bush didn’t “veto stem cell research”, he vetoed the use of federal monies to pay for stem cell research.
According to your linked story, stem cell research using cells from embryos is still going on very strong.
Get your facts straight before you write and use words that reflect the truth. To not do so is to lie.
This dance has already been done on this blog multiple times, so I won’t go into it again. Suffice it to say that Bush’s veto of federal money for stem cell research has had, and continues to have, a huge impact on progress in the field (for one, no University receiving federal funds can use them on equipment that might be used to also do stem cell research, even if it’s something as simple as a centrifuge). What’s more, by pushing stem cell research almost exclusively into the private sector, he is virtually guaranteeing that any treatments developed become the property of private enterprise rather than the public, giving rise to the very real possibility that we may cure something like blindness, but only for the well heeled or those increasingly elusive animals, the well insured.
Oliver may be over dramatizing the situation by elevating Bush’s veto to the point where it sounds like he actually stopped the research, but by draining the well of federal funds, the damage done to the public interest may be indistinguishable.
BTW, the linked article never says that stem cell research is “going on very strong.” It merely states that private enterprise is not affected by Bush’s veto and so is able to continue using embryonic stem cells.
Use words that reflect the truth, Phil.
You wrote the rest…
Bill, give it a rest. I am so sick and tired of people whining about federal dollars not being used for stem cell research. Nationwide, those who support funding for stem cell research probably have a net worth in the hundreds of billions. They could easily raise the money.
Why don’t all of these people get their checkbooks out and start sending money to research labs? It never ceases to amaze me how liberals think which is that nothing can happen unless the money is coming from the taxpayer wallet. Where I live and work, in Volusia and Flagler county Florida, 1 in every 11 people is a millionaire (unfortunately, I am not one of them). 1 in every 128 people is worth $5 million or more. Both Volusia and Flagler went Democrat in 2004 and 2000. With that many millionaires in the two counties, a lot of money could be raised for stem cell research.
If the need is so pressing, get off your asses, get away from the Xbox, the PC and the TV, contact these research labs and find out what you need to do in order to raise money for them. Get involved and do some work or shut up about it already.