As I recall Californians voted to incur billions of dollars of additional debt to finance the quack claims of yet more fraudulent researchers. They did so in response to this Korean researchers claims. Somebody said "Gee, gosh, unless we waste billions too, the Koreans will take over the entire field".
What has always confused me is...if embryonic stem cells are such an
obvious panacea...where's "big pharma" or all the venture capital that
floods into a "sure thing"?
I remember seeing a small article buried in the business section of
The Los Angeles Times in the spring. It was basically a CYA statement of
the interim director of the newly funded California embryonic stem cell
initiative.
The last act of this academician, as he returned to his university post,
was to basically inform the public that (in so many words)
"this stuff may not actually work".
(All I could read was a "thanks, suckers!" as the real message.)
But hey, maybe in a year or a decade, this will be the miracle cure.
However, some questionable machination were used to get us headed down
a path that might not be the most rewarding (e.g., compared to
endogenous stem cells).
here's a nice reference:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/140/33.0.html
Cloning Still Haunts California
Remember Prop. 71? Stem-cell research supporters hope voters don't remember the promises they made.
by Nigel M. de S. Cameron