Embryonic Stemcell Research -What's Wrong With It?

I heard on the radio yesterday some people arguing against embryonic stemcell research because it's "killing potential human life forms". People say that if it were not for the research the potential unborn person may have done great things. This does not make logical sense, seeing as how the mind (as far as we are allowed know) ONLY stores and conditions only after it's had experiences. AND If an unborn person has the potential to do great things, it is also the potential to be like Hitler.

Maybe people who disagree think that Hitler was evil in the womb, or Gandi was born wise. For the Jesus believers, even in the bible Jesus wasn't born doing great things.

 

Well, I always thought they were using the cells of the already aborted or miscarried fetus...perhaps someone with some knowledge of this can clear that aspect up for us?

If it's just using the fetuses who are already not going to be born I don't understand what the problem is either, but I also am pretty ignorant on the subject..I mean do they have to keep the fetuses alive for this research? Cause that seems inhumane...but if it's just an issue of using cells that would be wasted otherwise I don't see the problem

 

I think its the concept of 'aborted' babies being used 'life' being used

I am sure some one will break it down a lot better than my 'cut and paste'..fundementaly i think your right.

• Introduction
• What are the unique properties of all stem cells?
• What are embryonic stem cells?
• What are the similarities and differences between embryonic and adult stem cells?
• What are the potential uses of human stem cells and the obstacles that must be overcome before these potential uses will be realized?
• Where can I get more information?

It is the ugly side of religeon (that has a problem with it) imho.

I don't see the problem..

 

Most of the babies used are discarded fetuses from invitro (sp?) fertilization, where they fertilize several eggs, and after the mother has had all the kids she wants, the rest are discarded and possibly used for reaserch. I go to a Catholic school where they're also against invitro, and I think the reserch is part of the reason why they're against it. (even though if the fetuses won't be used for ssr, the majority of them will just be thrown out)

I personally am against abortion after the first month because after that month, the fetus has all the rutimentary nerve endings in place and can potentially feel the pain of being aborted. But these fetuses being reaserched on are smaller than that, they're just specks in a petree dish - and the reaserch on them can provide cures for so many things, from Altzheimer's to paralysis. The potential for these fetus to improve the quality if life for so many people is just to good to pass up.

 

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050416/ap_on_he_me/cord_blood_banking

 

because most fundy christians have no idea why the fuck their protesting something , they just are, they blindly listen to some hate spewing fuck in a pulpit with 3 months in a seminary and a skim through the gospel books

And that is why people are against it, I had an entire thing worked out going through the fundy "logic" and the logic shootin' it down but it just got convoluted

 

Fundemental christians are following christianity .. christianity fundementaly can't be that wise...thats why religeon is fundementaly bollocks (pardon my french).

 

There is nothing wrong with it. For many, it is another "pro-life" cause. Regardless, these embryonic cells would either be used for research, or thrown away. Which is better? Tough choice... not at all. While the research component is very important, and should not be limited, it has been demonstrated that stem cells from the individual (eg marrow, umbilical cells, etc) is more effective in therapeutic uses. The research must continue, though. If the US doesn't do it, someone else will.

 

I personally don't see anything wrong with it...especially when you look at all the potential benefits that it has to offer! Those who would say otherwise though would have you think something along the lines of mothers being forced to abort their babies for the sake of research, or something else on that level. As someone else said, most of the fetuses used are ones that would more or less be thrown away anyway. That's just my 2 cents tho.

 

Originally Posted by Quest_techie
""because most fundy christians have no idea why the fuck their protesting something , they just are, they blindly listen to some hate spewing fuck in a pulpit with 3 months in a seminary and a skim through the gospel books
And that is why people are against it, I had an entire thing worked out going through the fundy "logic" and the logic shootin' it down but it just got convoluted"

Fundemental christians are following christianity .. christianity fundementaly can't be that wise...thats why religeon is fundementaly bollocks (pardon my french)."

I agree with you...but let's face it, any group has that aspect of it...I've been getting emails about protesting them driling for oil in the artic...well I don't see a problem with it, we have to get oil somewhere and nobody has been able to tell me what animals are in danger...so I'm assuming there aren't even any animals in danger...so why the hell would I protest that? You know? Any time you proetst anything just because *your group* is protesting it then that's when yopu have ridiculous stuff that makes everyone lose respect for you...

Allright I'm done preaching lol...it looks like they are just researching on cells that would be thrown away...so my opinion would be it would be stupid not to research

 

Actually most fundys I've encountered don't know shit about their religion, and when approached with the idea that *gasp* god might use metaphors so that an old hebrew\ egyptian guy could understand the creation of the universe (much like jesus used parables {metaphors} to explain to people how being nice to people worked {oversimplification, I don't care right now, you get the point}) They piss themselves

1:10 christians have actually read the bible through, and that is according to a survey taken by a church, most of them probably lied too, I'd bet it's closer to 1:30 (1:100 in the U.S.) so really how many of these ignorant sons of bitches preaching ignorantly about "their own religion" (which they don't even really practice for the most part it's vastly an excuse to exclude others) have actually thrown people away from god, far far away.

Shit if the baby isn't going to happen and wasn't meant to happen (and he isn't meant to happen if he didn't) why waste the cells, that's fucking stupid


on the same thread what is w\ catholics god is all powerful but you can't wear a condom just in case god can't break it to let a baby get born that he wants? thats ignorance of ones own religion and it's disgusting

 

"1:10 christians have actually read the bible through, and that is according to a survey taken by a church, most of them probably lied too, I'd bet it's closer to 1:30 (1:100 in the U.S.) so really how many of these ignorant sons of bitches preaching ignorantly about "their own religion" (which they don't even really practice for the most part it's vastly an excuse to exclude others) have actually thrown people away from god, far far away."


LOL!!! whenever I finally read the Bible through I couldn't stomach the thought of being Christian anymore...just thought that was funny you should say that...if they were forced to read what they're perpetuating I think of lot of them would be shocked and appalled...not all though

 

I agree fully with what you both have said.. .

 

First, "spare" embryos need never be discarded; they can be adopted:

http://www.embryoadoption.org

Second, the supposed benefits of embryonic stem cell research are purely speculative at this point, in constrast to other forms of stem cell research:

http://www.stemcellresearch.org

 

Millions of embryos have been destroyed in the name of in vitro fertilization by fertility companies. No one is complaining about that. Yet when a few are used for scientific purposes, people are upset.

I posted this article a while back in another room:

http://www.accessexcellence.org/WN/SU/parthenogenesis.html

.

 

A fetus is not a living person. There is nothing wrong with using fetuses in stem cell research. In fact, this research can potentially cure a lot of diseases. Conservative groups are against this research because they think that fetuses have souls. There is no such thing as a soul. The Catholic Church is the worst offender. They are against all medical research (that's why I was surprise to see Pope John Paul II getting the latest medical treatment. Gee, wouldn't you think that the imaginery God would "faith heal" him). Going back to stem cells, this research is so important that people from the Raelian Movement (that I belong to) created a company that started a project called stemaid (all in the stemaid.org website).

 

Another important thing to consider is many of the current stem cell lines are derived from cancerous tissues, such as the famous and oft used HELA cells from Herieta Lack's cervical cancer cells (yay I KNEW i'd use what I learned in cellbio one day!), and are genetically different from "normal" totipotent cells. If your using stem cells to study treatments for cancer, it would be useful to have both cancer cell lines and "normal". Also, as a cell line gets older it degenerates and builds up mutations further deviating from "fresh normal" stem cells.

Also, as soon as I read the bible (like 6 years ago) christianity has seemed totally wrong for me. Check out annotatedbible.com (I think thats the address) its great!


Rowan

 

The embryos used in stem-cell research are already dead and frozen. Why would you want to adopt a frozen test tube filled with lifeless goo, instead of letting someone use it who actually might derive some benefit from it?

 

Those aren't talking about the stem cells taking from dead and frozen embryos. In Vitro fetilization has the egg and sperm taken and mixed and implanted... not adopted from the dead embryos...