TURNING THE TABLES:

A climate of fear in the stem cell lab (David A. Shaywitz, February 17, 2005, Boston Globe)

WHILE RESEARCHERS in California gleefully contemplate how they will spend the $3 billion in stem cell funding recently approved by state voters, a dispiriting miasma has settled upon the rest of the stem cell community. In Massachusetts, Governor Romney's recent critique of stem cell research has profoundly exacerbated this sense of concern.

This much is clear: in most states -- including Massachusetts -- significant funding seems unlikely to materialize, while chafing federal research restrictions are apparently here to stay and likely to be enforced with renewed elan. Add to this Romney's desire for additional restrictions, and the result is an environment that seriously challenges the ability of stem cell researchers to achieve the best results. [...]

A vocal minority of Americans are fundamentally opposed to human embryonic stem cell research, and even may be enjoying a bit of Schadenfreude as they hear about our ongoing difficulties. But to most Americans, the opportunities afforded this new discipline seem enormous, and compel us to find some way to move forward with the science, while also respecting the genuine concerns of our critics.

Schadenfreude is an appropriately Germanic term for stopping morally repellant medical experimentation.

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 19, 2005 12:00 AM