Religious right and corporate right: An Unhappy Marriage

I truly wish we had known what Ronald Reagan’s thoughts were on the issue of stem cell research before he passed away. Here’s a man who was venomously opposed to abortion to the extent that he made banning of planned parenthood a prerequisite for aide to third world nations. A man who sat on his hands and did nothing when the AIDS epidemic came to light because he saw it as punishment for a deviant lifestyle.

However his deterioration before his family and friends due to Alzheimer’s made such an impact on his family that they are among the strongest supporters of Stem Cell research and federal funding for it. I would like to think that if Reagan had the ability to reflect on his condition and the possibilities stem cell research may provide to people and their families that suffer from wasting away in such a way, that it would have made such a great impact on him that it would have changed his outlook completely.

I do think that his family has an impact on conservatives that hold Reagan up to be a sort of hero. So I think that seeing him waste away from Alzheimers maybe makes some realize that everyone is vulnerable to it including the President. Of course the other motivation for conservatives is the desire to the United States take a leading role in reaserch and development which ultimately will translate into future profits. I think translates into a conflict on interest between the pro business republicans and the religious ones.