Proposition 71 is a smart choice for California and the
country.
Its passage would raise a bond of about $3 billion for stem cell
research over the next 10 years, propelling California to the
cutting edge of medical research.
Proposition 71 has the potential to attract some of the best
medical minds to California’s research centers, while also
advancing research for diseases ranging from cancer to
Alzheimer’s.
The proposition will fund primarily embryonic stem cell
research, with some money going to underfunded adult stem cell
programs. It will not provide funding for human reproductive
cloning intended to create a human being.
The scientific community has rallied behind the proposition,
including University of California professors and a staggering list
of hospitals, research institutions and other groups. Gov.
Schwarzenegger has even endorsed the initiative, a dramatic split
from his party’s position.
Currently, no state funding exists for such research and federal
funding forces unjustified constraints on scientists.
No one can predict the full potential of stem cell research, but
the same could have been said of silicon fabrication or the
beginnings of the Internet.
Modern societies have the responsibility to fund science. We
cannot pass over the chance to ignite a new era of discovery.