LifeZine No. 757: 25th Feb 10
Hear, Meet World Experts at Family & Life Seminar on March 5
Mark Friday evening, March 5, 2010 (8.00 pm sharp; registration, 7.30pm), into your diary as a date not to be missed! Family & Life, the Pro-Life Campaign (PLC) and the Second Look Project will co-sponsor a seminar featuring two of the world’s most renowned academics/scientists: First, Stanford University Professor William Hurlbut, a former member of the US President’s Bioethics Council and a leading researcher on ethical stem cell research, famed for his advocacy of the Altered Nuclear Transfer (ANT) process. This is a scientific method of obtaining pluripotent stem cells without creating and killing human embryos. Second, Princeton University Professor Robert George, professor of jurisprudence, politics and philosophy, and a former Judicial Fellow at the US Supreme Court. Prof George also served on the President’s Council for Bioethics and is a prolific author. Prof Hurlbut will speak on “Embryos, Human Dignity and Stem Cell Research: Is There a Way Forward?” Professor George will give a presentation, “Political Obligations, Conscience and Human Life”. Make your reservation early, because space is strictly limited for this important seminar. To book, please contact Family & Life at… Details: CLICK TO READ MORE.....
Fine Gael TD Clarifies Views on Tax Advantages for Married Couples
Fine Gael TD Leo Varadkar, in a letter to The Irish Times, clarified his stance on tax benefits for married people: “Last week I spoke in the Dáil on the Civil Partnership Bill during which I addressed tax implications that may arise from the introduction of civil partnership. I drew attention to the fact that the tax system can require a single person to pay considerably more tax than a married couple that earns more, despite the high cost of living alone. I pointed out that this tax advantage is also given to married couples with no dependent children and even married people who do not live together. The major beneficiaries of this anomaly are wealthy couples with no dependants. I said this was unjust and that extending the tax benefits of marriage to civil partners would result in further disadvantageous treatment for singles. This aspect of my speech was picked up in an article on Page 6 (January 28th). I went on to argue that the State should, instead, give the tax benefit to the ‘family unit’ to recognise the cost of raising children and the social good of family life. In fact, the tax system barely recognises families at all and only does so through a special tax credit for families headed by a single parent and a small credit for the stay-at-home spouse. This was picked up on Page 8 by another reporter. Unfortunately, some stay-at-home parents read the article on Page 6 but not on Page 8 and got the wrong end of the stick, totally. I wish to have the matter clarified and to restate my support for favourable treatment for families. I do not, however, believe that single people should be treated less favourably than married couples or civil partners where there are no dependent children involved. These views are my own”. The Irish Times. February 5.
Marriage Rate in Britain Hits Lowest Level Since 1862
The number of people getting married in Britain has fallen to its lowest level since records began in 1862. For the first time ever, fewer than two in 100 women got married in a single year. In 2008 the marriage rate for women fell from two per cent to 1.96 per cent, less than half the rate 25 years ago. The figures highlight how far out of favour marriage has fallen. From a peak in 1940, when 426,100 young couples—spurred on by the urgency of World War II—married for the first time, just 147,130 marriages in 2008 were first marriages for both spouses. In total, 228,204 marriages took place during 2008 in England and Wales. The escalating cost of weddings and the failure of the Government to support the institution of marriage were among the factors blamed. But long-term changes in society, especially the increase in the number of women working and their desire to marry later in life, were also key factors. The average age of women marrying for the first time has nearly hit the symbolic 30-year-old barrier, at 29.9, up from 29.8 during 2007. For men, the figure was 32.1 years, up from 32 the year before. Many observers expressed sadness at the statistics. Dave Percival, a campaigner for marriage, said, “Living together and marriage are increasingly seen as the same by the public, yet the outcomes are radically different. Two thirds of all the first marriages in 2008 can be expected to last a lifetime. Less than 10 per cent of cohabiting relationships last even to their tenth anniversary”. The Telegraph. February 11.
Europe’s Demographic Winter: Further Decline in Population Expected
According to estimates from Germany’s Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), the population of that country probably declined slightly again in 2009 on the previous year. The decline is estimated at about 0.3 per cent—from 82.0 million inhabitants at the end of 2008 to 81.8 to 81.7 million one year later. Hence, the country’s population slump continued. Since 2003, Germany’s population has fallen every year. Statistisches Bundesamt Deutschland. February.
Stem Cells Used on Irish Patients “Were Not for Human Use”
Stem cells supplied to a Dutch clinic where Irish multiple sclerosis (MS) patients went for treatment were not “intended for human use”, a General Medical Council (GMC) hearing in London has heard. Dr Robert Trossel said he did not discover that a batch of vials sent to him in Rotterdam in 2006 carried the warning till he took part in a BBC Newsnight programme. Dr Trossel also came to the attention of the Irish Medicines Board in 2006 when he began flying to Ireland to use Dr John Dunphy’s practice at Carrigaline, County Cork, to provide stem cell therapy. Hundreds of patients were paying €18,599 for a three-hour session before the service was deemed illegal under EU regulations on the handling and quality of stem cells. Dr Trossel told the GMC hearing that a TV crew accompanied a patient to film his treatment and interviewed Dr Trossel while following the entire process. Under a contract the clinic held with Advanced Cell Therapeutics (ACT) to provide stem cell therapy, the firm supplied it with cells. But as part of Dr Trossel’s procedures to comply with soon-to-be introduced European guidelines covering the tracing and sourcing of cells, a batch that came to his clinic in August, 2006, included information about their source. He told the GMC hearing that a BBC cameraman spotted the name All Cells on the label next to the barcode and batch numbers. Dr Trossel said he searched California-based All Cells on the internet and found a disclaimer stating it produced materials only for laboratory use. After contacting All Cells, he stated, “We couldn’t get the confirmation, so we immediately stopped all treatments with ACT patients”. The physician testified that ACT told him the consignment was sent in error. Dutch-trained Dr Trossel is allegedly unfit to practice for administering stem cell therapy in an “illegitimate, misleading and dishonest” way. The allegations relate to his treatment of nine men and women, most of whom were suffering from MS. The Irish Examiner. February 12.
Research Challenges Euthanasia Plan of Quebec Government
The Institute of Marriage and Family Canada has released a new paper objecting to the legalisation of assisted suicide, as the Quebec government began a provincial consultation on legalising euthanasia on February 15. Analyst Derek Miedema compiled research showing that people who suffer a spinal cord injury could rehabilitate and attain a self-defined high quality of life with the passage of time. The research found that early stages of accident recovery almost always included requests for death, but these almost always gave way to happiness at being alive. So legalising assisted suicide might in effect capitalise on a period of depression after an accident. One study found, for example, that 92 percent of people who have had a spinal cord injury say they are glad to be alive. Therefore, the research noted, people with spinal cord injuries who committed assisted suicide hastily would die too soon to receive possible medical treatment and to regain their happiness. This research has broader implications, says Miedema: “We cannot impose our own understanding of a ‘life worth living’ onto any person with a disability. And any discussion of legalised assisted suicide should be aware of the long-term nature of injury recovery”. Xinhua. February.