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This statements below are from the US Conference of Bishops on their website opposing ALL embryonic stem cell research, even using embryos that will be discarded by IVF clinics. They may be a minority but they are dedicated and organized and active. They may well determine the kind of medical research that will be done in this country unless we respond in great numbers to the NIH call for comments. The blastocysts involved are not 'innocent human beings" by any stretch of the imagination. They have no body parts or bodies. They are microscopic undifferentiated cells - that is why it's called stem C-E-L-L research. How can a cell be "innocent" or "guilty"? SCNT or somatic cell nuclear transfer involves an unfertilized egg - no sperm - and one's own DNA. Persons are not cloned; cells are. If this is banned it means a young-onset PD woman who still has eggs could NOT use her own eggs and skin cells in an attempt to cure her Parkinson's. Are you benefitting from adult stem cell advances and cures? If not contact the NIH and ask for medical research free of religious restrictions and controls: NIH comment site: http://nihoerextra.nih.gov/stem_cells/add.htm Ray "Embryonic stem cell research treats innocent human beings as mere sources of body parts, as commodities for our use. Even if, like the embryos targeted by the NIH policy, an embryo may be at risk of being abandoned by his or her parents in a fertility clinic, that does not give researchers or the government a right to kill that human being - much less a right to make the rest of us subsidize that destructive agenda.read more Some in Congress and the Administration want an even broader policy. They want to obtain stem cells by destroying human embryos specially generated for research through in vitro fertilization (IVF) or cloning procedures - a "create to kill" policy. Neither of these policies is ethical or promotes responsible science. They both violate the fundamental right to life. Patients suffering from devastating illnesses deserve our compassion and our committed response - but not at the cost of innocent life. The Church supports ethical stem cell research and treatments that do no harm and respect the inherent dignity of persons - cutting-edge medical advances that are already benefiting patients with dozens of conditions in clinical trials. It is time to focus on cures and treatments we can all live with. " View All Campaign Resources Action Alert:" Rayilyn Brown Director AZNPF Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation [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