First, the president claims that "the majority of Americans - from across the political spectrum, and of all backgrounds and beliefs - have come to a consensus that we should pursue" stem-cell research that involves the destruction of human embryos. This is a gross distortion. As Ramesh notes, the quality of polling in this area is terrible. The most comprehensive and balanced examination of public opinion was a poll commissioned by the Ethics and Public Policy Center and summarized by Yuval Levin here. That poll showed considerable public confusion about the stem-cell debate. Americans generally support scientific research, and so, unsurprisingly, when asked simply whether they support stem-cell research, a majority of the poll’s respondents said they did. But when the question was framed as an ethical matter, opinion shifted dramatically.
Bernadine Healy, the former head of the National institutes of Health and the American Red Cross points out the rapid pace of ethical alternatives that are more likely to yield the medical benefits promised for embryonic stem cell research.
"Even for strong backers of embryonic stem cell research, [Obama's decision] is no longer as self-evident as it was, because there is markedly diminished need for expanding these cell lines for either patient therapy or basic research," Healy explains.
"In fact, during the first six weeks of Obama's term, several events reinforced the notion that embryonic stem cells, once thought to hold the cure for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and diabetes, are obsolete," she adds.
One other thought came to me. Suppose they finally do manage to trick embryonic stem cells into working effectively without their dangerous side-effects. Under a health care rationing system that many suspect the Obama Administration to try to implement, how many patients would actually be allowed to benefit from such therapies?
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