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| View Larger Image | Sex, Science, and Stem Cells
by Diana DeGette
| | List Price: | $24.95 | | Price: | $14.97 | | You Save: | $9.98 (40%) |  | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours | | | | | Sales Rank: | 163597 | | Studio: | The Lyons Press | | | Binding: | Hardcover | | Number Of Pages: | 272 | | Publication Date: | August 04, 2008 | | Publisher: | The Lyons Press |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
In August 2001, President George W. Bush announced with fanfare that federal funds would be made available to scientists conducting research on human embryonic stem cell lines—with restrictions. Reading his words, not his lips, was Congresswoman Diana DeGette of Colorado’s First Congressional District, and what she read was this: a ban. “As a practical matter,” scientists could no longer pursue such work “in any lab that had received any federal funding, at any time, for any reason. That one declaration severely constrained stem-cell research in this country.” In Sex, Science, and Stem Cells, Congress’s leading advocate of stem-cell research presents a blistering indictment of the politicization of science—and sex—by the Bush administration, the Republican leadership, and the religious right. Addressing not only stem-cell research but also birth control, HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns, abortion, and sex education, Congresswoman DeGette takes the Bush White House and its fundamentalist allies to task for subverting any real discussion of human sexuality and reproduction. DeGette writes from experience—and hard-earned frustration. During fifteen years in office, her fight for sound public policy for ethical, cutting-edge scientific research has consistently been foiled. Pulling no punches in her scrutiny of a Republican leadership that has long shirked matters relating even remotely to human sexuality, she concludes that many of America’s elected officials are simply too blinded by religious dogma to think rationally about sex. In Sex, Science, and Stem Cells, she dares to do what they can’t, or won’t—opening the door to responsible, fact-based legislation going forward. |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 5 reviews)
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Stem Cell Research 
The book has a good development of the current status
of stem cell research, the problems and opportunities
available as we move forward. In December, 1994,
an Executive Order set boundaries on creating human
embryos. According to Harriet Rabb-General Counsel,
stem cells aren't within the statutory exclusionary
definition of an embroyo.
Scientists can create plurpotent cells which are
scientifically engineered stem cells for diabetes patients.
President George Bush discussed new treatments with
moral boundaries aimed at keeping the research on
ethical and moral high ground. The idea of cloning
raises red flags .
This is an excellent volume for readers interested
in stem cell issues and current research.
October 11, 2008 | |
A Political Memoir and a Political Rant 
Diana DeGette is my congresswoman, so I felt motivated to buy and read her book. I wanted to understand her views on stem cell research, and I wanted to learn more about her as a person and a politician.
This is a very emotional book. Representative DeGette is frustrated, angry, and embarrassed. She's frustrated with anyone who doesn't agree with her "common sense" views on anything related to human sexuality and reproduction, she's angry at the religious right for all the victories they have achieved against her, and she's embarrassed that her country is not like liberal Western Europe, where most women are on the pill, and people engage in free love and have abortions all the time and no one is the least bit bothered by it.
So, it's an emotional book, but it's also a very personal book, and this is perhaps the book's saving grace. This isn't so much a book about government policies relating to embryonic stem cell research; it's really a book about Diana DeGette. It's a memoir. Here is the story of a gifted and talented woman who worked her way through college and law school, built a law practice, and then took a risk and entered politics. This book will interest anyone studying the late-20th century politics and government of Denver and Colorado, a political history that DeGette helped create.
Readers will find a big disconnect between the introduction and the rest of the book. The introduction is strident and desultory; the balance of the book is measured and coherent. I think Diana DeGette wrote the introduction herself and Daniel Paisner, her credited ghostwriter, wrote the rest. Still, the entire work effectively conveys DeGette's overwhelming frustration with people who think differently than her. I think she wants her political legacy to be that of a hero for women's causes, but Catholics and other annoying "anti-choice" types keep getting in her way.
Other reviewers have already pointed out that the book presents figures and research findings without proper citations or attribution, and this is true but not a major flaw. For me personally, the book's major disconnect relates to research in general. DeGette consistently portrays herself as a proponent of embryonic stem cell research, and she effectively lists and explains the importance and value of such research. But is she really a research proponent? I work at the only public university in her district, and I don't know of a single thing she's done to support research at this university or research anywhere of any kind except government-funded stem cell research. So she's not really a supporter of research, judging by her lack of support for research in Denver at least.
In the end, DeGette's book is a pretty good, ghostwritten memoir, a political rant, and a case study of feminist political activism
October 07, 2008 | |
To be honest I was horrified
I could not put this book down. I found this work by Diana DeGette to be an excellent, clearly written easy to read view of specific aspects of the workings of Congress and the Senate. In particular Diana DeGette provides the reader with a solid insight to the realities and challenges associated with passing legislation and driving intelligent discussion using facts and logic within government circles. In so doing she exposes the extent to which these processes are hampered by opinion driven and uninformed personal world views. Also she demonstrates through easy to follow examples, the extent to which extremist special interest groups hamper changes which the average rational person will see as purely benevolent.
No doubt her specific subject matter will be controversial particularly in the U.S. as she focuses on sex and reproductive issues. Her approach however, is reason and fact based and oriented to achieving changes for the greater good. To be honest I was horrified to learn the extent to which America and indirectly the rest of the world is manipulated by a relative small number of people and organizations who have at the top of their priorities imposing their personal values on the rest of us and here's the thing, they do this regardless of what the facts show and the extent to which their views negatively impact the lives of literally millions of people.
Diana DeGette's approach is to narrate a personal journey describing the surprising impact her professional accomplishments have made on her personal life, how she has dealt with them and with some of "life's curve balls" specifically when her daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and the impact that made to her motivations.
If you consider yourself a rational person, i.e. someone who can be swayed by facts.
If you want to learn more about what really goes on in congress and the process of creating bills for improving peoples lives.
If you would like a solid insight into the biases of Congress people, Senators and the even The President.
If you are generally interested in the specific subject matter, birth control, abortion, HIV/AIDS, sex education, religion and government.
Then this book is for you.
If you have already made up your mind.
If you are not interested in facts and the result of scientific studies if they do not support your established opinions.
If you are interested in the welfare of people only if you can also control their world view, religion and or and the way they choose to live their lives.
Then this book in not for you.
September 17, 2008 | |
A Disappointment 
What was Congresswoman Degette's purpose in writing this book? After reading it, it's difficult to tell. If it is a narrative of congressional action regarding reproductive issues, it's a pretty dull read. If it is an apologetic work attempting to convince people of the merits of her pro-choice cause, there is too much name-calling. If it is a legal or scientific treatise discussing the legal background for reproductive legislation or advances in stem-cell research, there are, unfortunately, NO references or supporting documents. As best as I can determine, she wrote this as a catharsis for her frustration in being unable to pass her favored legislation.
She begins by describing her steps to congress, and the challenges her family went through with a daughter with type-1 diabetes. This section is probably the best part of the book, giving readers a chance to connect and sympathize with the author.
When she begins to discuss the difficulties in passing reproductive and stem-cell legislation, the book runs into trouble. In this book, there are no reasonable opponents, or thoughtful disagreements. Conservatives are "ultra-conservatives", "anti-science", "anti-choice" and "religious extremists". She tends to use words for their emotional content rather than their meaning. She appears to be unable to see any merit to her opponents' arguments.
Perhaps the worst part of this book is her characterization of her position being the rational and scientific one. If this was true, I would expect to see references pointing to supporting documents buttressing her assertions. Unfortunately she supplies only naked statements such as "87 percent of us" believe we should engage in embryonic stem cell research.
Even worse than the lack of support, or even context for her statements, are the outright errors in science and history. She claims that the term abortifacient is not a legal or medical term, but was made up by anti-choice forces to demonize certain drugs, apparently missing the fact that the term comes from the Hippocratic Oath. She tries to differentiate between Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT), used for procuring embryonic stem cells (ESCs) for research and therapy, and reproductive cloning. However, SCNT is the starting point for both therapeutic and reproductive cloning. The only difference is in therapeutic uses, the clone produced is killed and harvested for stem cells, while the reproductive clones are allowed to live. She tells of a discussion in 1998 with Congresswoman Nita Lowey decrying the fact that health insurance companies were covering Viagra, but not prescription contraceptives. However, Viagra had only been approved for human use in March of that year, and went on sale sometime later. There were few to no health insurance policies that would cover it at that time, let alone any mandates for Viagra coverage.
I can think of very few reasons to recommend this book. If you are already pro-choice, your position will be built up, but unfortunately with erroneous information. If you are pro-life, the content-free emotion words will harden your attitude against pro-abortion activists. If you are on the fence, the book likely won't hold your interest.
September 01, 2008 | |
"Be Fruitful And Multiply"
Denver Congresswoman Diana DeGette says teen-age pregnancies are up this year for the first time in many, many years. Sex-education programs that stress abstinence correlate with a high pregnancy rate - significantly higher than comprehensive programs that teach sexual physiology, birth control, and how to prevent disease. Unfortunately, the sexual repression ethic sometimes overwhelms common sense in our school boards. This brings us to the Congressional attitude about sex - any open discussion about it sends them into hiding.
Fortunately, with a popular issue such as stem cell research, Congress is braver. Led by Representation DeGette, Congress overwhelmingly passed stem cell research bills two years in a row, only to have them vetoed by the president. The anti-science bias of the Bush administration has struck frequently. To be fair, he probably is not specifically anti-science, but his religious and business agendas are often not consistent with mainstream scientific findings.
His administration opposes financing birth control, including condoms, but pays for Viagra. Bush appointed two people to direct the Office Family Planning who oppose birth control (can you imagine that?). Other Bush appointees killed easy access to the morning-after pill and the human papilloma virus vaccine - the prevention for cervical cancer. He approved $15 billion for the fight against HIV worldwide, but the vast majority of the money goes to Christian organizations that preach abstinence and will not distribute condoms. Go figure.
Unfortunately, it is difficult for a Republican politician to be moderate about this (or any other) party issue. If they oppose the fundamentalist part of the party, they run the risk of being seen as disloyal. In the typical example of party discipline, an extreme right-wing, well-funded candidate shows up in their district to run against them. McCain, to his credit, is for all types of stem-cell research (an easy place to be disloyal), but on votes relating to federal employees' health coverage and medically accurate pregnancy prevention programs, he caves to the fundamental wing of the party. His voting record on sex and reproductive issues is pre-historic.
DeGette's book advocates sensible science-based policies relating to sex and reproduction. The following chapters are presented:
1. Where I Stand
2. The Bubble Bill
3. Ms. DeGette Goes to Washington
4. Charting the Course
5. Francesca (DeGette's daughter has diabetes)
6. Angels Dancing on the Head of a Pin
7. Snowflake Babies (Bush's veto ceremony)
8. Send in the Clones
9. Abstinence Only
10. Whatever it is, I'm Against It
11. An Ounce of Prevention
12. "Through No Fault on Anybody's Part"
13. A Foolish Consistency
This book presents what happens when religion is allowed to trump science in govenment. Very few of our legislators have a science background. Most of them have been educated in the humanities - a good thing, but not helpful in evaluating scientific issues. A group which tried to organize a debate about positions in science amongst the presidential candidates is SEA - Scientists and Engineers of America. You can easily find them on the internet. For a more comprehensive treatise on just how anti-science Bush has been, see Chris Mooney's "The Republican War on Science."
August 07, 2008 | |
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