I wonder if it is a coincidence that the ads I’m now getting in my email box correspond to my aging baby boomer status. Amidst the plethora of ads promising me a four hour erection (how did they know?) – and I understand that everyone gets those, the ads, I mean - I am now receiving a daily dose of offers for free colon cleansing, anti-aging pills, and a myriad of other snake oil solutions to my inevitable downward health spiral. I’m guessing those ads don’t go out to the “tweens” and “X-ers” ... just us decaying “Boomers”. Holy Ponce De Leon, Batman, is it that obvious? As medicine improves, and as we become more educated about the benefits of good nutrition, and about our health in general, we WILL many of us live longer lives. Therein sits the ethical dilemma. If, through science and technology, we manage to increase the lifespan of the average human being, but we do nothing about the quality of that human being’s life, is that progress? I’m now watching my father wrestle with the end stages of his life, physically and emotionally, and it is much more difficult than I’d ever imagined it would be, for him or for me. I don’t want him to die. Selfishly, I will always want him to remain my pillar of strength, there when I need him. But at 98, what does he want? I don’t think we ask this question of ourselves, and more important, we don’t really listen to those most affected by the issue.
Now I’m likely to cross that arbitrarily drawn line of political correctness. Pro Choice, and I am Pro Choice, should be a dialogue about the beginning AND the end of our lives. I strongly value life, all life, but I also value the rights of the individual. What a person of faith chooses to do is his or her business, but do not force those beliefs on me. Dr. Kervorkian was vilified for his actions, and in fact euthanasia is still a dirty word in our society. This is clearly a complicated subject, and I am not entirely sure how I feel about it. I’m not one of those who agrees with the logic that “we euthanize out pets to spare them pain, why do we not do the same for our aged?” Of course, one of the major obstacles, presented by those who oppose the concept, is the potential for abuse. “Let’s put Grampa down, because he’s lived long enough, and we want his money.” I suggest that human beings have free will, or at least some of us do, and should be given the choice of how they wish to carry out the end stages of their lives. Define some very clear and reasonable definition of the conditions under which euthanasia can legally be considered, and then leave it to the individual, whose compromised life is in question, to chose for him or herself. If you are diagnosed with some horrible terminal illness, and you choose not to suffer, then this would give you some control. It is really just an extrapolation of the DNR order, and going a little further than what Hospice offers. When I can no longer feed myself, clean myself, breath for myself; when I am in irreversible pain, let me choose to go gently. It seems so fundamentally simple, but it isn’t.
Final notes … Was it pilot error that brought down Fl 3407 outside of Buffalo last week? There is now a big debate about the use of auto pilot controls and the rules that should fall into place when icing occurs. The Dow has plunged 47% from record highs in October of 2007. Ouch. Australia is experiencing horrific wildfires, claiming over 200 casualties so far. President Obama received a hero’s welcome in Ottawa last Thursday. I wonder how long it will be before we all turn on him like a pack of angry hyenas. And under the heading of “Is ANYBODY responsible for his or her own actions???!” … I refer to two CNN clips. First, the drunk guy who was just awarded $2.3 Million after he was run over by a subway train. Potential Darwin Award winner Dustin Dibble was so drunk he doesn’t even remember falling onto the tracks of a NYC subway near Union Sq. Station, and a jury, in their infinite wisdom, decided it was the driver of the subway train who was at fault for running him over. Second, did you read about that infamous chimp attack in Connecticut? Some 200 lb. chimp named Travis went berserk, tore off some lady’s face, and had to be shot. Then, we find out that Travis’s owner fed him the drug Xanax shortly before the attack. Oops, I think they shot the wrong chimp! Speaking of anti-depressants, I wonder what ever happened to Michael Jackson’s flower chimp “Bubbles”? I’m guessing, it’s a permanent resident at the Betty Ford Clinic.
- Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2009 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Final notes … Was it pilot error that brought down Fl 3407 outside of Buffalo last week? There is now a big debate about the use of auto pilot controls and the rules that should fall into place when icing occurs. The Dow has plunged 47% from record highs in October of 2007. Ouch. Australia is experiencing horrific wildfires, claiming over 200 casualties so far. President Obama received a hero’s welcome in Ottawa last Thursday. I wonder how long it will be before we all turn on him like a pack of angry hyenas. And under the heading of “Is ANYBODY responsible for his or her own actions???!” … I refer to two CNN clips. First, the drunk guy who was just awarded $2.3 Million after he was run over by a subway train. Potential Darwin Award winner Dustin Dibble was so drunk he doesn’t even remember falling onto the tracks of a NYC subway near Union Sq. Station, and a jury, in their infinite wisdom, decided it was the driver of the subway train who was at fault for running him over. Second, did you read about that infamous chimp attack in Connecticut? Some 200 lb. chimp named Travis went berserk, tore off some lady’s face, and had to be shot. Then, we find out that Travis’s owner fed him the drug Xanax shortly before the attack. Oops, I think they shot the wrong chimp! Speaking of anti-depressants, I wonder what ever happened to Michael Jackson’s flower chimp “Bubbles”? I’m guessing, it’s a permanent resident at the Betty Ford Clinic.
- Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2009 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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