Initiative will preserve lives

To the editor:

A caller to Speak Out suggested backers of the Missouri stem-cell initiative seek to clone designer babies, relegate women to fertility factories and rake in fortunes as a result of this research. The master propagandist Joseph Goebbels once said, "If you tell a lie, tell a big one. Never change it. If you tell it often enough and loud enough, it becomes accepted as truth, and you no longer have to tell it. The masses will believe and tell it for you."

Falsehoods and scare tactics appear to be the weapons of choice for these misguided opponents who apparently have not even read the initiative, since, contrary to claims made in the column, human cloning would be outlawed with stiff fines and jail time for offenders. A visit to the coalition Web site www.missouricures.com would be worth it for those seeking the honest facts about the initiative. Most backers of the initiative are affiliated with groups helping those with disabilities or battling incurable diseases, hardly the fortune hunters described in this bitter column. Miki Gudermuth, for example, has not only spent her entire life living with disability but is an icon in our community, selflessly leading the fight for disability rights and cures for those who suffer.

The Missouri Stem Cell Initiative is a right-to-life issue. It is about preserving the lives of thousands of sick or disabled Missourians. This issue is far too important to be decided based on fear, hateful rhetoric or misinformation.

WILL RICHARDSON, Jackson, Mo.