Next will come the call for the purposeful creation of funding for disease-specific embryos. These embryonic humans are not dead. They were chosen and frozen because they looked promising for future attempts to fill the empty arms of their mothers and fathers. SB 810 authorizes the use of tax money to pay to thaw, nurture, … Continue reading
The blog.bioethics.net links to several online reports about the Bioethics and Politics conference, including LifeEthics and this one from the Scientist, covering one of the paper sessions. ( Covered by LifeEthics last week.) It seems that Missouri legislators would not vote to approve embryonic stem cell research if the bill had the word “embryo” in … Continue reading
If I wanted to study disease through embryonic stem cell research, I’d imagine that I would want to study only those with the disease or susceptible to the development of the disease. How many of the chosen, frozen embryos are likely to be diseased? This is just one of the questions you need to ask … Continue reading
Harvard alumnus James L. Sherley, M.D., Ph.D., a professor in the Biological Engineering department at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has “come out” with his opposition to cloning and destructive embryonic stem cell research. In particular, Professor Sherley, a Pew scholar credited with research on the “assymetrical” division of adult stem cells, is quoted in Australia’s … Continue reading
From a fellow family physician, more reasons to avoid expanding centralized, government insurance: The Joke’s On Us as ALWAYS! Remember that 4.4% Fee Schedule Reduction we had to start the year from Medicare? Remember we were given that back through all the efforts of the AMA and AAFP? Forget about the fact that the fee … Continue reading
I wish I could applaud the Massachusetts initiative to require everyone to have health insurance. I haven’t seen much to recommend the government as a responsible regulator of insurance or healthcare. Healthcare too easily becomes an entitlement that can be used in the way that circuses and bread were in old Rome: If you play … Continue reading
It has long been possible to observe very premature babies pull away from painful stimuli and react physically as though they were in pain by crying, showing faster pulses and breathing rates and even changes in their blood hormone levels that mimic pain response in older human beings. But that pain has been dismissed as … Continue reading
Recently, this blog mentioned the advocacy of “death with dignity” for all humans who desire the help of physicians and modern medicine in their quest for self-induced death. But, there’s a worse ethical position, one I thought had died out (excuse the pun). Eric Pianka, Ph.D, a tenured professor in the Integrative Biology department of … Continue reading
An anonymous reader has noted that when I complained about CBS’ touting of destructive stem cell research, the example that I gave involved the use of patient’s own stem cells. These cells would not treat Batten disease, which is a inborn error of metabolism. This type of disease is a genetic defect in the metabolism … Continue reading
Over at FreeRepublic, they’re discussing this week’s New York Times guest editorial, “The Doctor Will See You for Seven Minutes,” by Peter Salgo, MD. I highly recommend that your read the op-ed at the NYT in full, and then the thread at FR. 3 years ago, I closed my office and went to work part … Continue reading