Religion and the Health Care Bill

Two Catholic Archbishops have a different opinion on the abortion debate per Time magazine in a November 16, 2009 issue. Raymond Burke in the Vatican argues that pro-[women’s] choice Catholics should be denied Communion & funeral rites. He accuses Boston Cardinal Seán O’Malley who is a pro-choice Catholic [he gave Sen. Kennedy funeral rights] as being under the influence of Satan, “the father of lies”. Also, Thomas Tobin the R C bishop of R.I in a 2007 letter to U.S.Rep. Patrick Kennedy, said to stop receiving Communion because of his stance on moral issues-particularly abortion.

House Speaker Pelosi saw the Health Care bill passed & go to the Senate when she got house Democratic votes by restrictions on abortion. Per the Herald-Tribune of Sarasota, FL in a November 27, 2009 issue, the current Senate bill has these restrictions favored by abortion supporters.

The RC bishops could well bring down this bill. This is another example of Religion trumping politics. This time it could be a sorely needed Health Bill.

SCIENCE and the FEMININE GENDER

Much has been written about females educating in the sciences. Florence A. Cordova, President of Purdue University at its West Lafayette, Ind. campus and a scientist herself, points out that according to the National Science Foundation women earning bachelor’s degrees in science and engineering increased from 50,000 in 1966 to nearly 240,000 in 2006. This is nearly a fivefold increase in scientific degrees. A significant triumph for science.

Society will soon be crediting scientific achievements to women; the “not suitable to women blocking” is no longer a societal limit.

Hopefully, this increase in the scientific education of women will result in a change for the better; more research in incurable diseases without religious belief trumping science.

AUTISM, Controversy, Science and Multiple Sclerosis

The cause of AUTISM is one of the biggest debates amongst the millions of incurable diseases in the US. Unlike MS, however, mercury in a vaccine for AUTISM is said to be its cause by the anguished, sometimes violent, persons close to those affected. Science says it is not. For more on this debate, read the article on AUTISM in The Best in American Science Writing, 2006. You can also see the pros and cons of the debate on the Internet.

Rather than attacking the health workers involved in researching and administering the vaccine, why not prioritize the search for a cure like what has been done for AIDS?

Given the funds & time devoted to opposing the vaccine, wouldn’t most choose to invest in embryonic stem cell research, research using embryos to be discarded anyway? The same kind of research the NIH selected for the millions of dollars that are pouring in to search for a cure for AUTISM.

The Status of Research with iPS Stem Cells

Some newspapers July 24, 2009 printed that Chinese researchers had used skin cells converted by iPS to be like Embryonic Stem Cells and bred mice.

Chinese & Americans agree that with the large number of failures, along with a few successes, it would be unethical to attempt this in humans.

A Small Step Forward for Embyronic Stem Cell Research

How should the Federal Gov. fund Embryonic Stem Cell Research?

A Gallop Poll of Feb. 20-22, 2009 shows that 52% of Americans believe that there should be no restrictions or an easing of those of former Pres. Bush. 41% feel there should be no change or not fund at all.

We remain divided along a political lines the same as in our last election. The small step forward is now there is Federal funding for research using embryos that previously were to be discarded anyway.

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Natural Selection was the theme at the annual meeting of the association this year. 2009 is the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth and the 150th of publication of his On the Origin of Species.

We note and celebrate Charles Darwin's birth and publication of his breakthrough theory. But politics still trumphs science after all these years.

CREATIONISM (Evolution) & the SURVEY SAYS ?

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A 2006 survey for the BBC's Horizon program found that one fifth of the people contacted for the poll were convinced of the correctness of the creationist argument as in Genesis of the Old Testament of the Bible and less than half thought this was the best description of how life came into being.

A denial of science, just as Charles Darwin's theory of evolution from his book Origin of Species and embryonic stem cell research is denied.

NIH and President Obama on Stem Cell Research

Pres. Obama in an effort to get 'Politics out of Science' left it to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to determine the kind of research they would do with Stem Cells.

There are two kinds of stem cell research. That vetoed by then Pres. Bush, eight years ago, using embryos to be discarded anyway from IVF clincs (petri dish clinics) and those derived from skin and tissue.

The NIH chose Embryonic Stem Cell Research

RETURN ON INVESTMENT through Stem Cell Research

Stem cell research helps us all was published by the Herald-Tribune of Sarasota, FL on March 27, 2009. The author and guest columnist is Dean Sutherland, MD, PhD. He is a neurologist and medical advisor to the Neuro Challenge Foundation.

Exerpts from the article; Unfortunately, the average person has no reasonable options for stem cell treatment at present...and...This will have an economic and medical impact on all of us and on our children.

Some of you may not read this scientists' article so I am e-mailing it separately to all that receive this blog. For those of you in Google cyberspace that want the article, give me your e-mail address and I will send you a copy via the word program.

Multiple Sclerosis and iPS and Love trumphs any Religious Belief

I'm going to digress from the Church & State topic, to cover a new discovery by Harvard scientists, iPS is its label. Time in their February 9 issue, pages 39-43, has an excellent article on this development. There is so much information presented that it is difficult for me to digest it all. If you can, you will certainly be up-to-date on progress in research in embryonic stem cells.

Already the NYTimes has published a result of this research. It is unfortunate that ex-President Bush slowed research for 8 years. Our new President Barack Obama had been in office for only a few weeks when he reversed the Bush veto ordering the federal goverment to engage in embryonic stem cell research.

Did you know Michelle Obama's father was a victim of MS in his early thirties? It shows though: when a loved one has a dreaded incurable disease a choice is made for a more plausible, sooner, scientific choice of cures in embryonic stem cell research.

Love trumphs any religious belief.

Separation of Church and State

On Christmas day I received a video with this statement on the disc container: Everything you always wanted to know about Separation of Church and State...but were afraid to ask. This video is presented by First Freedom First on the Internet at http://www.firstfreedomfirst.org/.

I watched the video twice but was disappointed. I wanted to know more and will visit their site.

In the coming months, I will share my thoughts with further blogs on this controversial subject.