-------------------------------------------------------------
[Note: Judging by the media reports, the billboard
campaign of the Final Exit Network is causing more
of a reaction in New Jersey than did the first
billboards in San Francisco
(USA:
Roadside Controversy Looms With "Right to Die"
Billboards.)]
A bold sign along a busy New Jersey highway — "My Life / My Death / My
Choice / FinalExitNetwork.org" - is the signature poster of a "right to
die" billboard campaign that is sparking controversy among clergy and
suicide prevention organizations across the country.
"What we're trying to do is to let people know that we're here, that there
are choices out there, that there are options they don't know about and
that death is something that rational people should thinking about," says
Bob Levine, the 88-year-old vice president of the New Jersey chapter of
the Final Exit Network, the group behind the campaign.
They've put up the sign in New Jersey, and one in San Francisco, and
another in Florida may be in the works. The ads are aimed at people
suffering from terminal illness, usually the elderly, who are in pain and
see no future quality of life.
"We think that the choice clearly is theirs and no one else's," says
Levine, who watched his first wife die in pain from cancer.
One person's reaction:
But suicide prevention expert Dr. Judith Springer, a board member of the
Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide, says she is "horrified" by the
signs. She says they are irresponsible because you can't control who sees
them.
"We're talking about a lot of people feeling desperate and suicidal. To be
in that state and see that sign is an unnecessary risk," she said.
But Springer says she's not opposed to Final Exit's mission, just how
they're delivering the message.
"I visited the website and it's populated by elderly folks who are at the
end of a very long life and are in pain," she said. "That's a whole
different issue to me."
[There are other related stories in the Links section below.]
[There are stories in the Overflow section below.]
To read the full article click on one of these links, both of which go to the same destination. A short link is provided for the convenience of readers. Also, readers may search and browse past and future advisories on the web (see bottom.)
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/07/16/right-die-billboard-campaign-spark-moral-debate
Also see:
New Jersey: National campaign guiding ill adults to end lives advertises on Hillside billboard
[nj.com]
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/07/national_campaign_guiding_ill.html
The huge black billboard is hard to miss, looming over a
stretch of Route 22 in Hillside like a harbinger of death, or at least the
right to die:
"My Life My Death My Choice FinalExitNetwork.org"
The 15-by-49-foot billboard stands on the westbound side of the highway,
facing eastbound traffic. The message went up June 28, paid for by Final
Exit Network, a nationwide group that provides guidance to adults seeking
to end a life of constant pain from incurable illness.
The billboard, along with one in San Francisco and another planned for
Florida, anchor a national campaign by the network to raise awareness of
itself and its mission. Members say the locations were chosen for their
reputations as socially progressive and, in Florida's case, for its
elderly population.
"What we're trying to do is let people know that Final Exit Network
exists, and that we're here, and if they spend a little time trying to
find out what we do, they might actually support us," said Bob Levine, 88,
of Princeton, who founded the group's New Jersey chapter after his first
wife died of cancer.
Levine said reaction on the organization's website has been mixed: "From,
‘God bless you, we finally have somebody who understands us,’ to ‘You are
a bunch of atheists and you ought to be put in jail.’"
Green, Lauren. "Right-to-Die Billboard Campaign Sparks Moral Debate". FoxNews.com. Published July 16, 2010. <www.foxnews.com/us/2010/07/16/right-die-billboard-campaign-spark-moral-debate>.
Tags (or keywords) briefly indicate some major topics of the report.
right to die
suicide
self-deliverance
public debate
Final Exit Network
New Jersey
U.S.A.
Stories that EuthaNEWSia did not get to:
Scotland: Stop my brother's cancer suicide
[The Scottish Sun]
http://www.thesun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/3052957/Stop-my-brother-Jeffrey-Wrights-cancer-suicide.html
A distraught man is demanding a change in the law to force doctors to help his
dying brother - who is refusing treatment for his cancer.
Steven Wright, 51, insists 48-year-old Jeffrey is being allowed to "commit
suicide" as he can't face chemotherapy.
He says blood cancer sufferer Jeffrey - who had beaten the illness six
years ago - does not want to go through the trauma again, despite docs
saying he could possibly recover.
Steven said: "Our hands are tied as we know he can get better if he has
treatment. Doctors have said he could possibly recover. It's a form of
suicide. We cannot just watch this happen."
Margo MacDonald comments: Families shouldn't have
the right to overrule a patient's right to say no to treatment.
I can see how a relative would do this out of love, but the person with
the illness should make the decision.
They may reach the stage where their illness is intolerable and want a
peaceful end.
USA: Length of Hospice Stays Have Been Growing
[Medical Futility Blog]
http://medicalfutility.blogspot.com/2010/07/lengths-of-hospice-stays-growing.html
Professor Thaddeus Pope writes:
Here is some good news from a study,
set to be published in the August issue of the
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. The
average length of hospice stays has doubled in 10
years. The study evaluated hospice use in
U.S. nursing homes between 1999 and 2006.
The study found the typical treatment time
has increased from 46
days to 93 days. The researchers cited a standard
daily payment rate for most Medicare hospice
enrollment days as an incentive for some of the
longer stays. The authors of the report noted that
the increased use and availability of
Medicare-sponsored hospice services was a positive
development, but said they are concerned that
stays are longest in states with the greatest
provider growth. (HT: BNA Health Care Daily)
New music video on YouTube portrays the right-to-die movements personalities
[World right-to-die news list]
http://lists.opn.org/pipermail/right-to-die_lists.opn.org/2010-July/003965.html
There is a newly-produced, 8-minute plus tribute to the right-to-die
movement, and to the Final Exit Network:
Click on http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=o0ES9dv5d4E
This video is in tribute to the right-to-die movement, and in tribute to
the Final Exit Network. The music is titled "The Final Right Of Death"
by Chris of SolestiaGoaTrance/NightsAmore, who has a YouTube channel
here at this link :
http://www.youtube.com/user/SolestiaGoaTrance
The following names are of the people whom appeared in the images
presented in this video :
Dr. Jack Kevorkian
Craig Ewert (who spoke at certain moments during the song)
Ludwig Minelli
Dr. Philip Nitschke
Terry Pratchett
Debbie Purdy (with her husband)
Edward Downes and Joan Downes
Dr. Larry Egbert
Ted Goodwin
Jerry Dincin
Derek Humphry
Spain: Over half Spaniard's in favour of euthanasia
[The Leader]
http://www.theleader.info/article/23882/spain/national/over-half-spaniards-in-favour-of-euthanasia/
A study titled Social values and
drugs presented in Madrid last Tuesday revealed
that over 60 percent of Spaniards aged between 15
and 64 years of age are completely or partially in
favour of euthanasia, but only 21 percent view
suicide as permissible.
Dying with Dignity New South Wales July Newsletter
[Dying with Dignity New South Wales]
http://www.dwdnsw.org.au/ves/index.php/Articles/jul-10-newsletter
[Editor's note: I found the five page literature
review a very useful collection of information
from around the world.]
The July 2010 newsletter is now available and contains articles on:
Doctors' attitudes to DWD/VE: a literature review;
The new community organiser:
The President's report;
World Federation of Right-to-die Societies Conference 2010;
The Treasurer's Report;
ACT Branch News;
Central Coast Branch News; and
Updates.
You can download a pdf version of the newsletter from a link on
the web page.
The EuthaNEWSia ID for this advisory is: enid201007163372.
Mailed: Friday, July 16, 2010 15:04:26 -0600
at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
EuthaNEWSia is a free Canadian news advisory service covering end-of-life issues such as right to die, assisted suicide, and euthanasia. EuthaNEWSia is produced by the Right to Die Society of Canada which works toward a good death for all, including open, regulated and equitable access to euthanasia and assisted suicide. The editor is Michael Dawson <editor@euthanewsia.ca>.
-------------------------------------------------------------
EuthaNEWSia mailing list
euthanewsia-subscribe@euthanewsia.ca
You may leave the Subject blank and the message empty: the
server only reads the From address on the message.
euthanewsia-unsubscribe@euthanewsia.ca
You may leave the Subject blank and the message empty: the
server only reads the From address on the message.
-------------------------------------------------------------
see the recent headlines on the front page at www.euthanewsia.ca
see as-yet unpublished stories at the Pending Advisories page.
subscribe to the RSS News feed. More information is on the Subscribe page.
search the advisories on the search page.
browse and read past stories on the past stories page.
Problems? Send an email to: editor@euthanewsia.ca