Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Alive and Well

I have to laugh every time I hear liberals either being ignorant or lying about embryonic stem cell research, saying that the government is ending it. The government hasn't ended embryonic stem cell research, it's just stopped funding it and stopped allowing the creation of cell lines (which involves the destruction of human life).

This may sound like practically ending embryonic stem cell research - sort of like voting for the war but against funding is voting against the war - but it's not. First of all, plenty of cell lines already exist. Not to mention...

Economics lesson: As usual, once the government stepped out, funding to embryonic stem cell research increased. With the government handing out money, the private sector figured Why bother? when it came to investing in the research. Now, with government money gone, investors are trying to get their big pay offs by investing.

Reports the US Department of Health and Human Services:

Number of Lines Available for Federal Funding

• 78 derivations of human embryonic stem cells meet the criteria established by the President and listed on the NIH Registry, although since the August 2001 announcement 16 of these derivations failed to grow into lines that would be usable for research.

• With assistance from NIH, the owners of 19 of the lines agreed to make their lines available for use by researchers in the U.S. and abroad. Four other derivations are being developed into lines today; two of them will be available in the near future for broad distribution, while two others are still under development. Still others are being preserved by their owners until the science develops further. No other country in the world has made as many stem cell lines widely available.

• Because stem cell lines divide continuously in culture, these lines can be used by hundreds of individual researchers. One line alone has already resulted in 136 shipments to researchers.

• These lines are being employed to study many unanswered questions that must be answered before the cells can be used in human therapies. For example, determined cell culture conditions that allowed one line to differentiate into neurons similar to the dopamine-producing neurons that degenerate in Parkinson=s Disease. This advance is the first step towards generating neurons that may be useful in treating this disorder. Other scientists used an eligible line to form 3-dimensional structures with characteristics of developing liver tissue, cartilage, nerve, or blood vessels. This technique may permit scientists to generate tissue for use in skin grafts, wound treatment, or organ transplantation.

Private and State Funding for Embryonic Stem Cell Research is Available

The President's policy places no obstacles in the path of private or state funding for stem cell research – researchers are receiving support from both sources, in addition to support from the Federal Government.

• Based on 2002 data, one study reports that private sector research and development in stem cells was being conducted by approximately 1000 scientists in over 30 firms. Aggregate spending was estimated at $208 million.¹ Geron Corporation alone reported that it spent more than $70 million on stem cell research by September 2003.

• In the Stem Cell Business News Guide to Stem Cell Companies (Feb 2003), 61 U.S. and international companies are listed as pursuing some form of research or therapeutic product development involving stem cells. For example, Geron Corp. has announced plans to seek FDA approval to pursue human trials.

• Some states ban the destruction of human embryonic stem cells for research. Some permit it, but do not fund it (consistent with federal policy). And still other states provide funding.

• As with most medical research, the effort to explore the promise of this science and to develop treatments and cures will require the combined efforts of both the public and private sector.

1. Lysaght, J.J., and Hazlehurst, A.L., Private Sector Development of Stem Technology and Therapeutic Cloning," Tissue Engineering 9(3): 555-561 (2003).

I consider this case closed. As usual, the facts just don't back up liberalism.

Coulter: 'Dems' Favorite Halloween Costume: Patriot'

A little Halloween treat for all of you, Ann Coulter's new column! Check it out:

DEMS' FAVORITE HALLOWEEN COSTUME: PATRIOT

After some of us began to ask which part of the war on terrorism Democrats support, Larry Kudlow put the question directly to Rep. Barney Frank on CNBC's "Kudlow & Company." Frank said: "What part of the war on terrorism do I support? I voted for war in Afghanistan."

On "60 Minutes" last Sunday night, aspiring House speaker Nancy Pelosi denounced the war in Iraq as not "part of the war on terror." The war on terror, she said "is the war in Afghanistan."

So that's it. The one part of the war on terror — or "so-called war on terror," as New York Times so-called columnist Bob Herbert calls it — Democrats even pretend to support is the war in Afghanistan... [ More...]

The Good We're Doing In Iraq

Just saw this on Glenn Beck (who I believe is the only conservative on CNN); a great video about all of the good we're doing in Iraq (good things that the the media seems to be forgetting to report):

'In the Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word and Deed'

Here's a trailer for the Reagan movie, In the Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word and Deed, which aparently came out Oct 1, 2004. Anyway, it is an amazing Reagan clip, and I plan to get the movie:

New Zucker Add

Here's a new David Zucker add (here's the first one), (hat tip: Pajamas media):

Fetuses Disposed of Like Garbage

This is vile:

Hospital admits to burning aborted babies in waste incinerator

One of the country's leading hospitals is throwing aborted babies into the same incinerator used for rubbish to save only £18.50 each time , it has emerged.

Addenbrooke's Hospital, in Cambridge, said it was no longer able to afford the dignified disposal at a local crematorium of foetuses from unwanted pregnancies .

Instead, they are being burnt in the hospital's main incinerator - which is normally used for rubbish and clinical waste.

The revelation sparked anger and distress among church leaders and pro-life groups, as well as women whose pregnancies were terminated at the hospital.

Abortion in general is a vile and disgusting practice - it's not enough that these babies are being murdered, now they don't even get a proper burial/cremation?

Something else from this article strikes me, "The revelation sparked anger and distress among ... women whose pregnancies were terminated at the hospital." Why do these women have there babies killed and then act like they have any right to be indignant about the way they're "disposed" of? If you think you have the right to "terminate" it than you must not think it's an actual life, right?

Lisa Wilson, of the ProLife Alliance, said: "What absolute horror. Has our society lost even a minimum concept of the humanity of the unborn child and the respect due to these tiny victims of our ruthless legislation?"

I couldn't put it any better than that.

One local woman, who asked not to be named, said after the heartache of deciding to have an abortion she was mortified to find the hospital had used the same furnace they burn rubbish in to incinerate her terminated baby.

She said: "I am furious and very hurt. Imagine my horror when I discovered that my baby was incinerated in the same furnace as the hospital rubbish."

You have no right to be furious. You should be repenting for the life you let those doctors take.

Stock Market Up Again, Despite Liberal Predictions

I could have sworn liberals were chastising Americans for being optimistic all last week over the Dow's record close, telling us we were morons for being happy about it and that it would crash any minute... Any way, they were somehow wrong:

The Dow Jones industrials shot up more than 120 points and crossed 12,100 for the first time.

Just halfway through third-quarter earnings season, generally upbeat reports have instilled new confidence about the future in investors.

The problem with liberals (well, one of many problems) is that when they make predictions, they're things that can't not happen. " The stock market will go down!" Of course it will, can you give us a time frame?

Just watch, when the stock market finally does go down, even slightly, liberals will be patting themselves on the back and expecting a gold star for their genius predictions.

That Horrible Economy

I guess I'm failing to see the indicators of a bad economy. Yahoo reports:

The stock market's most prominent benchmark ended the day at 12,011.73, the ninth time in just over two weeks that the Dow has achieved a record high close.

Only a liberal could see bad in that. "The stock market is getting to high! It will run out of steam and crash!" I for one am getting sick of the doom and gloom coming from the left.

Crackdown On Illegals Reduces Texas Crime 60%

Texas is reporting a reduction of 60% in crime due to a recent crackdown on illegal immigration:

A crackdown on illegal border crossings has produced a "stunning" reduction in crime for 27 Texas counties, Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday.

"Borderwide, we experienced an average crime reduction of 60 percent because of intensive operations under Operation Rio Grande," Perry said of the border security effort...

The operation proves that an increased law enforcement presence at known trouble spots makes the border more secure and border communities safer, the governor said.

I'm glad the media is finally admitting this and that we have some proof (you know, other than common sense), but is this story a big "duh!" to anyone else? Illegals are criminals, it would follow that stopping them from entering the country would reduce crime.

I can't wait to hear the liberal lies and distorted thinking to refute this one!

Tony Blair Sings!

This video probably wasn't meant to be flattering, but I like it. It's a bunch of clips of Tony Blair put together so it seems like he's singing. The good part is all of the BA quotes from his "stepping down" speech at the end (It's funny, too):


(click to play)

In Other Hillary News...

Hillary has also finally recanted her defunct story about being named after Sir. Edmund Hillary; a lie she told some years ago which was exposed by the blogosphere.

"It was a sweet family story her mother shared to inspire greatness in her daughter, to great results I might add," said spokeswoman Jennifer Hanley.

All I can say is that's either a lie or lying must run in the family.

Clinton Gets Down Off Cross and Puts One On

I guess Hillary is wearing a cross around town now a days. Is she fooling anyone? Who remembers Clinton walking back from church on Sunday with his Bible after having sex with Monica. The Clintons are morally decrepit and we all know it.

"Those Damn Republicans Won't Give Up!"

From the Washington Post:

White House Upbeat About GOP Prospects
Self-Assurance of Bush, Rove and Others Is Not Shared by Many in the Party

By Michael Abramowitz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, October 15, 2006; A04

Amid widespread panic in the Republican establishment about the coming midterm elections, there are two people whose confidence about GOP prospects strikes even their closest allies as almost inexplicably upbeat: President Bush and his top political adviser, Karl Rove.

Some Republicans on Capitol Hill are bracing for losses of 25 House seats or more. But party operatives say Rove is predicting that, at worst, Republicans will lose only 8 to 10 seats -- shy of the 15-seat threshold that would cede control to Democrats for the first time since the 1994 elections and probably hobble the balance of Bush's second term.

In the Senate, Rove and associates believe, a Democratic victory would require the opposition to "run the table," as one official put it, to pick up the necessary six seats -- a prospect the White House seems to regard as nearly inconceivable.

The Mark Foley page scandal and its fallout have many Republicans panicked, but Rove professes to be taking it in stride. "The data we are seeing from individual races and the national polls would tend to indicate that people can divorce Foley's personal action from the party," he said in a brief interview Thursday.

[... yadda yadda yadda ...]

Three points here. 1) the liberal media (sorry, I try to avoid being redundant) just hates it how optimistic us Republicans are, even though they seem to think that it's only the President and Rove, 2) isn't it nice to see how confident Rove and POTUS are? and 3) this story is a perfect one for the conspiracy theorists to reflect back on when the Dems don't win the House and say, "even thought they had no shot that Rove was over confident. This election must be rigged!"

Gerry Studds - When He Boinks Pages It's "Private" - RIP

As you read this AP story keep in mind who the recently deceased Gerry Studds was.

From Ann Coulter's article just last week:

In 1983, Democratic congressman Gerry Studds was found to have sexually propositioned House pages and actually buggered [had sex with] a 17-year-old male page whom he took on a trip to Portugal. The 46-year-old Studds indignantly attacked those who criticized him for what he called a "mutually voluntary, private relationship between adults."

When the House censured Studds for his sex romp with a male page, Studds — not one to be shy about presenting his backside to a large group of men — defiantly turned his back on the House during the vote. He ran for re-election and was happily returned to office five more times by liberal Democratic voters in his Martha's Vineyard district. (They really liked his campaign slogan: "It's the outfit, stupid.")

Washington Post columnist Colman McCarthy referred to Studds' affair with a teenage page as "a brief consenting homosexual relationship" and denounced Studds' detractors for engaging in a "witch-hunt" against gays: "New England witch trials belong to the past, or so it is thought. This summer on Cape Cod, the reputation of Rep. Gerry Studds was burned at the stake by a large number of his constituents determined to torch the congressman for his private life."

Now keep in mind the way the Democrats are reacting to Mark Foley these days when you read their praise of Studds: 

Reaction to the death of former U.S. Rep. Gerry Studds        
By The Associated Press
Reaction to the death of former Rep. Gerry Studds, D-Mass.:

"Gerry's leadership changed Massachusetts forever and we'll never forget him. His work on behalf of our fishing industry and the protection of our waters has guided the fishing industry into the future and ensured that generations to come will have the opportunity to love and learn from the sea. He was a steward of the oceans."

- U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.

---

"No one fought harder for human rights, particularly in Latin America; for our environment; and for the fishermen of New England and the entire nation. He was a true pioneer."

- U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., whose wife, Lisa, once worked as an aide to Studds.

---

"Gerry often said that it was the fight for gay and lesbian equality that was the last great civil rights chapter in modern American history. He did not live to see its final sentences written, but all of us will forever be indebted to him for leading the way with compassion and wisdom. He gave people of his generation, of my generation, and of future generations the courage to be who they are."

- Dean Hara, who married Studds in 2004.

---

"Gerry was a stalwart champion of New England's fishing families as well as a committed environmentalist who worked hard to demonstrate that the cause of working people and the cause of the environment go hand in hand with the right leadership. When he retired from Congress, he did not retire from the cause, continuing to fight for the fishing industry and New England's environmental causes.

- U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.

---

"I am very saddened by the death of Gerry Studds. From his days in the early 1970s as an articulate and effective opponent of the Vietnam war, through his consistent leadership on environmental issues, to his insistence that the U.S. government stop ignoring the AIDS crisis, Gerry was a forceful advocate for causes that were not always popular and that were consequently shunned by many politicians."

- U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.  

Let's hope that the Dems can praise a pervert like Foley when he dies just like they are Studds. They have no shame.

Why?

How bizarre and immoral. BBC reports:

Woman gives birth to grandchild

A Japanese woman in her 50s gave birth to her own grandchild last year, using an egg from her daughter and sperm from her son-in-law, a doctor has revealed.

UN Sanctions On North Korea To Be Made Weaker

Apparently the UN sanctions against North Korea have "hit a snag" (never a good thing since the last two "snags" at the UN have involved billions in illegal oil and rapist relief workers). Reports Hindu.com:

The resolution, which was circulated on Thursday among Security Council members, had accommodated Russia and China by removing the provision of blanket ban on import of arms.

The original draft had called for search of incoming and outgoing cargo from North Korea which would have meant naval blockade but now that too has been diluted though member states are still authorised to inspect the cargo for banned weapons, including material for weapons of mass destruction.

But, China and Russia, diplomats say, have raised questions about the methods and legality of the inspections.

China and Russia already made this document pointless. Now they want to weaken it even more? American liberals are going to swoon over China and Russia's worry of the "legality" of inspections! The UN makes me sick. And so do commies and those who like to pretend to no longer be commies screwing up America's attempts to save the world.

Logo Switch

I've switched to the Halloween logo; a sign that the pagan festivities are almost upon us!

UN Saves The World

The world is saved! Reports My Way News, "U.N. Adopts Resolution Against N. Korea." We are all intelligent enough to agree that sanctions only hurt a dictators people, not the dictator, right? Good, I thought there might be some liberals reading this.

This is even weak as far as UN sanctions go. The Russians and the Chinese mad us rule out military action - so now the North Koreans know their safe from the only people they fear, America - and they made us allow the sale of conventional weapons - so Russia and China can't sell them missiles and tanks (not that a UN sanction ever stopped them), but they can still sell small arms.

I repeat, the world is saved! Way to go UN...

Ban The UN...

Here's an al-Reuters quicky:

United Nations approves S. Korea's Ban as leader

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. General Assembly approved South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon on Friday as the next U.N. secretary-general, the last step in the process allowing him to assume the post on January 1.

Ban, 62, is the first Asian leader since Burma's U Thant held the post from 1961 to 1971. Asian nations had insisted it was their turn for the job to succeed Kofi Annan, a Ghanaian, who has led the 192-member world body for the past decade.

Ban was approved by acclamation for a five-year term as the world's top diplomat.

"The world's top diplomat?" But anyway; not that anything good will ever come out of the UN, but maybe Ban will feel like doing something about N. Korea, you know? since his nation could be annihilated any day now.

They Play Volley Ball In N. Korea?

Here's an interesting story:

Nuclear volleyball  
    Intelligence photographs of North Korea's nuclear test site showed technicians playing volleyball this week near the tunnel where a nuclear device was unsuccessfully set off on Sunday.
    The facility where the test took place was identified by U.S. officials as a North Korean science and technology research center near the town of Kilchu and the northeastern coast.
    Very high-resolution satellite images obtained by the Defense Intelligence Agency showed the volleyball game being played near dormitories at the facility.
    The Japanese intelligence agency also had access to the photographs, and according to U.S. defense officials, they reported that a sports activity so close to a nuclear site was inconsistent with post-nuclear testing precautions, since the underground tunnel where the test took place was located several hundred yards away.