With recent news that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich had inserted $10 million for stem cell research in the recent budget, I went looking at JoinCrossBlog for a recent take on stem cell research funding and wasn’t disappointed. I know that stem cell research is a heartfelt issue for Republican House Minority Leader Tom Cross, who has a daughter that conceivably might benefit from advances in the science. I also remember hearing that recently he advocated legislation putting a tax on cosmetic surgery with the tax dollars going to research.
While many GOP members, including Republican Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson have spoken against the measure - and many religious conservatives are against stem cell research with embryonic stem cells - this is nonetheless an issue that cuts across party lines.
I truthfully have real ethical concerns about the research, both for and against, but view the issue of government funding (which is all that is generally talked about with the exception of human cloning prohibitions) as something on the sidelines for those strictly concerned about the ethics. The ethical issue involves the research, the funding being available privately in enough cases that the research will continue, and for those who are serious about it as a strict moral, instead of a more practical medical or economic development issue (both of which I also recognize and am sympathetic about), that is where the battle should be waged - and where stem cell researchers, for better or worse, have won.
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