Is stem-cell research worth it?

[YoungChristian]

What I really want to know is if humans have the right to kill a person to further research to save another. Personally, I don't believe that is right. Stem-cell research needs embryos that will become human beings to further its progression. Would it not make just as much sense to just let those embryos become people with the hope that they themselves could become great doctors and find cures? Stem-cell research may or may not prove its worth, but even if it does, it will come at a cost.

 

[krisy]

I think they have enough to work with for now. I don't believe in creating life only to destroy it.

 

[wade]

It is not necessary to destroy potential life to create stem cells for research. There are pleanty of excess fertilized ovums available from fertility clinics. These ovums are left over from invitro-fertilization proceedures and will never be used - they have no future and one way or another will eventually be destroyed.

The Bush policy on this issue is one of pure greed. The NIH will spend hundreds of millions of $, perhaps billions, of tax payer money on developing the techniques necessary to develop cures for diabetes, parkinsons, alzhiemer's, and a host of other diseases and ailments. But the likelyhood that any of the handful of stem cells Bush has approved for research will yeild actual cures or treatments are practically nil.

Once 99% of the research is done on the public dime, private corporations, which are not restricted by the Bush policy, will conduct their own research to locate cures. Then they will patent these genetic lines and charge the public grossly inflated fees for the cures and treatments that will be derived.

Bush has been hoodwinked or bought on this one by greedy bio-tech company lobbiests. His policy should either ban all stem cell research, private or publically funded, on all but the established stem cell lines, or it should open the lines up for much less restricted publically funded research. It is not right that the public should fund the development of the techniques necessary to work with stem-cells and develop cures and treatements, but then hand the results to the private sector for exploitation.

I personally think the stem cell lines should be greatly expanded, but there needs to be a protocol in place to prevent the creation of ovums specifically for stem cell research.

Ethically, I can see the argument for banning of all reasearch except for the established lines, except that this just gives the game to foriegn bio-tech labs, which is just plain foolish.

Wade.