Governor Jeanne has launched a counter attack against the Republican War on Science.  This surprised me because I didn’t even know we had one.  But My curiosity was rewarded when it became clear that the forefront of this war–at least from Shaheen’s crooked little corner of the world–was Senator John Sununu’s voting record on embryonic stem cell research.

Embryonic stem cell research requires the destruction of human embryos.  Some people have expressed some moral concerns over this idea.  Not being God, and not really knowing exactly when life begins, I myself have chosen to err on the side of caution, so I have to agree with Senator Sununu.  But unlike he or I, Jeanne collects a lot of campaign contributions from pro choice groups like Emily’s list, who gave her close to half a million in 2002, and currently-with other women’s and pro choice groups-have provided well over $200,000 so far this cycle.  They are donating to her precisely because she has no moral concerns on this issue.  So she can’t be in favor of anything but embryonic Stem cell research even if we could prove to her it’s a genetic dead end.

“As a grandmother and as an American, I am angry that we have lost seven years of promising research because of President Bush’s restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research,” Shaheen said

Well Jeanne, as a taxpayer and a voter, I’m getting tired of your half truths and misleading statements.

Jeanne wants us to believe that Senator Sununu is making people suffer, and perhaps die, because he supports the Presidents position, and refuses to fund additional Embryonic stem cell research.  But what she fails to point out (because then she has no case) is that embryonic stem cell research, much like adult stem cell research, can and is privately funded just like every other biotechnology, or pharmacological science, by people who are not part of the government, and believe there is something there worth investing in.  We call them Big Pharma.”  Huge, rich, heavily invested private–see; Free Market–money machines that make science and medicine advance beyond the limits of Jeanne’s comfort zone where the government decides everything.

Jeanne says nothing about existing federal funding for the 60 stem cell lines already in place that were not back-tracked.  Bush just wasn’t interested in funding any new ones.

She never mentions that adult stem cell research has produced 72 cures and treatments so far while embryonic stem cell research has produced none. (That’s right, ZERO!)

She ignores that Adult stem cells can be tweaked to provide the exact same desirable characteristics of embryonic stem cells, without the moral dilemma.

She forgets to remind us that at least some of those tax dollars come from Americans who have a serious religious and moral objection to it and that as their employee she is supposed to consider those objections in her deliberations. (I don’t honestly believe she deliberates, by the way)

And she wants us to believe that she, given these facts, can just give 12 billion more tax payer dollars to the National Science Foundation (NSF) in the name of the completely unucessful form of stem cell research?  That sounds, dare I say it, elitist!

Did I mention that adult stem cell research has produced 72 cures and treatments so far while embryonic stem cell research (both the public and private kind) has produced none.  Zero. Nil, nada, the big donut!   And she’s “angry that we have lost seven years of promising research.”  

Looks more like we saved the taxpayers 12 billion if you ask me. 

Just for the record the National Science Foundation’s budget has increased about 50% under George Bush, going form 3.9 Billion in 2000, to 6.1 billion in fiscal 2008 and he’s been increasing funding based on their budget requests without much debate.  That hardly sound like a war on science.  NSF’s own request for 2009 is only 6.85 billion. 

So “War on science” Jeanne?  Really?  Are the Republicans telling private industry not to fund any particular kind of research?  Because unless you are a big government, socialist, tax and spend liberal, most of us believe that the best work is done outside the control of the laughably inefficient federal bureaucracy.  And to be honest,  You were an expensive governor, and I’m not sure I’m ready to trust you with a multi-trillion dollar budget, and a potential blank check president.

I like a Senator who is a cheap date.