Posted on 06/14/2008 7:46:06 AM PDT by Dr. Marten
“Yeah well most people dont think, of the remainder most dont
do it well. Thats as far as Im going to go with that quote.”
Perhaps this is the quote you reference:
“Most people would rather die than think; in fact, they do so”.
——Bertrand Russell
Swords and spears are so passé you know...
Terrific news!
Adult and Umbilical stem cells now have many proven uses.
Whereas embryonic stem cells are - apparently - only good for attracting government grant money.
Somebody already addressed what I’ll call the ‘oops angle’. So, I’ll take the other.
Of the funding, you assert that ‘the payoff is so high that we need to be doing the research’. We ARE doing the research. Public funding is available to anybody who will research alternate (non-embryonically derived) stem cells. From a purely scientific perspective, the embryonic cells don’t do very well. A propensity to develop into cancerous cells has been identified.
There is a probability that I’ve read insufficiently, but if you do have any sources that show that ‘the payoff is so high that we need to be doing the research’, I’d like to see it.
The stem cells used in this treatment were non-embyonic. The traetent is forbidden in the us because the FDA has not gotten around to aproving it.
You say, “if the child was already dead...”
First, thanks for acknowledging that an embryo is a child, which we knew anyway. Second, your reasoning - in truth, your rationalization - leads to: 1) first killing the child, then; 2) claiming that such “research” is okay, since the child is already dead. This is exactly what opponents of embryonic stem cell “research” have fought because we know it would take place just as you describe.
Third, embryonic stem cell “research” has no track record of success, which should answer your question. Those who champion this version of “research,” along with the likes of Michael Fox, should, when found in this girl’s circumstances, just stay home and wait for embryonic stem cell research to cure them, rather than go to where real stem cell research can accomplish its cures. Clearly this girl’s parents had their heads in the right place in selecting the only mode of research with real hope of curing her blindness.
Given the success deficit of embryonic stem cell research, and your insistence that it persist, despite its “low funding,” who is really so stuck in their beliefs here, you or those who recognize real research and real success? Recall that insanity is defined by some as making the same mistake again and again, hoping for a different result.
Which dovetails nicely with the notion that liberalism, with its blind-faith support of futile embryonic stem cell “research,” is a mental disease.
I'm stunned (stuned?) Your "logic" would also outlaw human organ donations. We'd soon be killing people to get them, wouldn't we? You've really carried your thinking way beyond all common sense.
I'm not claiming that it couldn't happen, but if a child were murdered to obtain his stem cells, then that crime would have to be punished. But to outlaw the use of embryonic stem cells from any source is just selfish and unscientific.
How can a scientist not know that embryonic stem cells come ONLY from embryos, NOT from stillbirths or miscarriages?
Your gratuitous insult aside, there’s nothing at all wrong with my analogy. American women, and their children, were protected from thalidomide because the FDA does move slowly. Have you forgotten what happened when researchers tried to race ahead, skipping animal research and going straight to human, using fetal cells (not embryonic) to treat Alzheimers’? The patients developed teratomas inside their skulls. I believe that was also in China.
No, embryonic stem cells can come from stillbirths and miscarriages.
Animal research does not necessarily correlate to human results. In the end, it comes down to whether or not we have the cojones to test on humans. Willing and completely informed participants of course, not willy-nilly.
To Crazie:
No, I’m not an anti-religious bigot. I just choose not to believe. My biggest issue with the stance of completely opposing embryonic stem cells is the fact that if the baby is already dead, what harm is there in using the stem cells for research? I completely agree that creating a market for aborted fetuses is bad, if the fetuses are aborted specifically for the stem cells.
Think of it like this, I’m a corn farmer and I pick corn for food, but my crop has failed, I’ve only got greenery to show for it and not a single ear of corn. Is it wrong for me to sell the rest of the biomass for biodiesel production?
Like a poster just above me stated, following your “logic” we should outlaw organ donations, many donors are kept alive just to keep the organs ripe for harvest, others are pronounced early in order for doctors to get at the organs because they have a patient who needs one. How is that any different?
The stem cells were obtained from umbilical cords of healthy babies and were not embryonic stem cells from a human embryo. Umbilical stem cell treatment is not approved in the United States for her condition, experts have said.
While Kacie's eyesight improvements may be slow, Marinda Sallee plans to post any news on Kacie's Web site at www.kacieshope4vision.com. Their China journey can be read at http://stemcellschina.com/blog/kacie. "There may be weeks you will not have change, and then you notice something different," Marinda Sallee said. "We can't wait to see what tomorrow's is."
Stem Cell Transplants Offer New Hope in Some Cases of Blindness
Bone marrow may restore cells lost in vision diseases
DRUG HELPS RESTORE SIGHT: Relief for wet macular degeneration (miracle alert!)
Stem cells promise cure for vision loss
Stem cells used to restore vision
Bone marrow stem cells differentiated, produced keratocan in mouse study
ADULT Cell Transplants Restore Vision in Mice
Now, vision possible with ADULT stem cells
Stem cells used to restore vision
Bone Marrow Stem Cells May Cure Eye Disease
Gene cure for blindness [proved successful at restoring the sight of dogs]
Adult Stem cell patch restores vision
DRUG HELPS RESTORE SIGHT: Relief for wet macular degeneration (miracle alert!)
Thanks for the post & ping, respectively.
Miracles still happen! Thanks for the inspiration. Macy is a miracle baby.
"Count fingers" is a quick & dirty way to assess visual acuity. It's handy to determine the need for emergency eye treatment.
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