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And thank you, Ray, for all your effort and good sense. David >From: rayilynlee <[log in to unmask]> >Reply-To: Parkinson's Information Exchange Network ><[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Reed election comments >Date: Mon, 13 Nov 2006 10:44:47 -0700 > >#253 Monday, November 13, 2006 - STEM CELL RESEARCH: What We Won, What We >Need > >I watched the election returns with a bunch of rowdy stem cell supporters; >we were all yelling and hollering-- it was like the Super Bowl for us. >Overall, our side won big-time. >In California, the top nine elected officials were all strong stem cell >research supporters. >Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi, >Attorney General Jerry Brown, State Controller John Chiang, State Treasurer >Bill Lockyer, U.S. Representative Jerry McNerney, Secretary of State Debra >Bowen, Senator Dianne Feinstein, and U.S. Representative Fortney "Pete" >Stark. (Senator Barbara Boxer was not due for election yet-but she is >always >first and foremost when it comes to fighting for the research too.) > >Many faced virulent opponents of the research; but they won. >In Wisconsin, Governor Jim Doyle, staunch stem cell man, was re-elected for >another term. >Elliot Spitzer became Governor of New York, and we remembered his billion >dollar pledge for stem cell research. >But the most terrible pain of the long evening? >The anguish when McCaskill of Missouri's numbers came across the screen. >At first she was ahead; then Claire-our Claire-- slipped back. >When I left around midnight, I was more disappointed than I can express. >More than any single election, I wanted Claire McCaskill to win. No one had >put her heart and soul into supporting the research like she did. She did >not hesitate-she did not equivocate-she just went all the way for us. >I remember Jim Talent took about three months to try and figure out where >he >stood on the research in general and Amendment 2 in particular (he >eventually opposed the Amendment, opposed Brownback's anti-everything >position, which took some guts on his part, and supported the >cell-extraction method)-Claire McCaskill said, "I can tell you my position >in three words: I'm for it." >And now, she had lost? I drove home in a numb fog of exhaustion and >despair. >In Missouri, according to friend Jeff Eisen, the opponents of the research >were ecstatic. They were celebrating. They had a cake, so big it had to be >rolled out on wheels. >And they were eating it, getting ready to go home. >It is my understanding (and I have no statistics to prove this yet) that >both tobacco and big oil companies donated money to the anti-research >crowd. >Why? Because a strong conservative turnout would help them. >And then, somebody looked at the screen. > >As for me, when I got home, I was going straight to bed. > >The news was good, I told myself, can't expect to win everything. >And then I figured, hey, go all the way, one way or the other. Find out >every grim detail. I turned on the TV, plunked myself down on the couch. >And there she was. >The announcer was just saying, "we now project: Claire McCaskill is the >next >U.S. Senator from Missouri." >And Amendment 2? >Despite all the trash the opposition threw Amendment 2 pulled through. >Later, Missouri friend Jeff Eisen told me, the supporters had not been >particularly worried. Turns out they knew exactly the percentages that had >to be won in each districts, and the pro-research districts had just not >been heard from when I drove home. >There will be huge consequences to that simple declaration that stem cell >research which is allowable in America would also be permitted in Missouri. >It meant that a tremendous new medical institute-- a stem cell research >institute-would be established in the Show Me state. >A Bible Belt state could become an international stem cell research center. >And more and more good news-primarily provided by Michael J. Fox. >Many people fought for us. But in this election, November, 2006, no single >individual had more impact than Michael J. Fox. >Some day I want to meet him, and shake his hand, and say thank you. > >So, now what? Is it all done, and we can retire to our normal lives? >Well. > >There are maybe one or two more little chores in need of our attention. >Pass the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act. We did this before, we can do >it again. This time, let's try for 100%, on both sides of the aisle. Then >we >don't have to worry about a certain individual's stubbornness. > >Clarify or discard the Dickey-Wicker Amendment Act. This Amendment says >that >no federal funding shall ever be allowed for any research which destroys an >embryo. It has to be renewed every year. We know that billions of embryos >pass unnoticed from women's bodies every month, and no one mourns. Should >not the hope of saving lives and easing suffering for full-grown humans >entitle researchers to duplicate this natural procedure, as is done in >fertility clinics every day? Or, if that prospect is too awful to >contemplate, then at very least we must have official recognition of a >simple fact-that the product of Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer is not a >sacred embryo, having neither any sperm, nor any hope of implantation. But >one way or another, we need to increase the availability of stem cell >lines, >both for the hoped for individual medical treatments (the ultimate), and >the >more immediate benefits of making medicines affordable again, by being able >to test new drugs on stem cells, rather than endless animal trials for >every >new drug that comes along: we can eliminate many, if not most, and save >almost unimaginable amounts of money. > >Increase funding for the National Institutes of Health. The current path to >diminish the money we spend trying to heal people while flooding cash into >death and destruction must end. >Those are reasonable goals, I think. > >Good luck to us all! > >Don C. Reed, Chair, Californians for Cures, www.stemcellbattles.com. >Email Don at: [log in to unmask] > >---------------------------------------------------------------------- >To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: >mailto:[log in to unmask] >In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn _________________________________________________________________ Stay in touch with old friends and meet new ones with Windows Live Spaces http://clk.atdmt.com/MSN/go/msnnkwsp0070000001msn/direct/01/?href=http://spaces.live.com/spacesapi.aspx?wx_action=create&wx_url=/friends.aspx&mkt=en-us ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn