Embryonic Stem Cell Ballot
Referendum Defeated in New Jersey
Part One, Part two
Editor’s note. Please send me
your thoughts at
daveandrusko@hotmail.com.
In spite of seemingly enjoying
every advantage, a New Jersey ballot referendum
to authorize the state to borrow $450 million
over 10 years to finance embryonic stem cell
research went down to defeat Tuesday.
Emphatically backed by Gov. Jon Corzine,
"Question 2" lost 53% to 47%.
And while almost completely
overlooked, the proposal--while purporting to
ban research into human cloning-- in fact
explicitly permitted research on cloned human
embryos, as bioethicist Wesley Smith observed on
his blog.
Late last month, as opinion polls
began to indicate a movement against Question 2,
Corzine touted a study from Rutgers University
that concluded when coupled with the $270
million stem-cell institute already authorized,
passage of Question 2 "would generate $2.2
billion in economic benefit, 30,000 jobs and
$115 million in state revenue."
Voters did not buy into Corzine's
wildly optimistic arguments, and the defeat
marked the first time New Jersey voters have
rejected a statewide ballot initiative since
1990.
But the alleged economic payoff
went hand-in-hand with Corzine's even less
supportable insistence that "funding would help
find cures for conditions such as spinal cord
injuries, Parkinson's disease, sickle cell
anemia and multiple sclerosis while also luring
leading scientists and research firms to the
state," according to the Associated Press.
Of course, all of that is hooey.
The defeat of Question 2 came
about for any number of reasons, but it’s easy
to share Wesley Smith’s assessment and
enthusiasm.
“Maybe CURES! CURES! CURES! is
finally losing its political potency,” he wrote.
“Maybe voters are finally seeing through the
hype, obfuscation, and mendacity. And maybe,
just maybe, this can lead to both ethical sanity
and fiscal responsibility in biotechnology. In
any event, whoopee!”
Please send your comments to Dave Andrusko at
daveandrusko@hotmail.com.
Part Two
