I went to the NPR website and listened to the report I heard (on the way to dance practice) the other day. After listening carefully, I must admit that the NPR does use the terms related to therapeutic cloning correctly. The report talks about human embryos being produced and then stem cells being extracted from those embryos. The reporter and the reproductive cloning advocate who is quoted in the report both sound to me as if they are trying to make the dubious point that a human embryo cannot be a human baby because of its location–not implanted in the womb of a human mother. However, the reporter does quote a pro-life spokesman who is quite articulate in his opposition to any kind of cloning. Again, there is only one kind of cloning–the kind that creates a human embryo. Then, you decide whether to destroy the embryo or take care of it and allow it to grow up.
Oh, the reporter for NPR on this story, Joe Palca, does have a science education–well, sort of. He has a degree in psychology, and he spent a year studying “human clinical trials.” Maybe I’m the one who needs a degree in biology before I’m allowed to listen to this stuff.