Attack on Parkinson’s victim was not a good idea

Recently a television ad hit the airwaves showing Michael J. Fox endorsing a political candidate who supports embryonic stem cell research.

Since then, the ad has ignited a firestorm of controversy, mainly because of the way a famous conservative talk show host reacted to the ad.

It’s really down and dirty time in the political season, isn’t it?

Wanting to know what all the fuss was about, I visited youtube.com and watched the actor’s 30-second political ad.

The ad is simple, and compelling.

Fox, the famous actor known for his role in Family Ties and the Back to the Future movies as well as other work, speaks to the camera and shows the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, a disease with which he is afflicted. His body movements are erratic and uncontrolled, but his message is clear and to the point: Many Republicans oppose embryonic stem cell research, even though the research shows great promise in offering a cure or relief from diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

Rush Limbaugh, a radio talk show host who champions conservative and Republican causes saw the ad and made a terrible mistake – he decided to fight back and went on the air mimicking the actor’s wild gestures and accusing Fox of faking and exaggerating the symptoms of his disease for dramatic effect.

Fox is a good actor, Rush, but he’s not that good.

Anyone who saw that ad through human eyes knew immediately that the movements of his body were not within the man’s control – and that’s what made the ad so effective, because it came from a place that is real.

Limbaugh’s tirade is being perceived as an attack on someone suffering from a devastating disease, and this has only given the ad a much greater audience. Other conservatives have joined Rush in his attack on Fox, and this is a terrible idea.

Rush and his cronies should just "let it go."

I don’t care about your political ideology; it is hard not to acknowledge that people are suffering, and the secret to the end of that suffering may lie within this type of research.

My question is this: Why are so many Republicans opposed to embryonic stem cell research?

As best I can understand, they want to protect genetic material which they say has the potential for human life. They say this material would be destroyed in the research.

I also understand that this material is usually destroyed whether or not it is used for the research.

I wonder if those who oppose this type of research have really thought this through.

Human hair contains genetic material which has the potential for creating human life.

Are we going to send federal marshals into barbershops to collect the hair clippings for safe keeping?

What about blood donation?

Are we going to put an end to that?

Every cell in the human body contains "potential" for the creation of a new human life.

Are we going to make it against the law to throw fingernail clippings in the trash?

It may be easy for someone like Rush Limbaugh to oppose this kind of research on philosophical grounds if he doesn’t have a loved one who is suffering from one of these diseases. In fact, I’m not sure if he even has a "loved one." I’ve been listening to his show for years and I honestly can’t recall him ever talking about his family.

These recent times have not been good days for the Republicans and maybe their leaders need to think about distancing themselves from extremist zealots such as Limbaugh.

Much of what Limbaugh says makes sense, but when something like this happens, it makes people forget about everything else he has said. It only serves to reinforce negative Republican stereotypes as being ignorant, uncaring, unfeeling, cold, heartless and brutal people.

And with the election so close, the timing could not have been worse.

Many Republicans may now be thinking: With friends like Rush, who needs enemies?