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Stem Cell Research Bill Clears Australian Senate

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the sudden-iq-migration-down-under dept.

jaunty writes "A private members bill has passed the Australian senate which paves the way for the cloning of embryos to gather stem cells. While it only passed by a narrow margin it is expected to gain support in the House. From the article: 'The final shape of the bill is now subject to further debate on amendments including measures to toughen penalties for breaches of cloning regulations, and possibly a move to stop the use of animal tissue in the cloning process.'"

1 of 234 comments (clear)

  1. even if only 2 cells, if dna is human it's human.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    It's just a matter of age. The problem with stem cell research is that it's the start of a gigantic slippery slope. If it's ok to count a handful of human dna cells as nonhuman today, who's to say down the road we won't call anything up to a 9 months of pregnancy nonhuman... then down the road, "oh if you are under age 18" you really aren't productive to society, we better chop your organs out and give them to those that are more important to society than you since you don't have full education yet... same, probably faster, would happen to elderly... You are retired, you don't count as human any more since you can't work.

    Any human embryo is a human, just an underdeveloped one. We shouldn't play with that stuff. Each of us was at that stage at one point in our lives. Some of the greatest people that have ever existed had genetic problems... We shouldn't go around playing God.

    So far, fetal stem cell research has not proven any real use... no real developments are apparent from it. Adult stem cell research on the other hand has all sorts of possibilities, and is an area that's been studied a lot more. Adult stem cell research is pretty much what we have so far, and it works. Why kill potential babies in order to do research that probably won't save any lives for any time in the near future.

    Another problem with fetal stem cell research is that it creates a need for egg donations. To fill that need, egg donations from college age girls is needed... Egg donations from girls that age is dangerous to both those girls and possibly to their reproductive organs and ability to have children down the road. Kids in college are under enough financial stress, we shouldn't put something like that out there to give them quick cash for stuff that could possibly ruin their health and the health of their potential future families...