In the last Lifeline [Summer 2004, Vol. XIII, No. 2], we informed you about Proposition 71, euphemistically named “The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act,” which went on to victory in the November 2004 election. This means that starting January 2005, by constitutional amendment, California bureaucracy has expanded to include “The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine,” whose workforce will engage in stem cell research, adult and embryonic, which includes research using the technique called “human somatic cell nuclear transfer,” the procedure by which cells are derived for human cloning. California’s fetal farming will be funded by the California taxpayer whether it offends the conscience or not.
2004 also marks LLDF’s fifteenth anniversary. Over the past fifteen years our mission has broadened, in that while we still defend the unborn and those who speak on their behalf, LLDF now must defend chronically ill, disabled and elderly patients from forced death. These vulnerable patients are now considered nonpersons, unworthy of the right to life, just like the unborn. Consequently, they are routinely and actively killed by starvation and dehydration, leaving one to wonder, in light of Prop 71’s passage, cures for who?, underscoring the fact that while Proposition 71 promises cures, at least one of the scientific community’s goals in implementing this Act will be cloning.
While the passage of Prop 71’s approval by the voters is disturbing, there are consequences resulting from the 2004 election which are welcome to those of us who value the sanctity of human life. With the recent unfortunate news of Justice Rehnquist’s illness, and rumors that possibly two or three other justices will be leaving the High Court, the reelection of President Bush most likely means the appointment of a pro-life majority in the United States Supreme Court. This could mean that Roe v. Wade may not be the law of the land in the foreseeable future.
Just as Roe dehumanized and created a victim class of the unborn, making a commodity of human life and sending us down the slippery slope that led to abortion on demand, forced death and now embryonic stem cell research, Roe No More will be the catalyst to reverse this trend. LLDF anticipates that day with delight. In the meantime, we will not stop our defense of the defenseless, or cease legal maneuvers to undercut the pro-death machine. And we hope that Roe No More means LLDF will not need to mark another fifteen years with its thirtieth anniversary!