'Milestone' stem cell advance reported

Scientists have made ordinary human skin cells take on the chameleon-like powers of embryonic stem cells, a startling breakthrough that might someday deliver the medical payoffs of embryo cloning without the controversy.

..."This work represents a tremendous scientific milestone -- the biological equivalent of the Wright Brothers' first airplane," said Dr. Robert Lanza, chief science officer of Advanced Cell Technology, which has been trying to extract stem cells from cloned human embryos.

"It's a bit like learning how to turn lead into gold," said Lanza, while cautioning that the work is far from providing medical payoffs.

[link to article, via gary]

presidential jackassery.

that warm, fuzzy feeling...

...of the hairs on the back of your neck, bristling with rage:

Lifting the ban on taxpayer funding of research on new stem cells from fertilized embryos would better serve both science and the nation, the chief of the National Institutes of Health told lawmakers Monday.

Allowing the ban to remain in place, Dr. Elias A. Zerhouni told a Senate panel, leaves his agency fighting "with one hand tied behind our back."...

...Bush issued the first and so far only veto of his presidency last year when he killed legislation that would have expanded federal funding of stem-cell research. In January, the House passed a revived proposal.

[link to article]

it's nice to know that with all the madness going around with the war on iraqterror, the troop surge, n.korea's nuke talks, subpoenas on the judicial firings, global warming, signing statements.. you name it.. i can still count on him using his second veto to tell me i'm not worth the science.
[and the reasoning is his religious beliefs, right? church and state anyone? SCIENCE, people. medical advancement. what happened to USA #1? yay China, yay India]

but hey, at least we've got a great health care system in this country.