A SPOON FULL OF BLOOD

A few weeks ago, an emergency council meeting was called to order by the President of the International Vampire Consortium (IVC). In attendance were all seventeen regional directors from around the world to discuss and possibly ratify certain amendments and bylaws to their constitution.

 

I had an opportunity to sit and talk with Fiona Whitherspoon, the delegate from Bahamarashee before she entered the closed door meeting.

 

Doodle: Thank you for talking with me today Ms. Whitherspoon.

 

Spoon: My pleasure.

 

Doodle: I realize there isn’t much time before the meeting begins, so I’ll get right to the point by asking you why this emergency meeting has been called in the first place?

 

Spoon: The main issues being addressed at this meeting are the rules and regulations set forth in our Articles of Social Behavior and Contact. The support and adherence to theses rules are no longer being followed by most of the consortium members because of safety concerns involving donor bloodletting.

 

Doodle:  Donor bloodletting. What do you mean by that?

 

Spoon: Our current regulations prevent us from screening donors before we take their blood. We are concerned about contacting the HIV/AIDS virus and other blood carrying diseases from a donor. Most of us, of course, do screen our donors, but doing so is still illegal. The old ones have had to look the other way from our law’s total disregard for obvious reasons. It has been our hope and dream that eventually, someday, technology will advance to a point that somehow blood can be produced from some other source, eliminating the need for human donors at all. This meeting has been called to order because that technology is now here and we need to plan and strategize for our inclusion of its use. 

 

Doodle: I see. No donor huh? Can you tell me something about this new technology?

 

Spoon: Scientists have successfully in the past synthesized blood, but it tasted terrible and gave us gas. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nml4wR9ygzA This new source of blood is the real thing and it shows great promise for achieving adequate production levels to meet our needs. This blood is not made; it is grown from human embryonic stem cells. This discovery may very well mean that we will have a constant supply of blood without all the fuss with a donor. www.advancedcell.com

 

Doodle: Really? So nobody will have to donate blood anymore?

 

Spoon: Well no, probably not, not in the sense you’re talking about anyway. But we still do very much enjoy good blood sport, and I can’t imagine giving that up altogether. Would you care to donate some right now?