Understanding Amendment 2

...is more or less an impossible task.

I was remarking to my parents today during the onslaught of commercials urging voters to "VOTE YES" or "VOTE NO" on this controversial amendment that one side or another needs to SHOW US the writing of the bill where it bans or allows cloning and the sale/purchase of human eggs. Wouldn't it give either side far more credibility if they would put up in black and white what the bill says?? Or at least advertise where the text of the bill can be read? The "VOTE NO" proponents came the closest to doing so by running the text across the screen in one commercial, albeit very fast, and saying where in the amendment it allows for cloning. But still. Both sides are saying contradicting things and not showing any proof to back up their arguments. I decided I had to read the bill for myself.

Here is the text of Amendment 2. Read it. Study it. And allow me to point out a few things about it.

Notice at the very top the bill says "No person may clone or attempt to clone a human being." Sounds good, right? I almost threw in the towel there and decided the bill WAS pretty plain in banning cloning.

But scroll down to the definitions. It says, "'Clone or attempt to clone a human being' means to implant in a uterus or attempt to implant in a uterus anything other than the product of fertilization of an egg of a human female by a sperm of a human male for the purpose of initiating a pregnancy that could result in the creation of a human fetus, or the birth of a human being."

So it won't allow implanting eggs created by somatic cell nuclear transfer in a woman's uterus. But it doesn't ban this procedure, which is cloning in and of itself. You're still doubling a human embryo. And nowhere does the document actually define somatic cell nuclear transfer.

But that's not all. Consider where it says this: "No person may, for valuable consideration, purchase or sell human blastocysts or eggs for stem cell research or stem cell therapies and cures." Oh, good. They won't allow women to sell their eggs or laboratories to buy them. Right?

Once again I direct your attention to the definitions: "'Valuable consideration' means financial gain or advantage, but does not include reimbursement for reasonable costs incurred in connection with the removal, processing, disposal, preservation, quality control, storage, transfer, or donation of human eggs, sperm, or blastocysts, including lost wages of the donor. Valuable consideration also does not include the consideration paid to a donor of human eggs or sperm by a fertilization clinic or sperm bank, as well as any other consideration expressly allowed by federal law."

They are saying one thing, and immediately taking it back. "No we won't allow women to sell their eggs. But we will allow reimbursement to be paid to a donor of human eggs." Either I've got really terrible reading comprehension skills (even though I would LIKE to think they're better than the average Joe Q. Public) or this bill is PURPOSELY MISLEADING the average voter.

After my study of this bill, I have decided that it DOES allow cloning and it DOES allow for laboratories to purchase eggs from women, a dangerous and sometimes deadly process.

PLEASE VOTE NO ON AMENDMENT 2!!!!