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Imagine a bill that funds embryonic stem cell research and human cloning....
A bill that...
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Sets up a huge bureaucratic maze of private and public sector donors with tax payer money thrown into the mix.
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Establishes a Corporation consisting of 15 members, 11 of whom are appointed by the governor and the other 4 are permanently fixed seats made up of the Director of the DED (department of economic development), the President of the University of Missouri, one house and one senate member, appointed by the leadership of each chamber. This corporation, Missouri Technology Corporation (MTC) will serve as the administrative agent for the life sciences research board and have the authority to pick those businesses and research facilities which receive financial aid and those which do not.
This corporation is funded in part, by the Tobacco settlement money from a lawsuit Missouri and 46 other states won in 1998, to treat tobacco related diseases. This settlement is being paid to the state of Missouri through 2025 in yearly payments and amounts to $1.5 Billion. This money belongs to the tax payers. There are also unanswered allegations as to how this money has been and is being spent.
This bill, known as Missouri Science and Reinvestment Act (MOSIRA) provides that MTC can:
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Make direct seed capital or venture capital investments in Missouri business investment funds or businesses that demonstrate the promise of growth and job creation. Investments from the corporation may be in the form of debt or equity in the respective businesses:
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Make and execute contracts, guarantees, or any other instruments and agreements necessary or convenient for the exercise of its power and functions;
These businesses fall within a limited spectrum as defined by MOSIRA and all businesses will not be eligible for funding and seed money through MTC. This is government not only picking winners and losers, this is government influencing which businesses are desired and most welcome in our state.
This Corporation has been given Carte Blanche to contract for and accept any gifts, grants, and loans of funds, property, or any other aid in any form from the federal government, the state, any state agency, or any other source, or any combination thereof, and to comply with the provisions of the terms and conditions thereof:
What happened to private sector investment in good research and business ideas? The competitive markets and philanthropists should be funding business start ups and expansions, not government or quasi-governmental agencies using taxpayer money. This is not a constitutional function of government in our state or nation. Setting up a corporation in an elaborate bureaucracy does not make this any less a government agency set up with tax payer funding at the expense of other businesses.
Many of our legislators as well as lobbyists have said “for those Missourians who are pro-life, the bill contains extremely stringent pro-life protections relating to prohibitions on public funding of stem cell research” There is no pro life language found in this bill, much less stringent pro-life language. It seems this bill actually codifies embryonic stem cell research and human cloning through language in the bill on page 11 outlining annual reporting requirements. This refers back to article 3 of the Missouri Constitution and what Amendment 2 established concerning embryonic stem cell research and human cloning. This is the only reference to unethical life ending research in the bill. There has been no attempt to limit taxpayer funding of this research, rather, there is only the requirement that funding for this research specifically be included in the annual report of the corporation.
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Finally,MOSIRA provides an elaborate list of exceptions that would enable the corporation to hide much of what it funds, as written on pgs. 19-20 of the bill. This inhibits transparency in what and whom the corporation is funding.
The Missouri legislature passed this bill on Friday Sept. 23, 2011:
SB7 or "The Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Act" (MOSIRA).
Attempts by concerned citizens requesting an explanation about where the bill offers stringent life protections are in the bill have gone unanswered. Several in the assembly who have been contacted agree with the citizens: those pro-life protections are not in this bill.
Something that might be of interest to citizens, is a booklet published by Missouri Biotechnology Association, (MOBIO) the MOSIRA Briefing Paper This booklet was given to all the legislators to encourage support of the bill. This group actively lobbied for this bill. Much of the language in this booklet seems to be providing talking points for all those lobbyists and legislators that supported passage of MOSIRA. This organization is a heavy supporter of MOSIRA. It is also noteworthy that many state boards and associations, including MTC, share board members including MOBIO. There appears to be a lot of political incest amongst these boards that are promoting the same issues. Where is the accountability? Where are the checks and balances? How are other Missouri businesses and taxpayers being represented that are not a part of this political circle?
Show Me Patriots
Show Me Patriots is a Patriot Group located in the heartland of Missouri. Our mission is to Educate people on the issues of today, with the Constitution as the looking glass, Motivate them to get involved, and Activate them by providing the resources they need to spread the word and combat the influence of overreaching government and the threats our Constitutional Republic are facing. We hold regular meetings with speakers that encourage, inform and prepare us to be active participants in our government from the local to federal level. We are non-partisan and our focus is on the constitutional republic that our forefathers gave us at the cost of their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. We network with other like minded groups to participate in activities that will help restore our Constitutional Government through emphasis on states rights, smaller government and accountability from elected representatives. We encourage and help equip our members to get involved in their communities. We believe that the road back from the moral decay, unprecedented national debt and loss of liberty, can only be accomplished by restoring constitutional government from the bottom up, not the top down.
Click on the links at the top of the page or the links in the news column to the left for more information. Our flyer for the next meeting can be accessed from the "Events" link above.
Are our legislators listening? There are things going on in Missouri involving our education and that has resulted in us adding the Education Watch page on the top menu. Don't let them dumb down all our children to the lowest common denominator and don't let them implement the Longitudinal Data System to track everything about your child from pre-school to the workforce. We are raising families, not breeding a tailor made workforce for the government!
