Although the Republican Party of Wisconsin has decided to offer Herb Kohl another term in the U.S. Senate on a silver platter, I still think he should be made to answer for his actions in Washington and held accountable by his constituents.
So, let's look at what Kohl had to say on Tuesday about H.R. 810, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act.
From his statement:
The University of Wisconsin at Madison was the first to isolate the human embryonic stem cells that have the ability to develop into virtually any cell type in the human body. They have stated unequivocally that they need H.R. 810 in order to continue their groundbreaking work. Without H.R. 810, they fear America will fall behind the rest of the world in medical and biotechnical research.
Kohl's arguments are not based on facts. An Associated Press report adds some clarity to Kohl's misleading comments.
It states:
Under Bush's policy, UW researchers had to use private money and equipment to grow two cell lines that were developed in a culture free of animal cells. The development was significant because the previous lines were grown using animal products that could carry viruses and make them unsuitable for use in humans.
"We're having to build duplicate labs to do the same research. It seems like a sad waste of resources," said Tenneille Ludwig, a UW-Madison research scientist who authored a paper describing how those lines were developed.
She said the new lines cannot be used in federally funded labs and the university is considering sending them to countries where they can be studied.
[Governor Jim] Doyle, in an interview, said Bush's restrictions may have helped Wisconsin in the short-term because UW controls the cells, but the limits need to be lifted to move the field forward.
"Wisconsin stands to be at the very center of the development and expansion of stem cell research," Doyle said. "If Bush's restrictions remain in place, you are just going to see the federal support for stem cell research gradually disappear."
With Doyle's support, the university is building a $375 million institute to enhance the research. Doyle has also set aside $5 million to recruit stem cell companies to Wisconsin and laid out a goal of capturing 10 percent of the stem cell market by 2015.
Like so many other politicians, Kohl's statement makes it sound like President Bush intends to undercut ALL stem cell research. That is patently false.
Furthermore, what clearer indication can there be that research is going forward in Wisconsin than the fact that UW-Madison is "building a $375 million institute to enhance the research."
Read about Wisconsin's investment in stem cell research.
On November 17, 2004, Doyle announced that "Wisconsin would invest up to $750 million, including more than $500 million in new facilities and direct research support for scientists at UW-Madison."
That's hardly a sign that research is being hampered.
Not only is research going forward, Doyle is doing recruiting, using $5 million to lure stem cell companies to Wisconsin. He hopes to have 10% of the stem cell market in the state by 2015.
It certainly doesn't appear that President Bush or any other embryonic stem cell research opponents are preventing the work from progressing. At this point, they're not stopping Doyle from turning the destruction of human life into a state industry.
Kohl continues:
We all understand, of course, that this research is not without controversy. I respect the concerns that some have about the use of embryonic stem cells. We must closely monitor this research to ensure that it is done ethically -- and our passage today of S. 3504 and S. 2754 demonstrate a unanimous, bipartisan commitment to do just that.
Closely monitoring the research won't change the fact that embryonic stem cell research cannot be done ethically. It demands the destruction of the embryo, killing it.
...It would be unconscionable for our government to turn its back on the discoveries that expanding stem cell research promises. Now more than ever, it's important to grasp this opportunity in an ethical manner by making sure that potentially lifesaving research does not slow or stall.
I think it's unconscionable to do research on human embryos, like they're some sort of non-living material that can be experimented on, and freely destroyed and discarded.
What is the ethical manner that Kohl proposes? Specifically, what does he mean? How can it be ethical to destroy human embryos or create human life for experimental purposes?
The reality is stem cell research does not require the destruction of embryos. The promise of cures for disease are being found in adult stem cells and stem cells collected from umbilical cord blood.
In fact, after decades of studies, embryonic stem cells have yet to produce a single approved treatment. Adult stem cells, on the other hand, are currently being used to successfully treat over sixty conditions and diseases.
Because embryonic stem cell research has been shown to be problematic, private investors have put their money toward adult stem cell research. It's a smart business move, as well as a morally unobjectionable one.
It should be noted that no one has put the brakes on embryonic stem cell research in the private sector. NOTHING stands in the way of privately funded research projects.
While giving brief lip service to the controversial nature of embryonic stem cell research, Kohl doesn't begin to address in any concrete fashion the moral issues involved when experimenting on human embryos.
(Keep in mind how vehemently some people oppose using animals in medical research and testing, finding the exploitation of animals to be morally objectionable, even when medical advances and cures are at stake.)
In typical Kohl style, he tries to take a moderate stance. He claims to understand the need to proceed with research, as well as the need to go forth in an ethical fashion.
But, proceeding in an ethical manner would mean that human embryos would not be treated as raw material to be exploited for experimentation. There simply is no getting around what embryonic stem cell research entails -- death of the embryo.
On May 24, 2005, President Bush discussed embryo adoption and ethical stem cell research at a White House gathering with 21 families.
Bush explained that the families "have either adopted or given up for adoption frozen embryos that remained after fertility treatments. Rather than discard these embryos created during in vitro fertilization, or turn them over for research that destroys them, these families have chosen a life-affirming alternative. Twenty-one children here today found a chance for life with loving parents."
Bush eloquently expressed his steadfast belief that human life, at any stage, is a precious gift.
He said:
The children here today remind us that there is no such thing as a spare embryo. Every embryo is unique and genetically complete, like every other human being. And each of us started out our life this way. These lives are not raw material to be exploited, but gifts. And I commend each of the families here today for accepting the gift of these children and offering them the gift of your love.
There is no such thing as a spare embryo.
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