Friday, June 03, 2011

Dr. Death died today.

I was ready to crack wise about how he died all by himself without any help, but got pulled up short by this part:
Kevorkian's third stated mission was to convince Americans that their rights are being infringed upon by bans on everything from smoking to assisted suicide.
You and me both, doc; you and me both.
.

20 comments:

mongo78 said...

He was a creep. But he was also right.

Joseph said...

At least he died doing something he loved.

-random twitterer

Stranger said...

More importantly, Joel Rosenberg died Wednesday, June 1. His web page, http://freejoel.ellegon.com
has the announcement.

Stranger

Lanius said...

The guy reminds me of some necromancers I've known..

Art said...

Somewhere around the 2xW, I think I've still got the Kevorkian Gift Certificate Ma gave to Pa one year.

Tam said...

"More importantly, Joel Rosenberg died Wednesday, June 1."

Oh, damn...

Anonymous said...

Stress is a killer.

And being hounded by public assholes who think they *are* the law and whatever they do is *right* is probably very stressful.

I kind of hope their consciences will give them ulcers, but I'm afraid that kind of scum doesn't suffer from conscience.

Anonymous said...

Having watched my parents rot to death from cancer and having a wife deal with the effects of secondary progressive MS I tend to look at Kevorkian in a different light.

Gerry

Anonymous said...

I don't know about you, but I think it's better to go out with a bang like Hunter Thompson, instead of dying in pain.

What use is capping your life with some months of endless misery?

Do people think they deserve to experience a bit of hell for all the fuckups in your life?

Anonymous said...

(in their lives)

Steve Skubinna said...

Kevorkian just liked killing people, and wanted to find a way to do it without all that icky stigma other murderers get.

Matt D. said...

Exactly. People crucify the guy, but he has the right idea with regards to leave the government out of our business! 2 competent people can make decisions without big brother imposing on them.

Fuzzy Curmudgeon said...

I think Steve is bang-on.

Lanius said...


Kevorkian just liked killing people, and wanted to find a way to do it without all that icky stigma other murderers get.


Anything wrong with helping kill people who don't want to live and are mortally ill?

Sure, it seems a bit suspect and he seemed to have liked it rather more than usual.. but really.

In some countries, mortally ill in pain in hospital are simply given an overdose of morhpine or similar stuff and thus are killed. By physicians.

Do no harm isn't accurate. Do the lesser evil, that's what doctors mostly do.

Drang said...

Anything wrong with helping people who don't want to live, and are mortally ill, to die with something resembling dignity?
Better phrased, I think.

NotClauswitz said...

The Media claims credit for the nickname "Dr. Death," but it's such a terribly obvious one (like calling some people "Red" because of hair color), and one that ANY med student will get if they show a peculiar subject interest - he had it long before the Media showed-up to talk to him and pull his pants down in public.

And Godspeed Joel...

Fuzzy Curmudgeon said...

"In some countries, mortally ill in pain in hospital are simply given an overdose of morhpine or similar stuff and thus are killed. By physicians."

Yes, usually without consent. In this country, that's called murder.

Lanius said...


Yes, usually without consent. In this country, that's called murder.


I suppose, if you were a doctor, you'd leave that old person to lie in hospital, in excruciating pain, until the Good Lord sees fit to take them.

I suppose that's why certain people in the US prefer to blow their brains out than to go to hospital with untreatable cancer.

Britt said...

I suppose, if you were a doctor, you'd leave that old person to lie in hospital, in excruciating pain, until the Good Lord sees fit to take them.

________

Who the fuck are you to make that choice for them?

It's one thing if they do it themselves, or ask for assistance to do it themselves. It's quite another to walk up to a helpless individual that you think would be better off dead and make it so reality conforms with the way you wish things would be.

Lanius said...

Who the fuck?

These people are in a hospital, dying alone, in pain, drifting in and out of consciousness.

Because their scumbag family is incapable of taking care of them themselves, or hiring someone to take care of them at home. And these people did not have the presence of mind to shoot themselves before their health situation collapsed totally.

I'm not a doctor, nor could I ever be one, as I don't like memorizing things, but I keep hearing about old people dying.

She works in internal medicine, in a place where many old people in precarious health are sent. Also alcoholics, they always have a few people dying from liver failure there. IMO, they should send schoolkids there often, so they'd see where drinking booze will get ya.

My mum usually says stuff like .. the nasty old people who are rude to doctors, they always choose to die when I'm finally getting some sleep.

"Or that old lady was nice, and died smiling, quietly at 2200, which means I could fill out the death certificate early, and then get some sleep. "

Sometimes we hear more interesting stuff. Like that a 30-something's bulimic's stomach ulcers ruptured, and she started vomiting blood. Vomited out three liters at least. But we pumped like ten units of blood in her and stabilized her....