SENATE VOTE ON STEM CELL RESEARCH AS EARLY AS NEXT WEEK

[blondeatlast]

Please, if you can spare a few minutes on Monday, call your senators.

This is the e-mail I received from the American Diabetes Association, note the list of COFIRMED YES votes link and suggestions of how to prepare for the veto fight:

Now is the time to demonstrate your support for stem cell research. ******

Thanks to your active support, the US House of Representatives passed HR 810 on May 24th by a vote of 238 - 194. Now the Senate is expected to vote on HR 810 -- as well as several alternative bills -- as early as next week. Some of these alternatives are being proposed to take support away from HR 810; we cannot let that happen.

***The only way to ensure we get what we want is to support HR 810 without amendments.***

Help us do that by acting on these items:

* Call your Senators. The projected vote count in the
Senate looks favorable, but it is by no means a given that this
legislation will pass there. As always, your phone
call expressing support for HR 810 holds the most value.
Your Senators and their phone numbers are listed below.
Find out where they stand on HR 810 here:
http://main.diabetes.org/site/R?i=RDG2ELPSwGK5NfFykjXrkQ..

Get pointers on what to say here:
http://main.diabetes.org/site/R?i=IddYDdeGEcrLMhq6F6ve2A..

Your Senators:


* Help us increase our numbers. We can't do what we do
without you, but we need more people like you. To
help us accomplish this, please try a new feature of
our site, an eCard, to help us get more diabetes
advocates. The eCards are easy to use; just fill in your
name and e-mail address and send it on to as many people as you
can. The eCards provide an opportunity to become a
diabetes advocate and the artwork and message of the
cards are great, too, so you'll be proud to send them
around! And don't forget to encourage new advocates to
support HR 810!
Check out both eCards below:
http://main.diabetes.org/site/R?i=d7n2SVg_lhzdU0nMhDBKPQ..
http://main.diabetes.org/site/R?i=thnWP-MdPqQd8m6sfw9NXg..

* Begin to prepare for a Presidential veto. One way for
us to do this is to continue to get names on the Don't Veto
Hope petition, available here. If we are successful in the
Senate and the President continues to oppose this legislation,
we will deliver the petition to the White House, affirming our
position that this legislation and this research equal hope for
people affected by diabetes. The petition has more than 2400 names now; is yours on it?

Get on the petition here:
http://main.diabetes.org/site/R?i=tuIu7Xf2cgJzPQiet8g0NQ..

* Let us know which of these activities you did and how it
went at [e-mail].

And, as always, thank you for your continued support!{/b}

Thanks from a longtime insulin-dependent diabetic who has worked on the issue for years!

[blondeatlast]

1. Write letters to the editor, too; especially with the threat of a veto.

It's crucial now to work on getting more people to act. Immediacy is our ally. Nearly every American family will benefit, directly or indirectly, from increased stem cell research in the US.

Some LTTE talking points (these re from me, feel free to add your own):
*Stem cell research will benefit nearly every family in the US, as nearly every family is touched by someone affected by a condition possibly treatable through SCR,
*If the cure for a disease were to be found here, it would bring enormous worldwide goodwill back to the US
*SCR is a commitment to a blief in science and research--and the power of hope

ADA has some EXCELLENT pointers for LTTE, find them here (these are NOT specific to health issues, either):
http://advocacy.diabetes.org/site/PageServer?pagename=AC_CommunicateOurIssues