Bush vs. Science

So I've been trying to give the blog a bit of respite from my rantings about US politics, after all it just gets old eventually.  But I have to revisit the topic yet again, if for nothing else than the fact that I am seeing a scary trend.

So I'm sure most of you heard that Bush vetoed the legislation allowing more stem cell research.  As a scientist this particularly pisses me off.  For those of you who may not be aware of the potential benefits of stem cell research, the belief is that they can be used to regrow organs and tissues.  Now this is a hell of a lot better than doing transplants that come with a lot of problems of rejection and the need to suppress your immune system; and even then the organ will likely be destroyed by your body over time.  So for scientists to learn how to unlock the potential power of these cells could have massive benefits to our collective health.

Now the controversy, as Bush sees it, is that scientists want to use embryonic stem cells.  The reason for this is because the cells are fresh, in that they haven't undergone years of reproduction and damage, as I understand it.  Admittedly these embryonic cells can only be obtained if the embryo is destroyed (i.e. aborted).  And this is where the religious fanatics seem to have a problem.  I suppose they feel that the scientists will be pressuring people to have abortions just so that they can get more stem cells...or something as stupid as that.

Now as far as Bush is concerned "It crosses a moral boundary that our decent society needs to respect, so I vetoed it,".  I wonder how Bush feels about those rich bastards who will try to buy organs from the poor?  Isn't that morally wrong as well. Wouldn't it be better for them to just pay to have new ones grown for them in a dish?

On top of all this funding for the National Institute of Health, the body that funds more scientific research than any other, with the goal of improving health (duh!).   Now I wonder how much money went into research for new weapons.  You know, those things like MOAB which only tend to improve our lives.  I wonder how many fetuses have been killed in Iraq due to the war?  Then again, do non-Christian fetuses count?

I've been trying to figure this all out and I think I have a new understanding of the choices that Bush makes regarding scientific matters.  You see the secret is, Bush is afraid of science.  I wonder how many science classes he took?  Then again I can bet that there weren't too many, we all know how well he can pronounce "nuclear".  Not to mention his issues figuring out the reality of evolution and global warming.  See the other problem with science is that there are all these unavoidable FACTS that you have to deal with.  That and most of the answers aren't in the bible, the one book Bush may have actually read.