Quote:
Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
I don't know for sure (RT may from her earlier post), but I think the latter.
Is there a federal funding program that isn't the latter?
|
I suspect that you are right, in which case Slave's argument -- "Bush is just saying you need to do that research with private money" -- is seriously flawed. It's like saying that Carter didn't impose a national speed limit, he just told the states that they would lose all federal highway money if they allowed speed limits over 55.
I have no idea who really does serious stem cell research but I assume that it's almost exclusively done through universities and research centers that depend on federal money to support a huge range of programs (most of which, at least in universities, have nothing to do with stem cell research, or even medical research). The Bush policy -- which goes beyond "we won't support x" to "if you do x, we will cut you off from all financing for anything else" is in effect pretty close to a bar on the research.
As to your final question, the answer is yes -- there are any number of things the fed gov't won't support, but it will allow people to do without being punished. When the NEA or HHS turns down a grant application from a university, they don't take away the rest of the university's financing.
