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Dear List members, I feel that Linda's message in regard to PD and politics is so important that it bears repeating and deserves our time to reflect upon it and fully comprehend its meaning. Linda wrote that anyone who thinks that finding a cure for Parkinson's doesn't involve politics is living with their head buried in the sand. She explains that it took three years of political activism to pass the Udall bill and that Parkinson's research would still be receiving the lowest funding of all chronic illnesses if people hadn't worked politically to turn that around. She points out that while billions of dollars are being spent on the war in Iraq, the proposed budget for the NIH this year is a 1/2 percent increase. With the rate of inflation, this represents less dollars than we had to work with last year. The current administration is ignoring the advice of scientific experts in their fields in favor of the opinions of religious fundamentalists and neo conservatives. Medical advisory committees have been stacked with those who share the President's social and religious beliefs. Scientific associations have termed George W. Bush as "The most anti-science President in history." As a person with Parkinson's disease, these are all very important issues to me. These issues affect my life and my future. They affect the lives and futures of my children and grandchild. I am but one of many whose lives and futures are affected by the decisions our political leaders wish to make for us (for society) and I do not choose to sit back quietly and politely when I do not agree. I think we all should have learned a lesson on that when we watched as levees broke, a city flooded and thousands of lives were jeopardized as a result of a failure of leadership to initiate either a responsible plan for prevention or an organized plan for responsive emergency action. Yes, I know, and I will agree with the principle that our leadership is not responsible for nor can they be expected to prevent or remand every disastrous act of nature and every affliction that can befall us. What I do not agree with is our leaders being presented with a reasonable opportunity to fund, explore, research and hopefully find cures for some of mankind's most devastating diseases through embryonic stem cell research and their choice not to do so....I call that a monstrous failure of leadership! There are some who will find this message inappropriate to this forum but in spite of the risk of being offensive, I feel it imperative to express to the Parkinson's community my feelings about the importance of PD's connection to politics and the need to be vocal on this issue. Dee ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn