Some Preliminary Questions to Consider...

Again, welcome! As I strive to better understand the world surrounding the debate over stem cell research, I am constantly confronted with this question of priority and life. It has been established that the most informative stem cells are those that reside in four to five day old fertilized embryos, the removal of which destroys the fetus. Even though stem cells exist in adults, it is widely understood that adult stem cells are limited in the types of cells that they can become, making embryonic stem cells more valuable for research and, therefore, the treatment for patients. As such, I believe that every side of the debate revolves around a fundamental right to life, and consequently, whose right to life is more supreme: that of the fetus or the patient? The more I question, the more questions arise. Thus, I propose that you begin to ask yourself some of the following questions to better understand where my views come from.

1) Do you think that this question resides in the heart of the debate over stem cell research?
2) How would you begin to prioritize between these two lives?
3) Can you ever make an absolute conclusion about the right to study embryonic stem cells?
4) Since it seems reliable to assume that everyone has their own opinion on the matter, who has the right to determine the results of the debate?
5) Are there other means of creating stem cells (e.g. cloning) that may be more morally acceptable?

I hope you find these questions as interesting as I do. I hope to tackle at least some of them in the subsequent posts, so please stay tuned.

Welcome! Soon I will begin posting about my thoughts about the debate over stem cell research and my ideas on the research itself. Stay tuned and feel free to present your thoughts or ideas as well!