CHAIRMAN KASS: I would like to welcome members of the Council and our fellow citizens to this, the Sixth Meeting of the President's Council on Bioethics.

I acknowledge the presence of our Designated Federal Officer, Dean Clancy, whose presence makes this meeting legal.

I would like to offer special thanks to the members of the Council who traveled here during this time of solemn remembrance. When we planned the calendar for this meeting, we weren't thinking all that carefully, and however eery or odd it might have been for you to travel yesterday, the symbolic meaning of your coming to Washington at this time in the nation's service is appreciated here. I want to reiterate my personal thanks for your hard work, loyalty, and devotion over the past eight months.

Just a few announcements before we proceed: There are a few of our members who hope to be joining us at later times during the meeting. Jim Wilson will be here this afternoon. Robby George hopes to be with us tomorrow, and Elizabeth Blackburn, unfortunately, couldn't make it.

It is also with regret that I want to announce publicly that Stephen Carter, for personal reasons, has had to resign his membership on the Council. The letter was received with sadness.

I also want to mention that the cloning report, its final version will be published by the Government Printing Office sometime in October. I think as I've indicated to you in communication, Public Affairs, an imprint of Perseus Books, is planning to publish the report in its final version, containing only a new foreword written by the Chair. That publication is expedited and should be out in the beginning of October and available, among other things, for teaching.

It is our hope, it is certainly the hope of the commercial publisher, that there might be occasions, from their point of view, to promote the sale of the book; from our point of view, to advance the discussion of these issues. Some of you have responded to my inquiry about your availability and perhaps even willingness to host events on your own campuses where these discussions can continue. If you haven't responded, if you would be willing to join in one or another of these public fora, please let Diane Gianelli know. Diane? There she is in the back, Director of Communications.

The next meetings of the Council will be October 17 and 18 and December 12 and 13. The date that we had reserved in November has been freed up.