Treaty of Versailles

Nearly everyone has heard of stems cells - the magical "every-cell" that promises to cure disease and deformities. Every human has stems cells. A stem cell from my body, for instance, can be coaxed into making kidney cells for your body! It is, however, extremely difficult to harvest stem cells from an adult human. The best source of stems cells is from a human embryo. And therein lays the debate.

Let's define what a stem cell actually is. The human body has 220 different types of cells. A stem cell is a type of cell that can be manipulated to develop into any of the 220 types of cells we can create within our bodies.

Stem cells are commonly extracted from unneeded human embryos. Usually, these embryos are the by-products of in-vitro fertilization. Typically, a woman gets a dozen or more eggs fertilized in attempts at artificial insemination. These eggs turn into embryos of about a dozen cells. These are actually "pre-embryos." They have no brain, lungs, nervous system, eyes, or any other recognizable human anatomy. What they DO have is the potential to become human.

Some people vehemently denounce the use of stem cell use because, according to them, the extraction of stems cells from pre-embryos kills a viable human being.

The opposing view is that these pre-embryos will never be given the chance to develop and will be destroyed. They are not human beings, regardless of potential. They are merely a mass of cells to be utilized for the benefit of all mankind.

The benefits of stem cell research are enormous. Heart patients can have heart tissue regenerated with stem cells. Perhaps, in time, we can even grow new eyes, bones, and organs. Imagine not having to wait for a kidney transplant - but instead growing a new kidney that has a zero chance of rejection.

So - is stem cell research ethical or not? Are we killing humans when we harvest stem cells from pre-embryonic tissues? This is the crux of the debate.

According to Charlie Reese, "...it is ridiculous for people who have already decided that it is moral to kill babies in the womb to show some squeamishness about destroying human embryos in a petri dish." Reese, a pro-lifer, makes a valid point. Our society sanctions the abortion of fetuses much, much further developed than an embryo.

My personal view, however, is that we should definitely pursue stem cell research. A block of wood has the potential to be chair, a desk, or a statue. Left alone, a block of wood is nothing more than a block of wood.

Similarly, these pre-embryos have the potential to be hearts, kidneys, eyes, lings, livers, or bones. Left alone, they are nothing more than a mass of cells frozen in liquid nitrogen.

Make no mistake - these embryos are not destined to become people. They are