I'm with you. People will say, "The Government shouldn't fund this because...". Well, there are folks that don't like the Postal Service, but we all fund it. See, I know many products and mucho dinero will come from this "Biological Revolution", but we'll be behind the curve...many countries are already funding research...but worse, we'll not be doing our best to limit and eliminate suffering.

What won't change is the demand for cures. For free and without risks. The cost of these and many other diseases potentially treatable with Stem Cells to our economy is immense. Folks will argue about a bridge or museum, etc. and how that will stimulate the economy but be totally resistant to the needs of researchers trying to help the sick and infirmed and, incidentally create an industry that will make jobs, and actually help people.

Real world research should not cross certain ethical and moral boundaries. Agreed. Where they lie is a bone of great contention. Religion has to get into the act, of course...that's ok too...just as long as we all realize the human suffering we're not helping due to "-isms". There's no faking it...it's a whole new "Scopes Monkey Trial". Deja vu all over again.

Hard choices will have to be made: Either we will tie the hands and feet of science excessively, or not. Hopefully we can find alternatives and 'work arounds', but there're no guarantees. There are no guarantees that Stem Cell research will create any cures.

The guarantee is this: 1. Knowledge will be gained with research, and where that branches to no one knows. 2. If we do not do the research, we face the infirmed and say, "It's G-d's will you are ill." That is a lie, and unacceptable.

Certainly I don't advocate the wholesale slaughter of blastulas, gastrulas, embryos or fetuses. I can't imagine anyone would. I do think that umbilical cord blood (which is currently wasted), and cells donated by consenting adults is beyond any politician's yea or nay.

I think a question should be asked why the federal government should invest in this type of research.

As has been mentioned before, this type of research is not real promising to begin with, so once again, why does the federal government have to fund something else.

I'll tackle this piece first. So not only are we blowing money on an $800 billion stimulus bills that will only sink us more, not only are we blowing $400 billion more on a bill so full of pork you can stick a bar thru it and BBQ it, not only are we throwing away money to terrorist in Gaza, not only are we gonna fund universal healthcare, all this during an "economic crisis" (Obama's own words), now we can add stem cell reseach funds to the deficit.

Island - so what you are basically arguing is for the government to get out of funding ANY scientific research? I beleive, and I could be wrong that most government grants for medical research are actually channeled through the military or the CDC or NIH. I don't know much about how much is actually spent on medical research by the government, but I could see where there would be a savings by just letting private interests do the research.

Charles - As far as I undestand what has happened, no additional monies were allocated to stem cell research. What took place was allowing stem cell research projects to qualify for funding that is already in place. It's not like the NIH is going to be pushing this, usually researchers come to the NIH or CDC and ask ofr funding on certain projects, and they have to go through quite a process to get funded. Now if stem cell research is a component of a project, it is not automatically ruled out.

just sit back and watch all the abuses that will result because of this.  The money being paid to young girls for their unborn babies.  I can see the handwriting on the wall. 

This is not a good thing. 

I only have a problem with fedral funding. 

If this is so promising, why aren't the drug companies tripping over themselves to provide the miracle cure that they can cost the average american out of affording. 

I just don't buy the argument that since no one else will, the government should.

If you can prove to me that more money will not be spent, I can accept your comment. Otherwise, you are just making excuses for something that, like john above said, should not be funded in the first places.

Charles - I cannot prove that no money will be spent, in fact I am sure some will be spent, but it will not be additional funds, which seemed to be the beef you had in your earlier post. I read it as you were pissed we were spending MORE money on this. The funding will come from the same pool as all other funding for medical research.  I can understand the problem some of you have with the government funding medical research in general, but that was not really the point of my post. I wonder if the problem for the drug companies had been the availablilty of the stem cells? Also, they could be working on stuff and we would not know about it. It takes years for drug companies to research and get approved medications and they are not likely to advertise stuff that might work 3 years from now.

As I said, you can not prove more money will not be spent. You can believe anything you want but history shows that things like this never stop at what people like you want to believe. Considering Obama is currently on a spending spree, it won't surprise me  that not only will he lift this stop but he will also add more money to future spending bills for this. Believewhat you want, Obama is trying to impose his concept oif change to this country in the first 100 days and any smart person knows good things come to those who wait, Obama does not show signs of being a patient man.

If your cool with destroying one life to save another, then I guess there isn't a problem. If you believe your not a living thing until your born, again I guess it's not problem. I'll bet dollars to donuts everyone here is glad they weren't the embryo the lab tech came for, even if you were grown in a dish. All life does what it can in its power to survive. You or a family member has a debilitating condition, that's tragic, so how many dissected embryos would be too many? If swallowing them whole eased or cured your ailment would you do it? No right or wrong answer.

Positive results have been reached with adult stem cells, that do not require the host to be destroyed. I'm not very religious. I'm not entirely against abortion, though I don't believe that should be the preferred method of birth control. Nor do I believe the government should be providing the conditions for life only to destroy it in hopes of producing results. No problem if this material comes from legitimate medical waste. What does this say about us a a people, when life is as disposable as a candy wrapper. Just because some other country does it should we? When is enough enough? Especially with my tax dollars!

Everyone always uses this "not with my tax dollars" as an excuse as to why some things should not be done.  How else will anything get done?  It is always the NIMBY cry!

Sometimes you really need to listen Charles, did you 'hear' anything that was said, or did you just brush over and just want to fly at someone with your way of thinking just because Obama gave the ok to have these research done?  

I agree that if the results are that promising then private research will pursue it and do a much better job than any Federal projects.

Let me keep my money or fund what research I will.

Do you really have that much faithin the feds?  Because of their amazing management of every other project thus far?

THe smartest people in the world don't strive to work for the gov't.  Think on that!  

Hmm, how else can anything get done. So are you suggesting the Gov't is responsible for everything ever invented, created, discovered, fixed, improved and rebuilt?

I don't listen? Why do you people keep talking about this as if embryonic stem cell was banned? And why don't you people keep ignoring or avoiding John's question which I have seen asked many times but never see an answer to it:

Where is the answer to this? Constant complaining about how the drug companies make billions (or millions, what ever it is) off of expensive medicines, yet no complaint about them applying this money to new research. Where is the answer? Give us a decent answer to this and I'll retract my comments.

I wouldn't say it's faith in the Feds but faith in a man who happens to be from their party. It's my belief that had Bush persued this, they would have bashed him equally as they did for him not wanting to fund it.

Darn, meant to say "do" on my comment 2 comments above, not "don't".