…but less. Mr. Liston, an organizer for a national disability-rights group called Not Dead Yet, said he envisioned people like himself being nudged toward life-ending choices by their doctors or families, out of compassion or perhaps convenience. “People with disabilities don’t get to live with dignity, let alone die with dignity,” he said. Other opponents of a “right to die well,” as some are calling the argument made by Mr. Baxter and the group…
…in scanning equipment and found that his level of brain activity was identical to that of a person who had no brain damage. Professionals on the team have worked with Houben to develop a way to communicate. This has become a somewhat sensationalized and “inspirational” story. And it’s already receiving blowback. The most prominent of the critics to surface is bioethicist Art Caplan, who says he isn’t buying it. He has three major concerns that I c…
…tana, and years later in 2017, Bob joined the NDY Board. Here’s a biographical sketch about Bob that concentrates on the years in Montana, and below that, two of my favorite photos that people have posted these last two days: Bob Liston was an original member of Not Dead Yet, and participated in multiple actions in Michigan against Jack Kevorkian, the Hemlock Society, an Ethics conference and the Michigan Legislature when it sought, and failed, to…
…ved a normal lifespan. Daniel chose to take that deadly concoction of chemicals not because he wanted to avoid a long, painful and distressing death but because he simply didn’t want to carry on living. It’s vital, when discussing assisted death, that we distinguish between those disabled people who are terminally ill and those whose disability is not life-threatening. The ethics involved are very different. Brignell seems to think there’s a clear…
…bled” policies, and we have a message: EQUALITY Every human being is of equal value. Laws that treat some lives as worth protecting, and other lives as worth ending, are discriminatory. DIGNITY Dignity isn’t a handout, and our doctors can’t give it to us in the form of a lethal prescription. We don’t need to die to have dignity – we already have it. DIVERSITY Human diversity is a beautiful fact of life. There is no one perfect kind of human being…
