Stem Cells/New Discoveries

GifMike:  They’re plump, they’re delicious, they’ll cure what ails you.  Sock it to me.

Demosthenes:  It’s an important area of research.  Maybe the MOST important.  Stem cells are the human equivalant to SOD.  Cut out the bad and regrow the new.  Its’ potential in all areas of medical science is literally unmeasurable.  We MUST follow this line of study.

Locke:  You realize if you put value on something that can only be got from a fetus, you open up a market for fetuses?

Demosthenes:  You have such a cynacal view on human nature.  Do you really invision a world where women are crankning out babies for money?

Locke:  Do you actually invision living in a world where that doesn’t already happen?  Do you think that once we discoverd how to transplant an organ people didn’t start having and/or kidnapping and raising children for no other purpose than to harvest their organs?

Demosthenes:  That belongs in the conspiracy section.

Locke:  That is the most frightening thing you’ve ever said.  You do realize that there are actual existing people languishing in prisons around the globe for that very thing?  These are REAL humans, they’ve found REAL graveyards, they’ve traced REAL money all the way back to the patients (thousands of them American Citizens!) that actually received the organs.  For you to imply in any way that that sort of thing is just a silly conspiracy when I can guarantee you that there is a child on a table somewhere in the world at this very second being harvested.  This isn’t something you can CHOOSE not to believe just because you find it so horrible.  Are you going to say now that little girls aren’t sold into slavery and/or raped because you can’t stand to think about it?

GifMike:  Woah… Ok, we’re pushing the envelope even for the internet.  I did some research and yes Demosthenes is does actually happen and can be proven.  I’m not sure we should think of stem cells the same way however.

Locke:  How is it different?

GifMike:  Well for one thing there are some promising lines of study on creating synthetic stem cells.  I believe embryonic stem cells and the debate that surrounds them will soon be moot.   I say we wait a bit and see and pick up some other topic in the meantime.  For the most part I agree, we cannot create a vast need for embryonic stem cells, without being able to synthetically reproduce them.  In my experience human beings as a whole WILL do everything we CAN do scientifically regardless of anyones moral objections to it.  Trying to stop any form of research, whether it be stem cells, cloning, genetic manipulation, biological weapons or whatever, can’t be done.  We can’t watch what everyone is doing all the time, and there’s always someone who’s viewpoint on what is right or moral differs from your own.  The best we can do is try to point it in a safe direction and show that by keeping your research in the public light, by collaberating and sharing your ideas you’ll get much faster and more substantial results in the long run.  I think a much more interesting debate is the use of clones for creating harvestable organs and stem cells.  This is another REAL area of research that is expanding and I think the time has come for a comprehensive debate on clones rights.

to be continued…