Years ago, when I hoped time would make minds forget, I promised Rick that Truman could have a dog for his sixth birthday. The idea was that our then-baby would be old enough to participate in his puppy’s care and I would not be solely responsible for the pup. But I knew, in my heart of hearts, that I would be the one maintaining the dog, and so I hoped that the comment I made in a moment of weakness (there was likely some wine involved, too) would be forgotten.
Fast-forward two years, and here we are staring down the barrel …read more

Assisted suicide – not the same thing as euthanasia – is a controversial topic for some and quite straight forward for others (UK Debating Assisted Dying Again)
But, while people – politicians, ethicists, and just about everyone – debate it, others are finding themselves in the position of having to make that decision, with or without legal blessing. This is what Sir Edward Downes, a renowned conductor, and his wife Joan did after traveling from their home in the United Kingdom to an assisted suicide clinic in Switzerland.
Sir Edward was almost blind and deaf and Mrs. Downes had terminal cancer. The …read more

Assisted dying isn’t the same thing as euthanasia, although the two are often linked hand in hand. The practice of euthanasia is someone actively choosing to end someone else’s life for a particular reason. This could be because the person is terminally ill so another person puts the death into motion or it could be someone killing another person who has a disability or illness. In other words, the death is brought on by someone else’s hands and someone else’s decisions.
Assisted dying, on the other hand, is helping someone who has chosen to die – to die. In other words, …read more

Everyone is anxious for improvements in health care, not necessarily the care itself, but the coverage.  Many seem to feel it should be free and include everyone and everything.

Granted, it becomes more and more difficult to provide for health care for everyone and difficult for it to be affordable.  So…let the government become involved, many say, and have the Obama team and Congress to give us miraculous solutions.  Will expectations be as people wish or will we find there are patients the administrators feel are beyond reasonable care so are allowed to die, actually forced to die?
Is it written into the proposed Obama …read more