Well, I think stem cell research is very promising but I don't think tax money should be used to fund it like many other projects that have promise. Tell me why private pharma can't do it as they do so much in the drug field ? I believe they will and the benefits won't necessarily come from fetal stem cells. We understand so little about cellular machinery at present but I am constantly amazed at the progress being made.
Private pharma is busy trying to make new drugs. They don't have the money, time or compulsion to do basic reasearch and understandably so.
There is plenty of embryonic stem cell research being done in private universities and in some public universities. Ethical and moral considerations aside (and I don't mean they aren't important - they are) I think someone earlier hit on the reason that pro stem cell types want the research "legitimized" is because they want masses of more dollars from your pocket and mine to put into the research.
You can understand their point of view. They don't see the fetus as a human life so they see nothing wrong with growing embryos for stem cell research. They don't see frozen embryos left over from couples' attempts at in vitro fertilization as living beings, so they would rather see them go to research rather than get flushed down the sink. If you do away with finite rules of morality, it's easy to see their justifications. I'm just not willing to do away with the finite rules of morality. And I don't think Ronald Wilson Reagan would either - EVEN IF it had saved him from Alzheimers.