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Charlie, My husband and I have just experienced what the doc's call a chemical pregnancy. The egg & sperm came together and started to develop but quickly fizzled. I then miscarried. I was only about a week along. I am mourning this loss and believe that I have a child in heaven because of it. Jen, Dad w/ PD 55/39 -----Original Message----- From: Charles T. Meyer, M.D. [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Thursday, October 05, 2000 2:10 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: stem cells Bob, Your logic as usual is excellent - if you start with the premise that human life begins at the moment of conception. While I respect your belief of this basic premise I must say that I strongly disagree with it. Following your logic though, In addition to aborted fetuses you should mourn the deaths of all the miscarriages and failures to implant that happen every day. All theses deaths would likely make failure to maintain a pregnancy the number one health problem in the world. Since I haven't heard of this as a sweeping public health campaign from the right to life camp I must conclude that even for right to Lifer's there is a difference between the humanity of different stages of fetal development. The issue is not as cut and dried in my opinion as life starts at the uniting of an egg and sperm. I also do have a great problem with your Hitler analogy as well. To say it is only a small step from abortion to the atrocities committed by the Nazi's is ludicrous (in the absence of the leap of faith that you take that life begins at fertilization) I commend your support of stem cell research but I could not let your statements go unanswered. Let us continue to work toward funding of stem cell research and put aside these fundamental differences for another day. Charlie At 08:06 PM 10/4/00 -0700, you wrote: >Date sent: Wed, 04 Oct 2000 21:13:21 -0500 >To: "Parkinson's Information Exchange Network" ><[log in to unmask]> >From: "Charles T. Meyer, M.D." <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: Re: stem cells >Copies to: "Bob Fink, MD" <[log in to unmask]> > > > Bob, > > > > No flame war intended. I have always had the highest respect for you > > and your opinions even though we may strongly disagree at times.. > > Creating a human life just for sacrifice is not the case with stem > > cell research and I am glad to see that you separate the issues. > >Indeed, I do separate the issues. My objection was not to the >research, but to the "creation" of embryos just for the sake of >obtaining stem cells. It is not a large stretch of the imagination to that >place, and I want to prevent that from happening. > > >We > > can disagree on abortion and still agree that stem cell research > > should go forward. I would hope that as a pro-life physician, you > > will write to Congress and point out these subtile but important > > differences that may be lost on the layman not familiar with these > > issues. > >I have already done so. > > >The "casual discarding of human beings" (as you would call the > > embryo) is going to occur anyway in IVF and some good can come from > > the process. > >I disagree here. No "good" can come from an immoral act (killing of an >innocent human being). That's like saying, like the Chinese, for >example do, that an executed criminal forfeits his organs for >transplantation (the Chinese actually have been shown to do this!). >The people that *use* those organs, while ostensibly for the good of >other human beings, are actually perpetuating the original immorality. > > > > > > > I don't think that the beginning of life can be rigidly determined as > > you do and personally do not have significant objection to the process > > of obtaining the cells. But, I think that people who believe as you > > do can play a valuable role in the Stem Cell debate, by supporting > > extremely promising stem cell research while being strongly pro-life. > > The 2 positions are compatible. > >I agree. > > > >Best, > >Bob > > >********************************************** >Robert A. Fink, M. D., F.A.C.S., P. C. >2500 Milvia Street Suite 222 >Berkeley, California 94704-2636 >Telephone: 510-849-2555 FAX: 510-849-2557 >WWW: http://www.dovecom.com/rafink/ > >mailto:[log in to unmask] > >"Ex Tristitia Virtus" > >********************************************* Charles T. Meyer, M.D. Middleton, WI PD DX 12 years (at age 44) Age 56