What if you needed stem cell treatment?

Recently a writer emphatically proclaimed that they would refuse a lifesaving treatment that resulted from research on embryonic stem cells (forget that you probably would never know the original source of a given treatment).

The writer asserted that they could not accept such treatment because it was morally reprehensible. By inference that same refusal would extend to anyone who is under their legal responsibility such as a dependent child or an incapacitated parent.

It would seem that refusal of lifesaving procedures for yourself is suicide and refusal of life saving treatment for someone whose life you are responsible for is akin to manslaughter or murder.

I'm not aware of any mainstream religion that suborns either position. There are however several major groups that don't have a problem with embryonic stem cell research under narrowly defined processes. It is nice to put forth blustery, empty and flowery rhetoric; it is more interesting to see which path you choose if you are in the very unfortunate position to actually have to make that choice.

James Prescott

Schaumburg