They are so many divisive political issues providing fodder for the culture wars in this country, I have to admit that sometimes I forget about stem cell research. I was only reminded of its existence by the recent awarding of several millions of dollars in state funds to 40 researchers, mostly from Johns Hopkins.
The various projects address diseases such as “sickle cell anemia, schizophrenia, type 1 diabetes, nerve injury, Parkinson’s disease, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis, heart disease, osteoarthritis, and Lou Gehrig’s disease, among others.”
The grants represent a multi-pronged attack, investing up to $600,000 in each of nine research projects that have already turned up evidence in support their hypotheses, and up to $200,000 in each of 17 others that explore “novel approaches.”
What do you think? Do you have high hopes for stem cell research? Does it cross the moral line? Do you simply not have the capacity to form an opinion on one more controversial topic?
