Suicide Promotion During Suicide Prevention Week – Blog from Wesley Smith and a Little More from Me

September 9, 2011assisted suicide, final exit network, lanny berman, national suicide prevention week, Our News & Commentary Blog, suicide, suicide prevention, Wesley Smith, world suicide prevention dayStephen Drake

…lly absent from this debate. In June, 2010, a reporter for a San Francisco online news site managed to get reactions from two professionals connected to organizations that seek to prevent and reduce the number of suicides in the US. In that story, the reporter somehow managed to get Lanny Berman, president of the International Association of Suicide Prevention to condemn billboards being put up by FEN across the country that promote suicide: “This…

Train Wrecks and Being Bushwacked in the Land of Oz – Bill Peace, Danny Robert and Nadina LaSpina report on the Oz Show

October 25, 2011als, assisted suicide, blog recommendations, Danny Robert, Dr. Oz, infotainment, ira byock, media coverage, media issues, Nadina LaSpina, Our News & Commentary Blog, ventilator, william peaceStephen Drake

…s:“Doyouthinkyouhavetherighttoendyourownlife?” (justassloppyandastheshow’s onlinesurvey, conflating suicide with assisted suicide, conflating the right to refuse treatment with assisted suicide). Thefinalsegmentwassupposedtobequestionsandcommentsfromtheaudience.Weweredividedbyanaisle into pro and con.Duringthebreak,Nadinamanagedtogettheattentionoftheproducer,Greg,whointerviewedusbeforetheshow.“Dr.Ozdidn’tletmespeak,” shetoldhim.“NDYershaveauniquep…

RELEASE: Disabililty Rights Activists from NDY and National Council on Disability Featured on Dr. Oz Assisted Suicide Show

November 3, 2011ari ne'eman, assisted suicide, Danny Robert, Dr. Oz, media coverage, media issues, national council on disability, Our News & Commentary Blog, press releaseStephen Drake

…pposing assisted suicide. Ne’eman was also given the opportunity to speak during the two-hour taping. His comments were not included in the final one hour broadcast, but were included in two online video segments (part 1, part 2). Ne’eman was also invited to submit a written article on the topic which is featured on the program’s website. # # #…

Canadian Assisted Suicide Case Sparks Dueling Letters on Disability

November 29, 2011Alison Davis, assisted suicide, Canada, Council of Canadians with Disabilities, court cases, diane coleman, disability rights advocates, media issues, Our News & Commentary Blog, Rhonda WiebeStephen Drake

…d allies called out for a disability response, and two were carried in the online publication. Mine focused on Swanson’s devaluation of people with severe disabilities and called for equality in suicide prevention: James G. Swanson’s letter demonstrates the profound devaluation that too many feel toward those of us with severe physical disabilities. Swanson describes his father and a friend, disabled by an accident and ALS, respectively, as “trapp…

Time Magazine – Sloppy and Inaccurate Kevorkian Obit Written by News Director in “Person of the Year” Issue

December 15, 2011assisted suicide, euthanasia, Howard Chua-Eoan, Kevorkian, media issues, obitiatry, Our News & Commentary Blog, reality check, Time magazineStephen Drake

…up Kevorkian’s body count weren’t termimally ill at all. Here’s a list of online resources that help provide that documentation, included in an earlier post attempting to do a reality check on the circulation of Kevorkian mythology: The Real Jack Kevorkian – Comprehensive fact sheet on Jack Kevorkian produced by the Patients Rights Council (previously named the International Anti-Euthanasia Task Force). SUICIDE MACHINE, PART 1: Kevorkian rushes t…