We pause now for a moment to identify the rather long list of ailments that embryonic stem cells have cured... O...kay...We now continue with our regularly scheduled program.A friend of mine who recently lost his arm to a roadside bomb in Iraq spent quite a bit of time at Walter Reed Army Hospital. While there he learned of some excellent remedies that have come along due to stem cell research. With tongue firmly in my cheek, I asked, "what sort of stem cells, embryonic?" No, he replied, adult.
Hmmm...
So far, all stem cell cures or remedies for any ailment that exists have been made with adult cells. Embryonic stem cells have made no contribution whatsover.
In the picture accompanying this post, the first cherub says "I died waiting for embryonic stem cell research to find a cure. What about you?" To which the second angel says "I was the embryo." It becomes a huge slide into moral relativity when we begin to say that it is okay to kill some people because their death might provide the benefit of helping us to find cures for the diseases of other people.
A Time magazine cover article within the past year made it sound as though the United States' not funding embryonic stem cell research was a catastrophe. Other countries are funding such research, and we will be way behind if we don't jump on the bandwagon. Well, despite all of their funding and research, we are still not behind. They haven't found anything yet.
Embryonic stem cell researchers generally also believe in a woman's right to abort her child. Deep down, the main desire of the embryonic stem cell supporters is this--to find a place to use their waste product, to find justification for further killing of the unborn, and to assuage their consciences.
I like the idea for this comic, it's creative. I only worry about the size of the target audience that its message will apply to because its argument makes the assumption that unborn children already have the capability of complex thought and speech. However, assuming that many people do believe this, I must take issue with your closing comment. Stem cell research simply about "justification for further killing of the unborn… to assuage their consciences"? Yes that makes perfect sense. I mean, scientists really spend all of their time scheming ways to ease the consciences of teenage mothers, that's exactly why they went through college to enter the field. But of course if the research has yet to spark any major medical breakthroughs it must be a waste of time right? I guess we should stop trying to cure cancer too huh? We’re nowhere near curing that, in fact, I bet all that “research” is really just a front for developing new narcotics.
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