Compassionate Choices -- Ed Gogol (Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Taylor, Freethought Radio)

What does the bible say about abortion? Co-presidents Annie Laurie Gaylor, Dan Barker and FFRF attorney Liz Cavell answer that question during FFRF’s new weekly “Ask an Atheist” series on Facebook Live, taking questions from the audience. Then we speak with Ed Gogol, president of Final Choices Illinois, about the 1-year milestones for “End of Life” laws in California and Canada, as well as the rest of the country, and how religious dogma interferes with the freedom of citizens to make compassionate choices about dying.

Interview:
https://ffrf.org/news/radio

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I have cancer. Here's why I might decide to end my life. Or not. -- USA TODAY

Considering suicide is not signing a contract with Satan. It's giving yourself the choice of how much suffering will be acceptable. ...
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2017/07/02/suicide-choice-comforting-for-cancer-patient-jeffrey-weiss-column/443063001/

111 terminally ill patients took their own lives in first 6 months of California right-to-die law

“The state’s data show that even during the early months of the law’s implementation, the law was working well and terminally ill Californians were able to take comfort in knowing that they had this option to peacefully end intolerable suffering,” said Matt Whitaker, who works for Compassion & Choices, an advocacy group that fought for the law’s passage. The organization released a report this month saying it knew of 504 people who had received prescriptions for lethal medications between June 2016 and June of this year..
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-end-of-life-act-20170627-htmlstory.html

Efforts to Improve The Way We Die (Diane Rehm Show )

Diane speaks with Dr. Roger Kligler who is living with advanced stage cancer and is suing the state of Massachusetts for right to access to prescription medication which would allow him to die peacefully in his sleep. Then, a conversation with intensive and palliative care specialist Dr. Jessica Zitter on how better communication between patients and their doctors can help people avoid pointless and often painful medical interventions as they come to the end of their lives...
Interview:
http://wamu.org/story/17/02/17/efforts-to-improve-the-way-we-die/

D.C.'s new right-to-die law catapults effort to block movement nationwide (USA TODAY)

A Republican-led effort to overturn D.C.'s assisted dying law may catalyze a broader effort to ban the practice nationally. ...
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/02/15/dcs-new-right--die-law-catapults-effort-block-movement-nationwide/97961564/

House committee moves to block D.C.’s assisted-suicide law

...Rep. Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, the committee’s ranking Democrat, accused Republicans of ignoring the will of democratically elected leaders in a metropolis of 680,000. D.C. has more residents than Vermont or Wyoming but no voting representation in Congress...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/2017/02/13/826001a2-f208-11e6-a9b0-ecee7ce475fc_story.html

Desmond Tutu At 85 Calls For The Right To An Assisted Death : Parallels : NPR

"As a Christian, I believe in the sanctity of life, and that death is a part of life," Tutu said in a recent video. "I hope that when the time comes I am treated with compassion and allowed to pass on to the next phase of life's journey in the manner of my choice."
http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/01/04/507294833/at-85-desmond-tutu-calls-for-the-right-to-an-assisted-death

Action Alert in Michigan! Support the Death with Dignity Act

The Michigan Death with Dignity Act (HB 5802) is a major step forward in protecting the rights of terminally ill patients. This bill would allow individuals with confirmed diagnoses of six months or less to live to choose the time and manner of their own death by self-administering medication that would painlessly hasten their death.

 No one with a terminal illness should be forced to suffer against their wishes. Denying dying patients the right to choose a quick end to their otherwise inescapable pain robs them of their dignity. Allowing them that choice is compassionate and respectful of their personal autonomy.

 The option to request medical aid in dying has been available to terminally ill patients in Oregon for more than 18 years with great success. HB 5802, much like the bills passed in Oregon, California, and several other states, has numerous safeguards to prevent abuse and other unintended negative consequences. These safeguards include: mental health consultation, the patient’s wishes being corroborated by two witnesses who have nothing to gain by the patient’s death, and a provision that the patient self-administer the medication. Furthermore, HB 5802 will protect the patient’s life insurance by ensuring that the terminal illness is listed as the cause of death.

The fiercest opponent of ‘death with dignity’ legislation has been the Catholic Church, which has spent millions to spread misinformation and fear surrounding this issue. Our government is not and should not be beholden to the doctrines of any church, and the rights of patients should likewise not be hindered by the religious beliefs of others.

It is unconscionable to deny a dying person the opportunity to exercise personal autonomy on this most private and personal issue, and it is unconstitutional for the religious beliefs of others to limit a patient's choices. Stand with us in support of HB 5802 the Michigan Death with Dignity Act.
http://action.secular.org/secular/app/write-a-letter?0&engagementId=236593

Arrested For Her Father’s Death: How to Die with Dignity (David C. Smalley, Dogma Debate #265)

Barbara Mancini was arrested in the 2013 death of her 93 year old father, and charged with ‘Assisting Suicide.’ She sets the record straight on this episode. She discusses the forces in our society -- especially a small minority of members of the Catholic Church -- who are responsible for resisting reforms to make terminal illness less painful.
Interview:
http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/dogma-debate-with-david-smalley/e/265-arrested-for-her-fathers-death-how-to-die-with-dignity-46355329