He Just Doesn't Get It!
President George W. Bush demonstrated his ignorance of and disdain for science, and his apathy for those who suffer from incurable disease and injury today. He vetoed a bill that would provide federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. All the more frustrating is his reasoning for doing so. I'll get to that in a bit, but first a bit of background on stem cell science.
In the stem cell debate, you will hear opponents of embryonic stem research claim that we "have enough adult stem cells to work with," or that "I only support adult stem cell research and not embryonic stem cell research." So let's sort that out first.
There is a difference between Adult Stem Cells (ASCs) and Embryonic Stem Cells (ESCs)
Adult Stem Cells: When you have an injury, Adult Stem Cells work to create new tissue. They are in your skin, organs, etc. They can grow to become new tissue, but only in the same environment that they exist. Adult stem cells are generally limited to differentiating into different cell types of their tissue of origin. A great deal of work needs to be done to expand their therapeutic utility.
Embryonic Stem Cells: Embryonic Stem Cells can become any tissue. We've already been able to demonstrate this unique ability unlike with adult stem cells so far less work is necessary to expand their therapeutic utility. Embryonic Stem Cells created our skin, liver, spleen, etc. They are not as limited as ASCs. That is why they hold such promise.
ESCs come from material collected at fertility clincs. The stem cells are derived from blastocysts. They can them be used in stem cell research. If not, the embryos in the fertility clinic will be disarded in a medical waste facility. Which leads me to President Bush's reasoning for vetoing the embryonic stem cell funding bill.
President Bush said, "This bill would support the taking of innocent human life of the hope of finding medical benefits for others. It crosses a moral boundary that our society needs to respect, so I vetoed it."
Let me break it down for you Mr. President.
These embryos are going to be discarded. They will be thrown away. You are not saving anything. You are only standing in the way of scientists who are trying to find a cure for Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimer's Disease, and Juvenile Diabetes. You are playing politics with people's lives so you can curry favor with the James Dobsons and Pat Robertsons of the world. Your ignorance is delaying finding potential cures to debilitating diseases.
Hope you are happy, Mr. President. But I'll bet your science teachers are very embarrassed.
In the stem cell debate, you will hear opponents of embryonic stem research claim that we "have enough adult stem cells to work with," or that "I only support adult stem cell research and not embryonic stem cell research." So let's sort that out first.
There is a difference between Adult Stem Cells (ASCs) and Embryonic Stem Cells (ESCs)
Adult Stem Cells: When you have an injury, Adult Stem Cells work to create new tissue. They are in your skin, organs, etc. They can grow to become new tissue, but only in the same environment that they exist. Adult stem cells are generally limited to differentiating into different cell types of their tissue of origin. A great deal of work needs to be done to expand their therapeutic utility.
Embryonic Stem Cells: Embryonic Stem Cells can become any tissue. We've already been able to demonstrate this unique ability unlike with adult stem cells so far less work is necessary to expand their therapeutic utility. Embryonic Stem Cells created our skin, liver, spleen, etc. They are not as limited as ASCs. That is why they hold such promise.
ESCs come from material collected at fertility clincs. The stem cells are derived from blastocysts. They can them be used in stem cell research. If not, the embryos in the fertility clinic will be disarded in a medical waste facility. Which leads me to President Bush's reasoning for vetoing the embryonic stem cell funding bill.
President Bush said, "This bill would support the taking of innocent human life of the hope of finding medical benefits for others. It crosses a moral boundary that our society needs to respect, so I vetoed it."
Let me break it down for you Mr. President.
These embryos are going to be discarded. They will be thrown away. You are not saving anything. You are only standing in the way of scientists who are trying to find a cure for Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimer's Disease, and Juvenile Diabetes. You are playing politics with people's lives so you can curry favor with the James Dobsons and Pat Robertsons of the world. Your ignorance is delaying finding potential cures to debilitating diseases.
Hope you are happy, Mr. President. But I'll bet your science teachers are very embarrassed.
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