Thanks for the interesting site, Joan. it will take some study as I can't see well and my windows don't open wide enough for all the text of the debate. ray ----- Original Message ----- From: "Joan Snyder" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Saturday, December 31, 2005 9:06 AM Subject: Re: Ayn Rand Institue fellolw on "rights" > dear rayilynlee: > thank you so very much for posting such a wonderfully written, well > thought out & extra-ordinarily sensitive essay about embryonic stem cell > research. it is time, i feel, that these kinds of rational, yet > easy-to-understand and easy-to-relate-to type of stories are used to > promote our agenda. we have tried with the scientific reasoning but now > i think the time has come to use to thoughtful, passionate and > intelligent responses to our critics. you are right, also....joan of arc > was burned alive onm May 30, 1431; retried in 1456 and acquitted; but it > was not until April 11, 1905 that she was Beatified by Pope Saint Pius X > and not Canonized a saint until May 16th, 1920 by Pope Benedict XV. All > of this shows that the Church, while being so large and incredibly > slow-moving and resistant to change have, in fact mountains of material > to sift through and digest and consider before they will change even the > profound injustices found in the treatment of St. Joan (go to: > http://maidjoan.tripod.com/ for an essay by the Saint Joan of Arc > Anti-Defamation League entitled: MYTHS AND DISTORTIONS ABOUT JOAN OF > ARC), the church's ethical and religious bigotry against those of the > Jewish faith and the horrific facts about priests who are/were capable > of such monsorous sexual perversions against young children and > adolecences. while i in no way seek to justify the actions or in many > cases the lack of action of the Church, i can begin to understand why > the wheels of justice turn so slowly and help me to realize that while i > was born a Catholic, it is my religion of choice also. i would also like > to thank Mary Ann Ryan for her gentle words of support and understanding. > i still agree with the essay that i wrote 3 yrs ago: > > > now i must thank my support team which consisted of Dr. R. Rajaraman, a > retired professor specializing in cell and molecular biology of > cancer-living in Nova Scotia , Canada; Dr. Raymond Barglow, Ph.D, who > studies and write about bioethics, and lives in Berkeley California and > Dr. K. F. Etzold, Ph.D, who's degree is in physics. it was with the help > of these three men that i have come to see the flaws in my first piece. > Dr. Rajaraman went on to work up his own 10 page thesies on the subject > and i didn't feel that in any way, my name belonged on his masterpiece. > i think that his work stands on it's own. > > /however, i have taken to mind the considerations put forward by Drs. > Barglow and Etzold, and we have come up with a shorter, more impassioned > plea for understanding...for finding a common ground amidst this > unsavory battle. So here, with a little help from my friends is our > final copy of my original piece: > > _Stem Cells and Cloning -- The Science behind the Rhetoric_ > > > Out there on the political battlefield of stem celll research, sides > have been taken, > many round fired, and casualties sustained by both sides. So much smoke > fills the air that it's almost impossible to think straight. The cause > of the confusion is often language: words as powerful as flamethrowers > ignite fierce reactions from both sides. > > > I am Joan Snyder. Many of you know me as a wife and mom and a > parishioner at St. Edward Catholic Church in Chillicothe, Illinois//. > Others know me as a 51 year old woman who has been diagnosed with > Parkinson's Disease for 13 years, who is an advocate and fundraiser on > behalf of people with this condition. And those who know me well have > seen for years now that I walk a moral tightrope regarding the > controversial ethical problems that have challenged not only people with > my disease, but also those with Alzheimer's (which killed my father), > juvenile diabetes, ALS, spinal chord injury, stroke, heart disease, and > other devastating conditions that could possibly be cured through stem > cell research, including so-called "therapeutic cloning." > > I am hopeful that medical research will provide us with new remedies > whose approval will require neither that I compromise my Catholic > Pro-Life beliefs, nor that I turn my back on the many thousands of > fellow PWP's (people with Parkinson's). I have gotten to know a good > number of them, both in person and on the web -and as if looking into a > mirror, I've seen their slow, downward pantomime. And I've also learned > about some of the complexities of this research, and about the > confusions that cloud the essential scientific and ethical issues. > > I'd like to begin by noting that there are some quite thoughtful, > anti-abortion Christians - including people like Nancy Reagan and > Senators Orrin Hatch and Strom Thurmond - who strongly support > therapeutic cloning research. Some Catholic Theologians, such as Thomas > Shannon, also support this research. Let's examine the issue, and see if > we can understand why. > > > Here are definitions of some of the scary words out there: > > _STEM CELLS_ --Undifferentiated, primitive cells with the ability to > reproduce themselves and to differentiate into specific kinds of cells. > If we - or, I should say, the scientists among us -- can understand > better how stem cells grow and specialize - then we can use them to > treat injuries and diseases. There are different types of stem cells and > different ways of generating and gathering them. > > _BIOMEDICAL CLONING _-- Cloning is a quite general term in biology that > denotes the creation of multiple, identical copies of a cell. There are > many types of cloning, some of which are now commonplace in biomedicine. > Cloning has allowed scientists to develop powerful new drugs and to > produce insulin and useful bacteria in the lab. It is one among several > new genetic tools that allow researchers to track the origins of > biological weapons, identify criminals, and produce foods more > efficiently. Some of these scientific applications are rightly > controversial, but what I've discovered is that so-called "therapeutic > cloning," in particular, is entirely safe and ethical…but more about > that below. > > _REPRODUCTIVE CLONING_ - This is the use of cloning technology to create > a child. It aims to take cells from a person (or sheep, creating Dolly) > and use them to create a genetically identical organism. I find the > concept of human reproductive cloning abhorrent and immoral. I think > that this kind of research should be banned right away. > > _THERAPEUTIC CLONING_ (technically known as _SOMATIC CELL NUCLEAR > TRANSFER, or_ _SCNT)_ --This involves removing the nucleus of an > unfertilized egg cell, and replacing it with the nucleus of a "somatic > cell" (for example, an adult skin, heart, or nerve cell) and stimulating > this cell to divide. Once the cell begins dividing, stem cells can be > extracted > within one week and used for research. The SCNT cell remains in a > laboratory on a Petri dish, and the process does _NOT_ involve sperm at > all, does _NOT_ use a fertilized egg, and does _NOT_ produce an embryo > to be implanted in a woman's uterus. > > The words "stem cell" sometimes evoke an explosive reaction in people on > both sides of the abortion issue. The fact is that stem cells are in our > own blood, brains, and other parts of our bodies. Scientists think that > with further research, these adult stem cells may help us cure disease > like Parkinson's, juvenile diabetes and many other diseases ... but no > one knows for sure. There is the research being conducted right here in > Peoria by Dr. Rick Weber who is an Associate Professor of > Immunopharmacology and Microbiology here at the University of Illinois > College of Medicine, who is working on stem cell research that uses a > patient's own white blood cells to help cure that patient. > > There are also stem cells that can be harvested from umbilical cord > blood that is routinely discarded after a baby is born. Around the > nation, cord blood banks are being set up to help doctors and families > donate their umbilical cord for research. > > We would all favor this humane stem cell research, if we understand it. > The problem lies in the very mention of the words "stem cells." People > tend to forget that there are many kinds of stem cells that scientists > work with. "Embryonic stem cells" are the flashpoint that ignites both > sides of the abortion issue. Sometimes these are harvested from > "leftover" embryos that are created by a couple using in-vitro > fertilization. These embryos are routinely destroyed by clinics and > hospitals each day. Should they be discarded in this way? It is at this > point that clouds of uncertainty obscure our vision and raise serious > questions: > > Which is more pro-life: to destroy these embryos, which will never > become children because they are not transplanted into a woman's womb? > Or to give these embryos value by using them to advance life-saving > research? I have to admit that I don't how to handle this ethical hot > potato. But I can tell you that over the years, watching this disease > take my life and the lives of my friends away little by little, > sometimes makes me deeply question my own beliefs. So, this brings us > back to the issue of cloning. The key to > understanding the issue lies in the distinction between reproductive > cloning -- which should be banned immediately -- and life-saving, > therapeutic cloning. Therapeutic cloning is entirely moral, in agreement > with the fundamental values of all of the major religions, and offers > great promise for curing terrible, fatal diseases that affect young and > old people alike. Therapeutic cloning will save lives; it cannot create > them. > > I hope that I have helped to clear up some of the misconceptions about > cloning, and to find common ground where pro-life and the pro-choice > people can come together in a united effort to heal the devastation and > suffering of so many. > / > > now i must thank my support team which consisted of Dr. R. Rajaraman, a > retired professor specializing in cell and molecular biology of > cancer-fron Nova Scotia, Canada. Dr. Rajaraman went on to work up his > own 10 page thesies on the subject and i didn't feel that in any way, my > name belonged on his masterpiece. i think that his work stands on it's > own. > > / > > > > > -- / > > / / > > > Joan Blessington Snyder 54/14 > [log in to unmask] > http://www.pwnkle.com/jes/jes_web/index.htm > “Hang tough……..no way through it but to do it.” > Chris in the Morning Northern Exposure > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: > mailto:[log in to unmask] > In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn