X-Message-Number: 20750
Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2002 18:13:57 -0800
From: James Swayze <>
Subject: Proof most people are either ignorant or stupid or both

CNN Quickvote Poll

Created: Fri Dec 27 02:23:40 EST 2002

Are you for or against human cloning?
   For                    22%                              39805 votes

   Against              78%                              143576 votes
Total:  183,381 votes

This QuickVote is not scientific and reflects the opinions of
only...[sic]...blah blah.
[end]

Close to the numbers for cryonics aren't they? To take part in this poll
go to the vatican related url down below and look 3/4 down the page.

Related:
[begin]
Raelian leader says cloning first step to immortality

Saturday, December 28, 2002 Posted: 2:08 AM EST (0708 GMT)

MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- The leader of a religious sect that claimed to
have created the first human clone Friday called the development "just
the first step" toward human immortality through cloning.

http://www.cnn.com/2002/HEALTH/12/27/human.cloning/index.html

Clonaid: Baby 'clone' to return home Monday

Monday, December 30, 2002 Posted: 3:09 PM EST (2009 GMT)

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A company founded by members of a sect that believes
mankind was created by extraterrestrials says the alleged first human
clone -- an infant girl --
will return home Monday and will undergo testing to verify its genetic
makeup.

http://www.cnn.com/2002/HEALTH/12/30/human.cloning/index.html
[end]

And then from the brainless gallery:

[begin]
Bush: human cloning 'deeply troubling,' urges ban

Friday, December 27, 2002 Posted: 3:25 PM EST (2025 GMT)

CRAWFORD, Texas (Reuters) --
President Bush is "deeply" troubled by efforts to clone human beings and
wants Congress to ban the practice, the White House said Friday after a
French scientist claimed her company had produced the first clone.

http://www.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/12/27/bush.cloning.reut/index.html
[end]

And then from the brainwashed gallery:

[begin]
Vatican slams 'brutal' clone claim

Saturday, December 28, 2002 Posted: 12:28 PM EST (1728 GMT)

ROME, Italy (CNN) -- The claim that a cloned child has been born in an
undisclosed country displays a "brutal mentality" lacking "ethical
consideration," a Vatican spokesman has said.

http://www.cnn.com/2002/HEALTH/12/28/cloning.vatican/index.html
[end]

Although I am highly skeptical of the so called Rael's claims and indeed
Clonaid's claim even to have accomplished this 'safely', I do agree with
one thing the person known as Rael says.

[begin]
"I think opponents to cloning are more afraid of a healthy baby than of
a handicapped child," he said. "They would be so happy the child will be
handicapped, saying, 'Look, this is terrible, they are creating
handicapped children.' Their most utmost fear is to have a healthy,
smiling baby, because then the public opinion will change completely and
everybody will say, 'That's beautiful.' "
[end]

A lot of the media hype is again irrationally negative and biased rather
than neutral just like when Ted William's case became first known and we
saw Max More being ridiculed on CNN as he attempted to defend our views.

I wish this group had not done this at this time and without preliminary
and published research. Since it has been announced as if it has
happened this alone stands to do harm to cloning research which includes
in the public mind anything with the words clone, cell, embryo, gene,
etc. So since the harm has been done I hope it is not a hoax and a waste
of public discussion and turns out totally successful. If successful it
will go a long way to quiet the public and political bias against it.
Still it may have been a bit premature, to say the least. Then again who
knows. We did just eek by and barely miss the passage of the misguided
Brownback-Landriu bill that would have banned reproductive nd
therapeutic cloning research altogether.

James
--
Cryonics Institute of Michigan Member!
The Immortalist Society Member!
The Society for Venturism Member!

MY WEBSITE: http://www.geocities.com/~davidpascal/swayze/ While there
follow the links to photos of me and some of my artwork and a radio
interview on Dr.  J's ChangeSurfer Radio program with me and the father
of cryonics Prof.  Robert Ettinger, author of "The Prospect of
Immortality".
A RELIGION I actually recommend: http://www.venturist.org
A FAVORITE quote: Last lines of the first Star Trek the Next Generation
movie.
Capt.  Picard: "What we leave behind is not as important as how we've
lived, after all Number One, we're only mortal."
Will Ryker: "Speak for yourself captain, I intend to live forever!"

Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=20750