Life Links 6/28/06

Scientists have discovered that adult stem cells from bone marrow defend the body against viruses and bacteria in the blood. These could be good news to people suffering from autoimmune diseases.

"It may be possible to boost immunity when necessary and also shut down inappropriate responses. That could provide a powerful tool to fight cancer, lupus and many other diseases," Kincade said."

Will the pro-choice movement abandon the term "choice?"

No one got into the specifics of exactly how to condense the term—certain using the slogan a woman's "right to an abortion" doesn't seem to be exactly the correct phrasing—but switching from the word "choice" seems to be the right step.

Not exactly the correct phrasing? That's because the slogan uses the word ‘abortion' and that's usually a no-no when pro-choicers are trying to create a slogan that will work with the public at large.


NARAL's web site links to this article in the Los Angeles Times but doesn't explain this phenomenon described in the article and neither does the article for that matter:

California spends $124 on family planning for every woman in need, more than any other state except South Carolina and Alabama. The state's Family PACT program offers teens and low-income couples easy access to free or affordable birth control. Yet California has one of the highest abortion rates in the country — the same rate as Nevada, which spends only $32 per woman in need, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

Nebraska presents the opposite scenario. The Guttmacher Institute ranks it worst in the nation at helping poor women avoid unintended pregnancies. Yet Nebraska has one of the country's lowest abortion rates.