'Dr. Death' dead at 83

[Grausamkeit]

source

Jack Kevorkian, the zealous, straight-talking American doctor known as “Dr. Death” for his lifelong crusade to legalize physician-assisted suicide died on Friday at a Detroit area hospital, the Associated Press reported. He was 83 years old.

Dr. Kevorkian spent decades campaigning for the legalization of euthanasia. He served eight years in prison and was arrested numerous times for helping more than 130 patients commit suicide between 1990 and 2000, using injections, carbon monoxide and his infamous suicide machine, built from scraps for $30. Those he aided had terminal conditions such as multiple sclerosis, ALS and malignant brain tumors.

When asked in a 2010 interview by CNN’s Anderson Cooper about how it felt to take a patient’s life, Dr. Kevorkian said, “I didn’t do it to end a life. I did it to end the suffering the patient’s going through. The patient’s obviously suffering — what’s a doctor supposed to do, turn his back?”

Dying, he believed, should be an intimate and dignified process, something that many terminally ill are denied, he said.

I believe that it is a doctor's job to care for their patients. That means ensuring that a terminal patient gets to die with their dignity in tack, in my view.

I did not fail to notice the irony that my family, who had labeled Kevorkian a 'killer' for helping his patients back in the 90s, completely supported my grandmother's decision to opt out of a pain-filled life a few months early while she still had possession of her mental faculties. What wonderful, adaptable things people are.

[Sinjob]

Damn.

Well, I did like his paintings.

[Grausamkeit]

*in tact

I really can't spell some days...

[Llyallowyn]

Haha, I promise to rein in my inner Grammar Nazi.

I am a supporter of euthanasia of terminal patients. My grandmother lay in a hospital bed for months with complications from diabetes and just, well, getting older. She had my mom read to her from the Bible and kept telling her, during somewhat lucid moments, that she had done everything that God had asked her to do, and now she was asking him to take her home.

When you know the end is near and you have taken care of everything, I think your family should understand the pain you are in and learn to let you go. It isn't easy, but I see it as fair. It is your life, and none of us can live it for you, so it is your choice, provided you are in A fairly lucid state of mind.

[Ben Lahnger]

I saw Barbara Walters commenting on his death the other day, and she mentioned that on the way to championing assisted suicide, he first tried to champion the rights of prison inmates to donate their organs upon their death. Currently, even if an inmate is willing, it is illegal for their organs to be harvested after their death.

Also, his ideal vision was that euthanasia be handled in a hospital or other proper care facility, under the supervision of doctors and nurses, instead of what he ended up getting, which was being a solitary person assisting an individual in committing suicide.

I always admired the courage of the man for living his convictions despite public controversy, hate mail, death threats (oh, the irony!) and imprisonment.

[Grausamkeit]

I remember all the shit people said about him in the 90s. Poor guy was courageous to stand up and fight for his convictions. What's sad is that even though there was public outrage, people in the medical field supported his idea. Not the first time public opinion has clashed with medical science. That is another discussion entirely, though.

I don't see a logical reason that an inmate shouldn't be able to donate organs. If it could save a life then it should be allowed.

[Ben Lahnger]

Apparently the "logical" argument against it (if you don't assume that some of it is just people who don't want anybody tainted with "those" organs or irrational HIV fears and the like) is that an inmate by definition cannot exercise free will. The possibility of coercion is greater; situations are suggested like someone who is locked up for an extended time being manipulated into signing an organ donor agreement to improve their parole chances. Plus the possibility of bargaining and even black market dealings come into play.

But I'm with you ... it could save some lives. These people are generally in prison for committing evil; why not let their last act on Earth be to do something good.

[Saya]

Originally Posted by Ben Lahnger

Apparently the "logical" argument against it (if you don't assume that some of it is just people who don't want anybody tainted with "those" organs or irrational HIV fears and the like) is that an inmate by definition cannot exercise free will. The possibility of coercion is greater; situations are suggested like someone who is locked up for an extended time being manipulated into signing an organ donor agreement to improve their parole chances. Plus the possibility of bargaining and even black market dealings come into play.

But I'm with you ... it could save some lives. These people are generally in prison for committing evil; why not let their last act on Earth be to do something good.

I don't think everyone in jail is in there for committing evil. Kevorkian being one.

But that argument is kinda dumb, they have no problems coercing sex offenders into castration, why not let him donate organs when he's got no use for them anymore?

[Alan]

That's more of an argument against castration.

[Saya]

Originally Posted by Alan

That's more of an argument against castration.

I am against it, just saying its silly that that is somehow okay, despite how coercive it is, and donating your organs after you die is somehow worse than that.

[Grausamkeit]

Actually, I am against the chemical 'castration' of sex offenders because it doesn't stop them.

[Ben Lahnger]

Saya, you do understand that the reason I used the word "generally" is because I'm quite aware not everyone in prison is there for doing something evil (even if I hadn't been hyper-conscious of Dr. Kervorkian's stay in prison at the time I posted in a thread about him.)

[Saya]

Still rubs me the wrong way. Less than half of prisoners are in there for violent offenses, I can't find a number but a large chunk of the population is there for things like petty theft or drug possession. Prisoners are human and viewing them as evil scum doesn't help anything.

[Ben Lahnger]

You and I probably disagree. I think check forging, identity theft and most drug dealers are evil too. I stand by what I said.

And I never used the word scum.

[Grausamkeit]

Originally Posted by Saya

Still rubs me the wrong way. Less than half of prisoners are in there for violent offenses, I can't find a number but a large chunk of the population is there for things like petty theft or drug possession. Prisoners are human and viewing them as evil scum doesn't help anything.

A lot of people get prison time depending on the amount of drugs they're caught with. It's just not worth the same amount of jail time as ****** someone or killing, to me.

[Ben Lahnger]

Originally Posted by Grausamkeit

A lot of people get prison time depending on the amount of drugs they're caught with. It's just not worth the same amount of jail time as ****** someone or killing, to me.

I definitely agree with that.