My opinion:
No. And I am ambivalent about abortion too.
Reasons:
1)Stem cells are taken, I believe, from human foetuses developed just for this purpose or for in-vitro fetilisation. The foetuses are then disposed of. I consider this exploitation and murder of the helpless. They would not be allowed to treat full-term babies this way. Nor even foetuses past the age of 28 weeks.
2)I also see this as a form of cannibalism and would not want any medical procedure for myself that involved the use of stem cells.
3)Even if such procedures can save lives or improve health it seems to me to be totally unethical to to do so at the expense of another human life, however briefly that life is permitted to survive.
Abortion: I consider abortion at any stage of foetal development to be murder. So I am against it.
However, I can see that to bring into the world unwanted babies who may then face abuse, poverty, neglect, is also undesireable.
But many people use abortion as a method of 'birth control' rather than using methods that will PREVENT pregnancy in the first place. Older people who no longer want children should be allowed free sterlisation if they want it. Younger people who do not want children/more children should be given free birth-control products and be carefully instructed in their use.
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[This message has been edited by Fljotsdale (edited 07-22-2001).]