To the editor:

Congressman Randy Forbes and I were &uot;arm in arm&uot; leaving a Suffolk business on our way home when I gave him what-for about embryonic stem research, which he considers not only too far into a future 20 to 30 years off, but not moral to boot.

We utilize adult stem cells, and they’re doing good enough work not to need any help.

Available to the general reader is information relating to embryonic stem cells donated by their &uot;parents,&uot; who, having the family they desired, thought generously of others who might one day benefit in even small measure from the gift.

Other embryonic cells come to research centers because they, for unknown reasons, stop developing.

That makes them useless for implantation, but of great importance in the one thing humans have long done — learn to improve the lot of human kind.

Taking Mr. Forbes’ 20- to 30-year time frame as a sign of impatience, can you think of many benefits in the fight to combat illness that were realized overnight? (metaphorically speaking)

I told him this, and more, on &uot;our drive&uot; home, reminding him a law degree required more than obedience to ideologically sanctioned ignorance.

And that the life that exists is of more value than a life that will never be.

He didn’t reply — simply stared at me from your Aug. 5, Sunday edition.

Ernest F. Brede

Chesapeake