Thank God for Federalism! The Power of the “Laboratory of the States” is often underrated in an increasingly DC-centric nation. Thus I was delighted to see the following headline in yesterday’s Boston Globe: “Stem Cell Bill Tops Agenda As Legislature Convenes.” Massachusetts is heavily life sciences dependent … and has no intention of passively slipping behind California, which passed (with the Republican Governator’s strong support) a $3 billion stem cell research initiative in November. So while Washington kowtows to Jerry Falwell, the States, in direct competition with one another, experiment & legislate their 50 individual ways forward. California, which claims one out of every four public biotech companies within 35 miles of a UC (public!) campus, is back (!) and has been piling it on lately … with leadership in tort reform, environmental protection, a minimum wage boost, etc.
BTW, the CA-MA initiatives are overdue if you subscribe to the recent BusinessWeek headline: “ASIA IS STEM CELL CENTRAL.” Remember: This is the Life Sciences Century!