An act of personal kindness can mean so much, can’t it? One touched me the other day. My printer was jammed—a sheet of paper wedged inextricably– I could only get little pieces out. Life without a printer? I knew mine was getting increasingly ancient, and would have to be replaced, sooner rather than later– but times were tight financially. What to do, what to do? I had just bought a new re-filled second-hand cartridge and the people who sold it to me seemed nice… so I called them up and told them—and they were nice enough to say bring it over. They spent 45 minutes taking the printer apart—and freed the rollers. That’s why I am giving a free Christmas plug to CARTRIDGE WORLD, owned by Dominique Woon, at the Gateway Shopping Center, Fremont CA 94536 Ph. 510-790-2023, Email fremontcw@yahoo.com Christmas moments.,, I was talking to New York scientist friend, Mark Noble the other day, and the conversation was just getting to the point when I would ask him for another favor. (Read on …)

Before I met the monster on the road, I had been on my way South to Los Angeles for the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee (ICOC). This was an especially important meeting at which the big disease team grants would be decided, as much as $20 million each, loans or grants. Some projects would go forward, others would die. My cell phone rang. Pulling off the freeway and fumbling through my suitcase (keep ringing, keep ringing!), I found the phone, opened it, recognized the numbers on the screen. Dr. Hans Keirstead…. I dreaded what the voice might say. He had a project in question: a way to use embryonic stem cells to fight Spinal Muscular Atrophy: important not only to the children who suffer and die from this terrible condition, but to the entire field of research. (Read on …)

“Breathes there a man with soul so dead, that never to himself hath said, “this is my own, my native land…?”—Sir Walter Scott. High on the side of the Hilton Hotel is a glass-walled bridge connecting to the Baltimore Convention Center: crossing it was like walking on plush carpets through the sky. The 2009 World Stem Cell Summit was housed in three ballrooms, each big enough to host its own convention. High ceilings? You could buzz a plane around in there! Surrounding the ballrooms was a collection of stem cell displays: biomed companies, exhibits from colleges, states, nations—and a changing set of science posters, each one deserving of a conversation with the scientist standing beside it. (Read on …)

A lawsuit is being brought against the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Dr. Francis Collins, and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, as well as the NIH and HHS as public agencies. The suit attempts to block the new stem cell research Guidelines, and to end federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. Here is my layman’s understanding of the case. First, the Plaintiffs, and why they feel they have “suffered irreparable damage” by the new Guidelines, and claim standing in the case: Dr. James L. Sherley and Dr. Theresa Deisher are adult stem cell researchers, who allege they will be injured financially if limited federal dollars are diverted to embryonic stem cell research, resulting in less funding for their area of specialization. Nightlight Christian Adoptions describes itself as a non-profit which “protects human embryos conceived through In Vitro Fertility procedure”. They claim injury through decreased number of embryos available for “adoption” from the new stem cell guidelines; they claim guardianship of Plaintiff Embryos, (some portion of roughly 440,000 in storage at present, plus more in future), describing said blastocysts as “minor persons”. (Read on …)

Faye Armitage is running for the US Congress in Florida, District 7.  She’s conducting a valiant campaign, although she’s been vastly outspent by her opponent.

Faye has for many years been an outspoken advocate for stem cell research.  See her eloquent plea for advancement of the research at:
http://hk.youtube.com/watch?v=95eV178Z2Jw

Thanks — and go Faye!  We appreciate the spirit as well as the intelligence you bring to our cause.

Dear stem cell research advocates everywhere,

But there are many other races for state and federal office in which one candidate strongly supports the research.  A case in point is the campaign of Vicki Englund in Missouri.  See below the opinion of Don Reed who founded Californians for Cures and is also Vice President of Public Policy for Americans for Cures Foundation.  Don writes: 

The most important race? Presidential. Obama must win, or everything you and I care about is at risk. This is a lot more involved here than just the sheer joy of having a friend instead of an obstacle in the White House.

The most important state? Michigan : Proposition 2 must pass, or we tell the Religious Right it is okay to keep research in the Dark Ages.

The most important Congressional/Senate (state or national) race? Your call. Right now, I know of more than 100 races where there is a strong stem cell candidate America needs to support.

Like Vicki Englund   www.vickienglund.com
(Read on …)

Don Reed (www.stemcellbattles.com) talks below about the tremendous victory for stem cell research in California.  Lots of credit goes to Don and to the patient advocacy group: Americans for Cures Foundation.

September 30, 2008

In the middle of the Wall Street chaos yesterday, as I sat watching CNN, wondering if I was witnessing the collapse of Western civilization, the telephone rang.

It was Amy Daly, co-executive director of Americans for Cures.

“I have news,” she said, “on SB 1565.”

Well, okay, I was sitting down anyway. More bad news would just fit with the rest of the day.

Senate Bill 1565: we patient advocates had been fighting that bill for the past eight months—through six committee hearings in the California Assembly and Senate– losing every step of the way. (Read on …)