You just have to wonder about our steeped-in-principles president. Bush wouldn't know how to use his veto power if Cheney explained it to him real slow, and yet he's chosen to exercise it for once and for what? To nix a stem cell bill that has plenty of GOP support.

GW is so indebted to and in bed with the religious right that he's apparently willing to cause fissures within his own party to please them. If you think he went too far with the Schiavo posturing, think again. He's one-upped himself.

This bill would still ban federal funding for creating embryos for research, but would allow research using discarded embryos from fertility clinics. In other words, these discarded embryos would most likely never be used within the clinics and thus destroyed. So rather than use them to further research and perhaps save lives in the future, no, notta, it's better (more moral) to toss them in the garbage -- for the sake of the "culture of life." Are you kidding me? Where does reason ever enter the picture with this guy?

One other question: I always thought the religious right stressed that life started at conception. If the South Koreans have developed a method to clone human embryos (and then extract stem cells), I would think that these embryos were not conceived per say (via sperm/egg), and therefore what happens to the definition? What, the original cells came from a conceived human and therefore that counts -- huh?

As we progress as humans, it becomes that much more difficult for those who wish to stand in the way of advancement to keep their stories straight. I'm not knocking religion but rather pointing out what should be obvious: technology is here to stay and new discoveries will continue to come at a faster clip. That said, to forcefully make the case against certain breakthroughs, it's going to become that much more difficult to do so consistently and convincingly.

REMINDER: For those who will respond with the usual Bush-voting-for-life-(period) as an explanation here, my usual response to this - which should end all discussion - is: FOR THE '04 RACE IN PENNSYLVANIA, BUSH ENDORSED PRO-CHOICE SPECTER OVER PRO-LIFE TOOMEY. Again, this fact should tell you all you need to know about the "sanctity of life" for GW (the "culture" or "sanctity" begins and ends with politics -- forget religion, morals, principles, etc.).