Senator Harkin & Embryonic Stem Cell Research

I couldn't sleep, so I just read what Senator Harkin posted on the Huffington Post blog (I read it to see what those on the other side of the debate are thinking - caution, be prepared to ranting, raving in the comments section. Definitely full of anti-Bush lingo with some profanity.) The post title was "Bringing the Hopes of Stem Cell Research One Giant Step Closer to Reality". The predictably goes on to ramble about the virtue of embryonic stem cell research.

There is none. None. You wonder why there isn't more private funding? Because it hasn't been proven to work! If Senator Harkin talked about the advances made with umbilical stem cells or adult stem cells I would applaud his efforts. If he even talked about researchers at Wake Forest University discovering stem cells in amniotic fluid I could stand with him. The Washington Post on January 9 reported:

“They grow fast, as fast as embryonic stem cells, and they show great
pluripotentiality,” meaning they can become many kinds of tissues, said study
leader Anthony Atala, director of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine at
Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C. “But they
remain stable for years without forming tumors,” he added, something that
embryonic cells are not very good at."

Out of all of the stem cell research out there that is showing promising results, why is it that Senator Harkin is fixated on research that destroys life? Let Senator Harkin know your position (you can call his Washington, DC office at (202) 224-3254 or his Des Moines office at (515) 284-4574. Fortunately on his post he didn't urge people to contact their representatives and senators - instead he asked for money. Pretty typical.