Scientists argue that the battle over research funding is not at all symbolic, that without public funding these studies will dry up, leaving not only California but the entire United States lagging behind Singapore, Israel, South Korea and the United Kingdom in stem cell research. This, as proponents frequently point out, is basic research, the sort of thing the private sector does not readily support. Only when stem cell therapies have been demonstrated can we expect biotech companies, venture capitalists, and other for-profit entities to rush to the market. For many, the prospect of anybody making a profit on this research is damning enough. In a characteristic anti-71 argument, Steve Milloy singles out prominent Prop 71 advocate Irving Weissman, whose company StemCells Inc. faces a depressed stock price and would almost certainly get a boost if the ballot initiative passed.