It's done! Obama has reversed Bush's restrictions on Stem Cell Research funding

This was one of President Obama's numerous electoral promises (including removing funding restrictions for abortion clinics, a Stimulus Bill to aid the economy, etc.), and personally I believe it may be his biggest one in terms of potential repercussions if all goes well. While Dubya had restricted Stem Cell Research funding to only 21 or so stem cell lines out of a total of roughly 1,000 possible lines, Obama has now officially killed these stupid ideological restrictions, finally permitting research on this fantastic new gateway to a potentially much better tomorrow.

"The majority of Americans from across the political spectrum, and of all backgrounds and beliefs have come to a consensus that we should pursue this research," Obama said. "That the potential it offers is great, and with proper guidelines and strict oversight, the perils can be avoided."

He called on Congress to provide the needed funding even as he asserted the order would never allow human cloning.

"We will ensure that our government never opens the door to the use of cloning for human reproduction," he said in the White House ceremony where he was joined by scientists and other supports of the research. "It is dangerous, profoundly wrong, and has no place in our society, or any society."

Indeed, our society – any society, in fact – has no place for human cloning, ever. That is one thing I'd never want to see happen in my lifetime: replicates of pre-existing humans. Perhaps if the technology and science was advanced enough to the point where we could safely remove any potential 'chinks and clinks' in the genome and cloning procedures and such, I'd be more lenient, but for now, it's still murkier than the Loch Ness in terms of potential hazards and problems.

Honestly, once someone looks at all the pros versus the cons of Stem Cell Research, I honestly don't understand how any sane and balanced mind (that's not indoctrinated with any bullshit dogma or beliefs, that is) can really be against Stem Cell Research. No-one is being hurt in any way, shape or form, except a bunch of insignificant cells that are unable to feel pain, or even think about feeling pain. And then, this research in itself could lead to some of the greatest scientific and medical breakthroughs in history, potentially curing such disastrous diseases and injuries as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, many (if not all) forms of Cancer, and even regenerate nerve connections to give motion and feeling back to spinal cord injury or illness sufferers. Honestly, how the hell do you say 'no' to that?

Of course, pretty much the sole reason Bush and his Republican ignorant creed had against Stem Cell Research – along with abortion – is that it 'kills human life'. If only someone could walk up to them and hammer some common sense into their unnaturally thick skulls and do us all a favor: human life, as with any life, is insignificant when it's just a freakin' embryo. After all, life itself is nothing more than chemicals interacting with cells and each other, ask any biologist on the freakin' planet for Pete's sake! All that matters is if the human is not just a human, but actually a 'person', someone who can feel, think, perceive, etc. Considering embryos cannot feel, think, or anything at all, killing them is no more important than squashing a grape. (But I'm sure someone will speak up against the needless and vile crushing of grapes somewhere.)

That's the chief problem with Republicans and Conservatives: unable, or even unwilling, to let go of their ancient and outdated values on the significance of human life in any of its forms, and their constant mingling of ideology, especially religion, with science and reality.