Kevorkian still favors assisted suicides

[JazmenFlowers]

how apropos...while one Ledgie discusses her intent to blow her brains out, I stumbled on this article regarding Mr. Kevorkian.

what say you?
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Eight years in prison hasn’t changed physician-assisted suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian’s opinion that legislatures can prohibit doctors from helping chronically ill patients end their lives, but no man-made rule can ever take away a person’s “natural right” to decide whether they wish to live or die.

“It is one of our natural rights that we are born with, the right to control the circumstances of one’s own death,” Kevorkian, 79, told TODAY’s Ann Curry on Tuesday during his first live television interview since being released from a Michigan prison last week.

“It can’t be controlled by external forces and be a right,” he told Curry. “The law can block your use of it. That doesn’t mean they destroy the right.”

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The media starting calling Kevorkian “Dr. Death” even before several failed attempts by prosecutors in Michigan to send him to prison for murder during the 1990s. Prosecutors finally prevailed in 1999, winning a second-degree murder conviction against Kevorkian for the poisoning death the year before of 52-year-old Thomas Youk, who was suffering from advanced Lou Gehrig’s disease. The assisted suicide aired on CBS’s “60 Minutes.”

Kevorkian has estimated that he participated in more than 130 assisted suicides before Michigan finally won a conviction and sentenced the pathologist to 10 to 25 years in prison.

He claims that the practice remains widespread, even if other physicians aren’t stepping forward as he did to advocate physician-assisted suicide so publicly and brazenly.

“What evidence do you have of that, sir?” Curry asked Kevorkian.

“There have been polls taken of doctors, anonymous polls,” said Kevorkian, whose own license to practice medicine was revoked at the time he helped end Youk’s life. “I think more than half say they have done it before and 30 percent say they do it still.”

No regrets
Although Kevorkian has said he will no longer participate in assisted suicides, he has no regrets about helping to end the life of patients whom he deemed to be suffering and beyond medical help, and who willingly chose to end their lives.

“If a doctor decides, ‘Yes, it’s true. This person has a serious disease. Yes, it’s true. It looks like he’s suffering. And, yes, it’s true. There seems to be nothing that can help him’ — the person has a natural right to request help by a competent professional in ending his life,” Kevorkian said. “And the competent professional has a natural right to accede to that request and help him. Both of those rights [are] blocked by law, that’s all. But that doesn’t destroy the right.”

Apparently, a majority of Americans agree.


A Gallup poll conducted last month found that 71 percent of Americans surveyed feel that doctors should be permitted to end the life of a chronically diseased patient when the patient and his or her family agree to it.

Kevorkian’s attorney, Mayer Morganroth, who appeared on TODAY with him, said his client was always careful to satisfy himself completely that a patient seeking help in ending his or her life was mentally competent to make such a decision. “In any case where there was any doubt about mental capacity, Dr. Kevorkian had them referred to a psychiatrist and got a psychiatrist’s report and analysis of the person’s problems,” Morganroth said.

According to the Web site euthanasia.com, 35 states have enacted statutes criminalizing assisted suicide and nine others bar it as a matter of common law. However, several states’ courts have said assisted suicide is not a crime. Though Oregon is the only state to legalize physician-assisted suicide, California is considering a similar law with procedures physicians would be required to follow.

[goldie]

I saw him on Larry King last night. ITA with Kervorkian. I think we should be able to do it, esp. if we are physically suffering. He also mentioned he always had the person psychiatrically evaluated - I agree that should happen prior to any "assistance" as well.

[rbs3676]

This past Sunday, 60 Minutes reran their excellent Mike Wallace interview with the Doctor. I remembered seeing it the first time around and I was amazed at the compassion and integrity of this man.

I see nothing wrong with what he is doing. I hope that, if I am in a space where life is no longer tolerable for me because of medical issues that are beyond my control, that I can find someone like Kevorkian who can humanely put me out of my suffering.

rbs

[danax6]

Well, yes, I agree with him. People shouldn't have to be kept alive against their will. I mean, people can draw up medical wills that claim they wish to be taken off life support if they would no longer be able to breathe without the help of a machine. Doctors pull the plug. Why should it be any differently if a terminal patient wishes to not be kept alive by unnatural means?

[Musicman408]

Originally Posted by danax6

Well, yes, I agree with him. People shouldn't have to be kept alive against their will. I mean, people can draw up medical wills that claim they wish to be taken off life support if they would no longer be able to breathe without the help of a machine. Doctors pull the plug. Why should it be any differently if a terminal patient wishes to not be kept alive by unnatural means?

Well, I think for teminally ill patients it is acceptable but I don't think if you want to die, a doc should just kill you...... I really don't know you all, this is really deep.

[goldie]

^ that's why I like the fact that he gets a psychiatrist involved in each case.

[gldstwmn]

Kevorkian is a piece of work. Did you see his interview with Larry King the other night? If not I'd try to catch it on the weekend. They usually rerun Larry's shows then.
I don't agree with Dr. Kevorkian on some things and think he walks a very thin line by most people's standards. He doesn't think so though and really believes in what he's doing or has done, I should say.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by danax6

Well, yes, I agree with him. People shouldn't have to be kept alive against their will. I mean, people can draw up medical wills that claim they wish to be taken off life support if they would no longer be able to breathe without the help of a machine. Doctors pull the plug. Why should it be any differently if a terminal patient wishes to not be kept alive by unnatural means?

Because some people feel it is a religious issue. I for one don't.

[Mari]

Whether it's a religious issue or not, I think you can never impose your (religious) morals onto another person. That's for everyone personally to decide. That's what this is all about, I think: personal freedom to do with your life what you want.

Anyone seen the Dutch film Simon, btw? Very moving story about someone who ultimately chooses euthanasia.

[Sarah]

Originally Posted by Musicman408

but I don't think if you want to die, a doc should just kill you......

what about abortion, then? should the doctor just kill the baby 'cuz it's mama screwed up? (obviously there are exceptions to this, but too many people use it as birth control, and then too many people are OK with that and then hypocritical on an issue like this.)

Anyway. I really don't see what everyone's deal is with wanting to "save" everyone else from dying. If someone wants to die, for God's sake, let them do it with some dignity. The assisted suicide method is very humane, especially since so many of you have a gross reaction to say, suicide by handgun. Or OD.

It's this kind of crap that makes me think that God has an ultimately twisted sense of humor. Most believers think that God has promised some sort of paradise for you after you die. All you have to do is be a fairly decent person, admit the **** that you've done wrong, make your inner peace with the man, let it go, and you're in there like swimwear. Now, he gets to sit up there and watch all the pathetic little humans fear and put off death for as long as possible. That has to be ironically funny to him in some way. Exactly how selfish do you have to be to keep grandpa or great aunt wanda in a vegetative state with respirators and feeding tubes just so you don't have to say goodbye? Losing relatives and friends sucks, but your life goes on 'til it doesn't, then someone who said goodbye to you will get to go on, too. Of course I'll get blasted for this because it isn't going along with the rules of fitting in as a Ledgie, but I don't really give a damn, so flame on. And please, don't even say that suicide makes you go to hell thing.. because these patients would have already been dead if God's nature had run its course without all this medical intervention to keep them hanging on by a thread.

[danax6]

Originally Posted by gldstwmn

Because some people feel it is a religious issue. I for one don't.

Religion is always the last thing I take into consideration. Then again, I am an atheist. Personally, I find it absurd that human and moral aspects are completely ignored because of 'religion'.

[Sarah]

Originally Posted by danax6

Religion is always the last thing I take into consideration. Then again, I am an atheist. Personally, I find it absurd that human and moral aspects are completely ignored because of 'religion'.

Oh, but remember, America has separation of church and state.

PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFT. Sure we do. And that's why we can't let gay people get married, either. Because, y'know, God would much rather us find reason after reason to hate each other.

[Rickypt]

Originally Posted by Sarah

Of course I'll get blasted for this because it isn't going along with the rules of fitting in as a Ledgie, but I don't really give a damn, so flame on.

Is this how you do your radio talk show? Get all riled before anyone even responds and immediately get into victim mode? Along with creating straw men? What is this about "everyone" here wanting to save people from dying? I only read one post in this thread that isn't supportive of assisted suicide, and even that post supports it for terminally ill.

If you're going on about the other thread (when will you die), no one is trying to save you from blowing your brains out by age 60. By all means, have at it. I think you are basically full of sh*t with that statement, and I think you posted it to get exactly the kind of attention and reaction you received.

[Rickypt]

Per topic thread, I completely support assisted suicide for terminally ill people, as long as there are proper safeguards and psychological evaluation.

[Johnny Stew]

I watched both my grandmother and my grandfather die slow, painful deaths from cancer, and it always made me think of how we -- as humans -- are "humane" enough to euthanize a dog or a cat if they're sick and dying, yet we won't offer the same mercy to a fellow human.

At one point in my life, I seriously considered suicide (had it all planned out and everything, but ultimately decided I didn't want to take the "easy way out"), so having been through that experience, it's not something I take lightly. But when it comes down to someone with no quality of life (such as those patients who are brain-dead), or someone in such extreme physical pain that medication and treatment can no longer alleviate it -- then I think it's the most compassionate thing we could do.

I also find it ironic that many people are against euthanasia for religious reasons, and feel that it's akin to "playing God."
Well, wake up and smell the coffee -- everytime we hook someone up to life support or perform some kind of medical procedure to extend their life, we're "playing God."