A humane way to go: Assisted Suicide

“I'm the one that's got to die when it's time for me to die, so let me live my life the way I want to.” 

Jimi Hendrix, from Jimi Hendrix - Axis: Bold as Love

Don’t tell my wife this, but what’s the big deal about assisted suicide anyway? Like gay marriage and abortion, I don’t think it’s the right call in all situations or for everyone or even for me. But there are definitely times when it is the right call for some people and in some situations.

Think about it.

How is assisted suicide any different, in result and in reality, than posting a do not resuscitate (DNR) order or expressing one’s desires in a so-called living will? Believe me, there are some things that happen in life that would make an early exit seem like a blessing.

I’m not saying that someone should make such choices without at least talking with a medical professional or discussing with the family. But I know I would not want to be a burden to my family. Extreme dementia, living on a breathing tube, relegated to tubes for sustenance-no thanks.

Being in prison is one thing. But when your very existence is, in effect, a prison it’s something else again. That’s why, for me, Dr. Jack Kevorkian was more hero than felon. The authorities hounded him and eventually dug up a situation in which they could charge the man, and finally put him in prison. But was what he was doing really the wrong thing to do, ethically?

I don’t think so.

Take this example from a recent CNN story:

“An Indiana deer hunter and father-to-be who was left paralyzed after falling from a tree chose the latter (not to live), state authorities said Wednesday.

Timothy E. Bowers, 32, of Decatur was hunting Saturday afternoon when he fell about 16 feet to the ground from a tree stand, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources said.

Bowers suffered a spine injury and paralysis, authorities said.

On Sunday, he chose ‘to remove himself from life support systems,’ the department said in a statement. He died that evening.”

While the example isn’t exactly the same as assisted suicide, the sentiment is. Bowers thought through his predicament and came to the conclusion that the kind of life he would have to lead, just to stay alive, would not be worth it. So, pull out the tubes, turn off the life support stuff, and let me move on. I say, God bless you.

Likewise, a New Mexico judge recently ruled that terminally ill, mentally competent patients have the right to get a doctor to end their lives.

Holy, Hippocratic Oath, Batman!

Where will this decision land us? No doubt the judge’s ruling will reach the US Supreme Court, where the Big Nine will listen to the pros and cons (no pun intended) arguments and come back with their ruling. Then, whatever they decree will become the law of the land. At least for a short while.

It’s difficult to understand why there would be such hue and cry about assisted suicide, for lack of a better term. The presumption is that the event would end suffering for an individual, and for some people it is exactly the right thing. The problem, really, is who should determine whether it is the right option.

In many ways it comes down to the same kind of argument we tend to hear about a lot of things: gay marriage and abortion come to mind. People are against the idea because they feel it is a slippery slope. If we allow gay marriage then everyone will want to try it. If we allow abortion then everyone will want to try it. And, God forbid, if we allow assisted suicide then everyone will want to try it, too.

In recent years I’ve had to deal with putting down two of my pets. It’s a hard decision to make. We loved Teddy and Sadie, but they were both in pain and they were both at a point where their quality of life had dropped to nothing. Still, it took us some time to make the final decision. That’s for a pet, for a family member it would be a vastly more difficult decision to make.

Why not leave it up to the person? If they are coherent, doesn’t it just make sense to have them decide? How many times have you heard that a family had to “make a decision” to, in effect, end the life of a loved one by pulling the plug? That’s the purpose of a living will anyway.

So, for me, allowing assisted suicide in these extreme cases is humane. I am not concerned that such actions would push me to the edge of the cliff on this any more than I am worried about entering into a gay marriage or having an abortion.

Get out and take your Federal indictment with you!

At some point over the next few weeks, the Feds are going to pay a visit to former Governor Bob McDonnell and hand him a set of papers that will require him to hire a lawyer and head to court to explain his taking of gifts from Star Scientific. Throughout his career, he has taken more than $300K in gifts, but the biggest problem will be trying to minimize damage from the gifts lavished upon him and his family from Star Scientific, a Virginia tobacco company that was hoping to garner support to save their foundering firm.

It is common for legislators to accept gifts, and in truth Dominion Virginia Power is one of the leaders in proffering gifts to public officials. But McDonnell has set a new standard, far out-passing any previous governor by hauling in $303,550 during his political run. By comparison, the wonderful Tim Kaine garnered a mere $201,595, and Mark Warner a paltry $129,953. Only two other Virginia politicians tipped the $100 K mark on the scales, Jerry Kilgore at $119,923 and Bill Bolling at $119,330. These statistics are provided by The Washington Post, which also broke the McDonnell story and has been running with it from the very beginning.

According to a story by Rosalind S. Helderman, Carol D. Leonning, and Sari Horowitz, Federal prosecutors told Gov. McDonnell last week that he and his wife would be charged in connection with the gift scandal, but senior Justice Department delayed the decision after the McDonnell’s attorney met with them before the holidays.

The gift giving that they Feds will likely be taking the biggest look at involves Star Scientific, and specifically CEO Jonnie R. Williams Sr., who last week opted to step down from his position with the company. The company, according to Helderman’s report last Friday in the Post, is looking into changing its name.

To me, there is little question what the Feds ought to do. They ought to indict, and while they are at it, they should probably take a look at those other four politicos who accepted “gifts” to the tune of more than $100K. At the very least, the companies that put up the cash for such gifts are guilty of pandering or trying to secure favorable support from the highest Virginia offices.

Don’t tell me that the Governor of the Great State of Virginia doesn’t hold sway in determining how things are run in the state. We just have to look back at what Doug Wilder did to the Richmond School Board to really see how much power a standing governor can wield. He had Richmond Schools all but out on the street before cooler heads prevailed.

Still, the Star Scientific deal is more troublesome because McDonnell should have known better. As Attorney General, his office had made a reputation for prosecuting people for taking bribes throughout the state. As Attorney General, he more than anyone else should have understood the very laws he now seemingly has transgressed.

If we accept that McDonnell knew exactly what laws he was playing with, we have to assume that he believed he would get away with what he was doing. He had to either think that he could pass the gifts off, or thing that the general public and the media were stupid enough not to notice.

It’s interesting that the Washington Post has been carrying the flag on this case and not the larger Virginia papers.

It has always struck me as odd that someone would pay an exorbitant amount of money to get elected to an office that didn’t come close to paying what it cost to get the job. It’s true for the governor, for state senators, and for congress in general. Often millions are spent to put these people into an office that pays only a few hundred thousand. So, where is the quid for this quo pro?

Follow the money is an adage that many investigations follow. And, it would behoove us to do the same in this case, and maybe go back and look at the other four who top the list in Virginia. As his case progresses through Federal court, I suspect we will be seeing a completely different side of the Governor Bob we witnessed over the past four years.

I am not sadistic, but I do like my politicians to be honest and ethical. I think McDonnell will have a hard time getting out of this self-inflicted snare. The wheels of justice move exceeding slow but grind exceeding fine. Good luck, Governor, I think you are going to need it.