The Death Trap

Posted on : 21-02-2010 | By : grant | In : General

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There has been a series of articles and letters in The Age on the topic of voluntary euthanasia, one includes commentary by Dr Leslie Cannold, one of the presenters at the Global Atheist Convention.

The Death Trap
Published February 15, 2010

It is illegal to obtain but it is the drug of choice for some terminally ill patients wanting to choose the timing of their death. The law is now catching on.

THREE weeks ago, Miklos Somogyi hobbled into his study to compose a letter to the Federal Police. His wife, Erika, had urged him not to do it. She was worried about their welfare, but Miklos was so frustrated by the apparent interception of his special package that he persuaded her they had nothing to lose....

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Call to charge Nitschke for 'aiding' suicide
Published February 18, 2010

EUTHANASIA advocate Philip Nitschke should be charged for assisting suicide over deaths caused by the drug he promotes as the ''peaceful pill'', a prominent ethicist says.

Associate Professor Nicholas Tonti-Filippini, of the Pope John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family, said recent revelations that 14 Australians aged in their 20s and 30s had died from an overdose of Nembutal was ''disturbing'' and should prompt legal action...
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Vast majority support change
February 19, 2010

AN INCONVENIENT truth for Jim Wallace and Nicholas Tonti-Filippini ("Call to charge Nitschke", The Age, 18/2) is Newspoll research that shows that 85 per cent of the community wants the law reformed to allow those suffering the unrelievable torture of an end-of-life illness the right to seek and obtain medical assistance to die peacefully according to their beliefs and values. That support includes three out of four Catholics, four out of five Anglicans, and nine out of 10 of those who observe no faith. The Australian Christian lobby represents only a tiny minority view against informed choice.

The appropriate response is for the Victorian Parliament to get on with reform, and the first responsible step is for Attorney-General Rob Hulls to refer the matter to the Victorian Law Reform Commission for full community consultation and review, just as he has done for other important social issues.

Neil Francis, president, Dying With Dignity Victoria, Melbourne

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Comments (2)

Philip Nitschke said on 24-02-2010

It's interesting that articles you have chosen to publicise the atheist convention refer to the now discredited analysis by The Age of my role in the suicide deaths of young Australians.

In particular I found the comment by your speaker, Dr Cannold, that I was "behaving like a
backyard abortionist" unhelpful.

Question is, how precisely does she reach this position?

Is she likening me to one of the many feminist health practitioners of years past who, according to Flinders University Professor of Women's Studies, Barbara Baird, were the only source of choice for working class women; women who, unlike their rich sisters, were too poor to have other options?

Or is Leslie Cannold comparing me to the likes of the late American physician and feminist Dr George Tiller, who the pro-life lobby also routinely called 'backyard' in an attempt to discredit him - until they shot him dead at his church in May last year.

While I'm no one to second-guess Dr Cannold's mind, what I'd ask her to make clear is precisely what she means.

The only thing I can see that is 'backyard' about our activities is the way we're treated by those in political power. The trouble - as they have long since discovered - is that the gate to this particular backyard keeps getting left open!

Philip Nitschke
Exit International

HerbieTheBeagle said on 25-02-2010
	This page includes many articles that do not agree with or support atheism or social issues such as voluntary euthanasia that tend to attract a religious/atheist divide. I think it's more of a collection to provide context for the convention by noting the issues being debated in the media, not to necessarily imply agreement with the media's perspective

The Death Trap

Posted on : 21-02-2010 | By : grant | In : General

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