Stem cell research is a vault of medical breakthroughs waiting to happen. At least it should be, except for the President?s ardent distaste for anything scientific, or more precisely, non-theologic.George W. Bush?s aversion to stem cell research, among many other beneficial techniques, is almost impeachable. He has made clear his reasons and they are all religious. There are no political, legal, social, cultural and certainly no medical reasons why his imposed ban on funding is justifiable.
He has resorted to near-fundamentalist religiosity, in a country whose constitution demands the separation of church and state, and despite most polls showing 60 to 80 percent of the American population disagreeing with him, he has declined to acknowledge any but the religious wing of his party.
Is that how a democracy ought to function, or a theocracy? Stem cells are fertilized eggs or other cells whose primary source is the waste bin of genetics laboratories. The choice is essentially whether to use the unused eggs and cells for research or to simply dispose of them.
These cells have the potential to develop into many different cell types, which could then be used to replenish or replace a body?s ailing cells. Variations of this technique have been in use for years. Bone marrow transplants are examples of the stem cells in a donor?s marrow replacing the blood cells of a victim of leukemia or other type of cancer, according to the Stem Cell Research Foundation. Only be wary of telling Bush because he might outlaw the procedure and have us become bleeding victims again.
Some of the specific illnesses which stem cells could be used to combat are Parkinson?s and Alzheimer?s diseases, spinal cord injury, stroke, burns, heart disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Conservatives have argued that stem cells have no use as of now and are therefore unworthy to pursue. With this they hope to interject upon the scientific method and prevent research from ever beginning. After all, every other medical advancement in history was born of divine intervention, without the nonsensical distraction of research, right?
The bans on stem cell research have actually forced many of our finest scientists and doctors to embark to the radical left-wing countries which do allow it.
Notably all of them — Japan, South Korea and western Europe — are the hottest spots in biotechnology right now. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of California, New York, or Texas. However, the United States still leads the world in funding, researching and building nuclear weaponry, chemical warfare agents and biological munitions, just in case we care to dabble in genocide or want to eradicate the earth?s population any time soon.
Scientists, politicians and even states have joined the cause to reverse the Bush administration?s policies. This past summer, 58 senators, including 14 republicans, sent a letter to President Bush asking him to expand his limitations on research. Nothing happened.
In November, Californians will vote on whether to borrow $3 billion in order to fund stem cell research in their laboratories and universities. They are hoping to challenge federal regulations in the same way medicinal marijuana, gay marriage, and the importation of prescription drugs have caused tension between states? rights and federal rights.
Strangely enough, the party of states? rights have been on the federal side of all issues. It sometimes seems as though the Republicans want to force every state, specifically the ones in the northeast and along the west coast, to look and act like Alabama. Scientists too have protested.
Dozens of extensive petitions have circulated through prominent universities and laboratories, including one which was signed and supported by 48 Nobel Laureates and 62 National Medal of Science recipients, among 5,000 other researchers, and presented by the Union of Concerned Scientists. They posed the relevant question to the president and the press, “What?s next: the Earth is flat?”
This administration?s hatred of science, whether medical, environmental, energy related, or educational (evolution?s out, the Bible?s in) is reason enough to vote Bush out. Science fuels the future prosperity of a nation, works to improve its weaknesses and remedies its sick. The president?s hatred of inquiry is his most dangerous trait.
When he sat for seven minutes before a classroom of children on 9/11, I worried more over his lack of curiosity than anything else. I cannot imagine anyone not desiring to learn everything possible upon hearing our nation is under attack; his uninquisitive reaction was disheartening.
John Kerry has already vowed to reverse the Bush doctrine of religion over science on all issues, including stem cell research. We cannot choose regression to medieval perceptions of the world as a model of policy; posterity begs us to evolve.
Bill Casto is a senior studying Literature with a minor in History.