|
|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
|
|
Press Release |
.....November 16, 2004..... |
Illinois Senate Voting to Clone, Postponing EthicsChicago, Illinois - November 16, 2004 - The Stem Cell Research Act (HB3589) currently before the Illinois Senate is "backwards and dangerous," according to The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity, headquartered in Illinois. The bill admits that embryonic stem cell research "raises significant ethical and policy concerns." Yet it seeks to legalize and fund the research, calling for "full consideration" of the ethical concerns only after the legalization takes place. In light of the strong public opposition to human cloning, the fact that the bill hides human cloning in the technical language of "somatic cell nuclear transplantation" is no surprise. The implications of this bill are staggering. Instead of recognizing ethics as a protector of all human beings against inherently unacceptable practices, the bill calls upon the State to "balance ethical and medical considerations." "As important as medical benefits are," notes CBHD Director of Clinical Ethics, Robert Orr, MD, "it is extremely dangerous to think that we should put the medical and ethical considerations onto the same scale. Ethics provides protections--limits beyond which science and medicine must not go. This bill goes far beyond those ethical limits by cloning human beings and subsequently killing them." It ultimately threatens every human being, at any stage of development, as long as others will benefit sufficiently from their destruction. After nearly a decade of carefully considering the scientific, ethical, and legal issues involved in stem cell research, CBHD's international network is confident that adult stem cell research will be sufficient to achieve virtually every stem cell treatment possible. No human lives are sacrificed in that process. Embryonic stem cell research is not only destructive of human life but also ultimately unnecessary to produce stem cell treatments. For More InformationThose who would like more information on stem cell research and cloning can obtain a 2-page Q/A sheet from CBHD, or the 100-page booklet, Genetics, Stem Cell Research, and Cloning. See also the CBHD operated web site www.stemcellresearch.org For Interviews with Center PersonnelContact the Center at 847-317-4095, or by email at info@cbhd.org About The Center for Bioethics and Human DignityThe Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity is located just north of Chicago, Illinois. Its mission is to develop reasoned perspectives on all of today's bioethical issues and to disseminate them to health care professionals, academia, cultural and church leaders, public policy makers, and the media in order to protect human dignity. Organization Website: http://www.cbhd.org CBHD Press Contact: email: info@cbhd.org voice: 847-317-4097CBHD |
|
|
Copyright 2004 The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity The contents of this article do not necessarily reflect the opinions of CBHD, its staff, board or supporters. Permission to reprint granted as long as The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity and the web address for this article is referenced. |
