Stem-Cells: Another Religious Soapbox

Seven years. Seven years and seven months, to be precise, is the amount of time former-President Bush squandered. I am referring to stem-cell research (however, I could have been talking about any number of issues!). Thankfully President Obama has the prudence not to commit the same mistake. On Monday President Obama rescinded the ban that stymied federal funding towards stem-cell research.

Although, this now allows federal funding to be allocated towards research involving stem-cells, under the Dickey-Wicker Amendment it is still illegal to use federal funds that involves creation or destruction of an embryo.  So there are only two ways to extract new stem-cells from an embryo: through private funding or state funding (if your state has a law in accordance with that type of research).

Scientists have long touted the potential stem-cells as a cure-all. They are able to take on the characteristics a myriad of cell types within the body. These cells could then create tissue types to cure diseases and injury such as: Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, spinal cord injury, stroke, burns, heart disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

It's no secret that support for such bans arises from religious and pro-life ideology. The same support base which wants to also ban the cloning of embryos whose stem-cells could be used for therapeutic purposes. Without cloning researchers have to rely on in-vitro fertilization patients to donate their left over embryos for research. Whatever the source, proponents of such bans argue they are savings lives because the embryo has the potential to develop into a fully formed fetus.

The subject becomes extremely torpid with so many stipulations as to what constitutes life. What pro-lifers consider life is really a blastocyst - the two to five day old embryo in the shape of a hollow ball (from which stem-cells are taken). It has no nervous system. It can't think. It's a ball of cells. Men's sperm looks more alive then a blastocyst does! At least those can swim. When a man masturbates he releases a plethora of potential cells that could turn into a fetus. Are these pro-life groups worried about us masturbating? (It wouldn't put it past me if they were). What about each egg that sheds during menstruation? What about having sex with a condom on? I mean, conception is so close you can almost hear the little semen yelling "let me out!" But let's be honest, you’re really not giving life a chance with jr's raincoat on. How non pro-life of you to do that.

I can't even begin to point out all the other hypocrisies when stem-cell opponents exclaim embryos are real humans with the same entitled rights as you and me - well, unless your a gay embryo.Yet for all pragmatic purposes, there is one very ironic part to this whole issue. According to a USA Today report approximately one half-million embryos lie frozen in US fertility clinics. Frozen! So instead of using these cells to promote and expand great research to save actual lives, proponents of the ban would rather the embryos stay frozen. How non pro-life of them to do that.

These issues disclose an important fact: science has been stymied by a major impetus. That force is religion: an unscientific force that has been allowed to impede the progression of science. Why? Why in Texas was there recently a 7-7 tie as to whether creationism should be taught in schools? Why should we allow religious groups to falsely discredit and disparage factual, tangible scientific work? Just because the fossil record isn't completely intact? Because a book says the earth is at the center of the universe?

Science is in the business of understanding the beautiful complexities of life. There is no room for perversions. There is no room for putting a man on house arrest for the remainder of his life because he advocates the sun is at the center of the galaxy - which the Vatican did to Galileo. There is no room for putting a teacher on trial for teaching the principles of descent with modification - which is what happened to high school teacher John Scopes in 1926. And there is no room for holding scientists hostage because they want to use blastocysts to cure disease and save lives. Especially when opponents to stem-cell research exclaim their reason it is to save a life.

- m.tsang