Bass ackwards

Mike Burton, presumably the former Metro executive and current head of PSU's Extended Studies department, wrote a "Short Take" in yesterday's Oregonian opinion page that sounded elegantly angry at President Bush. Since the Short Takes (letters of 35 words or less) aren't available online, here it is:

Stem cell research, which could save lives, is declared immoral by Bush, but he feels the war in Iraq, which is killing thousands, is moral. The president's moral compass is broken and we all suffer.

I hesitate to take on Mr. Burton, as he's probably infinitely smarter than me, but his comments seemed exactly backwards from reality. Here's my attempt -- a little longer than 35 words, so unqualified for Short Takes -- to straighten out his rhetoric:

Federal funding of stem cell research -- which kills human lives while proving to benefit no one -- is vetoed by Bush because Congress was too lazy and too interested in making political points to explore the moral alternatives that have proven effective. (Stem cell research, by the way, remains legal and is pursued in the private sector.) Meanwhile, the war in Iraq has cost us thousands of our family, friends and neighbors, which is a tragedy; but it has also rid the world of a dictator who killed millions of his countrymen and neighbors, and has saved the lives of millions of Iraqis. We suffer in mourning those deaths, but our country thrives in embracing a debate that exposes the collective moral compass of our political parties and our nation.

That's my two cents.