2006 – Ken Mehlman, representing a new voice of reason, spoke to a newfound tribe, Christians United for Israel, and recognized the similarity between Cold War Germany and the 2006 Lebanon-Israeli conflict. He said, “Today we are all Israelis,” aptly comparing this moment to another period of worldwide dissent.

In concert with Mehlman, others have made sense of the current struggle. Newt Gingrich has not minced words, calling a spade a spade, noting that this could be the verge of World War III. “Imagine,” he said, “that Miami had missiles being fired at it every day.” His argument was fortified with chilling statistics that account for the population difference between Israel and the United Stated. “Remember,” he said, “that when Israel loses eight people, it’s the equivalent of losing five hundred Americans.”

Granted, Israelis are an important group of people, with a vital heritage that must be protected at all costs, including the costs of a full-scale attack on several Middle Eastern countries. Mr. Gingrich, however, clearly indicated just how important each Israeli person is to the culture. By his numbers, one Israeli is the equivalent of 62 and ½ Americans. The relationship between Israelis and Americans is “one-to-many,” not “one-to-one.” This is because every single Israeli is vital to the interests of Democracy in an unstable region. A hard truth to consider, but nevertheless an important distinction, is the difference between the value of Israelis and people from other troubled areas in the Middle East who have little hope for Democracy. Like Sudan, for example.

Mr. Mehlman and Mr. Gingrich, by having an astute grasp of history, realize that it is important to be decisive very early in a budding conflict. In 1914, when Archduke Franz Ferdinand was killed, the Austro-Hungarian empire had no choice but to send an ultimatum to Serbia, demanding wergild for the Archduke, or promising war as the alternative. This makes it a very simple concept. Either comply, or else die.

Israel – and by Israel, I also mean the United States – must demand that the Lebanon perform the following actions:

1. To suppress any publication which incites to hatred and contempt of the Israeli government;

2. To dissolve immediately the society of Hezbollah, and to proceed in the same manner against the other societies which engage in propaganda against Israel;

3. To eliminate without delay from public instruction in Lebanon, both as regards the teaching body and the methods of instruction, all that serves or might serve to foment propaganda against Israel;

4. To remove from the military service and the administration in general all officers guilty of propaganda against Israel, names of which were to be provided by the Israeli government;

5. To accept the collaboration in Lebanon of organs of the Israeli government in the suppression of the subversive movement directed against the territorial integrity of the democracy;

6. To take judicial proceedings against the accessories to the June kidnapping plots, with the help and direction of the Israeli government;

7. To immediately arrest two named persons implicated by the preliminary investigation undertaken by Israel;

8. To prevent by effective measures the cooperation of Lebanon, Iran, and Syria in the illicit traffic in arms and explosives across the frontier;

9. To furnish Israel with explanations regarding statements from high Lebanese officials both in Lebanon and abroad, who have expressed hostility towards Israel; and

10. To notify Israel without delay of the execution of these measures.

The life of someone as important as Corporal Gilad Shalit, along with the other two low-ranking soldiers, cannot go unaccounted for, much like the great Archduke. In addition, the United States, like Germany in 1914, must be prepared to follow Israel’s lead lock, stock, and both barrels. If any line-item in the Ultimatum is rejected, then ruthless and unquestioned action must be taken. If Syria or Iran mobilizes, then the United States must issue a second ultimatum, a 12-hour cease-and-desist order.

Only by such decisive movements can peace be secured. The Ultimatum must be issued immediately, before July comes to a close.

Fortunately, erudite scholars like Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Mehlman have taken the reigns in wielding the power of Greater Israel, much like Phaethon took control of the sun. Surely John F. Kennedy would agree, if we only alter his profound quote slightly, that “all free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of the Holy Land, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words ‘Ich bin ein Israeli!’”

These embryos were created with a well-meaning but misguided intent to cure diseases. Now that their original purpose has been deemed unlawful, the embryos should be used in curing one of America’s social diseases. George W. Bush has said, “Human life is a gift from our Creator and that gift should never be discarded, devalued or put up for sale.”

In response, a distribution network needs to be arranged, along with a tax benefit, to find homes somewhere in the world for these children. Presumably, the moral dilemma alone should spur many couples to adopt one of these embryos, but a monetary motivation must accompany the joyful burden to reach the necessary numbers.

Apparently, scientists tend to overproduce embryos when preparing for experiments, so a good place to begin searching for couples to adopt would be within the halls of our academic institutions. The academic members of society tend to have fewer children as well, making their homes very suitable for taking on a child or two. Moreover, because they are organized people and well-educated members of society, they could raise children quite well if they simply chose to do the right thing.

In fact, the onus for these adoptions should fall mostly on the scientific community, not only in academia, but also in the pharmaceutical companies and biotech firms. Not only will their lives be enriched by adopting a generation of “Stem Cell Babies,” they will also gain respect and insight for their own work. Robert George, a member of President Bush’s Council on Bioethics has articulated the situation quite well. He has stated, “…those bunches of cells are very unique bunches of cells. Those are human beings in the earliest stages of their natural development. You were one once; I was one once.”

While it is refreshing to hear a scientist speak this way, Mr. George could make an even bolder statement in being one of the first to adopt a “Stem Cell Baby.” With his position and clout in the science world, Mr. George’s decision to adopt would influence many others in his circle of peers to follow suit. In a poignant argument, he compared the American situation to infanticide in ancient cultures. “You can find ancient cultures whose religions authorized infanticide. But that didn’t make it right. And that doesn’t mean that we should accept it.”

In this respect, if citizens and politicians do not act now, we are facing an embarrassing holocaust. These embryos are just sitting in freezers. They need to be removed from the liquid nitrogen, thawed, and transferred inside the loving wombs of live, healthy women.

Fortunately, an infrastructure is already in place for the collection of these latchkey embryos. The National Embryo Donation Center in Knoxville, Tennessee can act as the hub for saving these unspent lives. The act of collecting and adopting these embryos could make Knoxville a popular pilgrimage spot for families hoping to expand. Families averse to having intercourse can be relieved in the fact that the fertilization is already accomplished for them. Another distribution method for the embryos could be to use Knoxville as something akin to a retail distribution center. The embryos could be brought into the safe environment of Knoxville and then repackaged. When the embryos were needed, they could be sent overnight in dry-ice via Fed-Ex to one the many infertility clinics nationwide and upon arrival be transferred immediately into an awaiting uterus.

Rather than rely on the church-going constituents to solve yet another family issue, we must look to the ones responsible and hold them accountable. We must act quickly to mandate these adoptions, with special preference for the academics, clinicians, and proponents of this misguided research. For playing God, the burden is incumbent upon them to make space for these children, not only in their homes, but also in their hearts.

Time is very important now in the saving of these babies. President Bush has volleyed the ball into the citizens’ court. Now that the scientific destruction of these embryos is no longer an option, we as a nation have two choices: adoption, or the slow, icy massacre of natural degeneration.

A Surplus Of Embryos: What Should Happen With Extra Embryos?

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/02/09/60minutes/main1300667.shtml