Group against stem-cell amendment airing ads

~ Missourians Against Human Cloning say people are being misled.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A group fighting a proposed amendment to protect embryonic stem-cell research in Missouri has begun airing radio ads discouraging people from helping get the measure on the ballot.

Missourians Against Human Cloning said people are being misled into signing something with which they don't agree.

The ballot proposal would guarantee stem-cell research and treatments allowed under federal law could occur in Missouri.

That includes a process known as somatic cell nuclear transfer, in which the nucleus of a cell, such as a skin cell, is injected into an unfertilized egg, which is stimulated to start growing. Scientists then remove the resulting stem cells.

The Coalition for Lifesaving Cures, which is sponsoring the ballot measure, says the procedure could lead to breakthroughs for treating diseases and conditions such as spinal cord injuries.

Ballot language

The ballot language says it would ban human cloning, defined as an attempt to implant into a woman a scientifically created embryo that did not come from a sperm and egg.

But opponents contend somatic cell nuclear transfer results in a cloned human life at its earliest stages -- regardless of what happens to the embryo.

The radio ads are "an important effort, we felt like, because we had gotten so much feedback from people who have inadvertently signed those petitions, not realizing what they're about," the opposition group's executive director, Jaci Winship, said Friday.

Coalition chairman Donn Rubin said opponents are afraid of what will happen if Missourians get to vote on the idea.

'One more example'

"This ad is just one more example of the opponents of the stem-cell initiative doing whatever they can to keep Missouri voters from having an opportunity to have their voice heard on this important issue," he said. "They want to keep it from getting on the ballot because they know that a large majority of Missourians support stem-cell research."

Supporters need to gather about 145,000 signatures by early May to qualify for the ballot, and Rubin said the signature drive is going well. The coalition earlier ran television ads encouraging people to sign the petition and calling stem-cell research a "pro-life" position, but is not running ads now.

Winship said the opposition ads began running Wednesday in Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Joplin, Springfield, St. Joseph and St. Louis -- areas the group believes are still being targeted by signature gatherers.

The ad focuses on how people sign their names. A woman says she sometimes dots the 'i' in her name with a heart. It ends with her saying: "You mean the heart I draw might stop a heart from beating?" The announcer then intones: "Think before you sign."

Winship said the ads cost about $15,000 and will run for three weeks.

If the measure gets on the ballot, Winship said the group also plans TV ads closer to the November election.

According to the latest campaign finance reports, the coalition supporting the amendment has raised nearly $7 million, while the opponents have collected about $144,000.

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On the Net:

Coalition for Lifesaving Cures: http://www.missouricures.com

Missourians Against Human Cloning: http://www.NoCloning.org