From the Scientist, here is a contrarian view on the effects of restrictive US legislation on global progress in stem cell research. The author seems to be suggesting that change in the status quo of US government policies for medical research in this area spurred scientific groups to seek new opportunities for funding, more vigorous effects by pro-research groups to engineer other forms of public and private funding, and opportunistic development programs in other countries. I could craft a more libertarian version of this argument, but don't think it would hold together any better - the real damage to progress was not due to a lack of public funding for traditionally slow and unaccountable public research, but rather a result of threatened criminalization that scared away private funding from competitive, effective research.

Link: http://www.the-scientist.com/2005/10/10/12/1