Blog description.

Accentuating the Liberal in Classical Liberal: Advocating Ascendency of the Individual & a Politick & Literature to Fight the Rise & Rise of the Tax Surveillance State. 'Illigitum non carborundum'.

Liberty and freedom are two proud words that have been executed from the political lexicon: they were frog marched and stood before a wall of blank minds, then forcibly blindfolded, and shot, with the whimpering staccato of ‘equality’ and ‘fairness’ resounding over and over. And not only did this atrocity go unreported by journalists in the mainstream media, they were in the firing squad.

The premise of this blog is simple: the Soviets thought they had equality, and welfare from cradle to grave, until the illusory free lunch of redistribution took its inevitable course, and cost them everything they had. First to go was their privacy, after that their freedom, then on being ground down to an equality of poverty only, for many of them their lives as they tried to escape a life behind the Iron Curtain. In the state-enforced common good, was found only slavery to the prison of each other's mind; instead of the caring state, they had imposed the surveillance state to keep them in line. So why are we accumulating a national debt to build the slave state again in the West? Where is the contrarian, uncomfortable literature to put the state experiment finally to rest?

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Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Lecretia Seales Fight for the Right To Die – RNZ Interview.



Radio New Zealand’s Nine To Noon played an important interview this morning on the right to die with dignity.

Lecretia Seales is a 41 year old lawyer dying from a brain tumour. To quote the online synopsis of the interview:

She believes it is a fundamental human right that she should be able to say goodbye to her husband and family at a time of her choosing and while she remains fully conscious.

If I had this right, I wouldn’t be going out tomorrow and exercising it, but it would be comforting to know I had that right.

For our politicians whom don’t seem capable of empathy for individuals in Lecretia’s position, let’s put a face to the fight; Lecretia Seales, individual, human being, (per photo on RNZ site):





I urge you to listen to this sobering, intelligent interview below, and I defy any compassionate person to deny her this basic right:



As Lecretia’s states, despite Parliament will put legislation through regarding their salaries over just the next two, possibly three, days, and all parties are ludicrously rushing around giving interviews like this is somehow important, any legislation on assisted dying is years away, if we will get it at all given the social conservativism that seems to rule all sitting MPs currently, as well as the New Zealand Medical Association (NZMA) which has never polled its members over this issue, and with its unethical, and I would say on its own terms negligent, stance against euthanasia (noting that it is currently out of step with its UK counterpart, which did poll its membership).

It’s too late for Lecretia. It’s too late for Faye Clark. It’s too late for Rosie Mott. … I’m sick of saying it’s too late when this concerns the life and death of human beings. There is no issue in New Zealand more important than this. Not one.

I have nothing but disrespect for the Arrogance residing in OUR Fortress of Legislation.

Referring to the interview, particularly note the discussion between interviewer and interviewee at the end: the fickle path of a private members bill is not good enough for a matter so intrinsic to our lives as this is. Assisted dying legislation needs to come from responsible government: John Key has promised this, and it is not good enough he is not following through. And it’s not good enough also that his promise was only for a watered down version of Maryan Street’s very good bill.

Also noteworthy given RNZ’s Morning Report before this piece had featured voices against assisted dying from the Palliative Care Association – and sorry, that organisation has a conflict of interest here, plus their position undermined by correspondence received by Lecretia from palliative care doctors, meaning they cannot speak for all their members any more than the NZMA can – plus a representative for the disabled who interjected the fear - I call it hysteria - that it devalued her life somehow that others in her pain might choose euthanasia. To that woman I say you cannot judge someone else's unhappiness: that is arrogance. She then made the further point such law might lead to society euthanising its elderly and sick. I'm sick of this childish nonsense. Again I say it: ALL overseas evidence, from the numerous jurisdictions that allow assisted dying – search euthanasia in here and read my past posts – shows such fears have always existed before the legislation, and always been proven unfounded. Where the legislation operates the evidence shows none of the feared outcomes, killing the disabled, killing the oldies, are issues at all. Repeat: all of these fears have proven totally, note that word, totally, unfounded due to the rigiourous systems in place, and human nature actually is not Fallen, but more often that not, enlightened.

And then my point on top of this: assisted dying is voluntary, therefore, voices against, the two mentioned, but mainly the ‘your-life-belongs-to-our-barbaric-God-who-wants-you-to-suffer-unto-him crowd, do not count in this debate. They must not be allowed to force their Stone Age beliefs, or unfounded fears, on those of us rational and compassionate individuals whose right it is to have our peaceful deaths assisted by the willing, if, when our time comes, that is our want.

We’ve got to be grown up about this: we self-manage our health issues throughout our adult lives, our deaths are merely the end of that self-care process. Now will all the nanny-minded busy-bodies bugger off please.


Update 1:

Lindsay Mitchell has put up a great post highlighting the contradiction in reporting she mentions in comments to this thread (below), and more importantly, linking to the petition being circulated to try and make Parliament look at this issue. Please sign the petition, and download forms for like minded people to do also:

Lindsay's post.

Direct link to End-Of-Life-Choice petition.

6 comments:

  1. Someone needs to challenge this woman:
    "...Not Dead Yet convenor Wendi Wicks said there could never be adequate protections for disabled people under voluntary euthanasia legislation...."

    Stuff headline: Disability rights group concerned over voluntary euthanasia (by Cate Broughton):

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/66904738/disability-rights-group-concerned-over-voluntary-euthanasia

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    Replies
    1. Bullshit scaremongering. In your linked article there is not a shred of evidence cited from jurisdictions where euthanasia is legal of any such abuse.

      Now, say I have a terminal illness and I want to die with dignity with my loved ones: are you going to force me to live in pain? What gives you that right?

      And Lecretia: what reason are you going to give her for denying the right to assisted death if that is her wish?

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    2. And state, honestly, if you have religious belief.

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    3. Finally, as your linked article doesn't, it merely hypothesises 'possible future' abuse via use of the words 'increasingly liberal', cite an example of a disabled person pressured into euthanasia in any jurisdiction. Just one example?

      Hint, you can't because there is none.

      The woman of your linked article clearly has an agenda, and the desire to force her anti-euthanasia beliefs on those who want that option. Lecretia wants to force nothing on that woman, or yourself, she just wants the option open to herself.

      It's called the voluntary society.

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  2. An important point the interviewee has made elsewhere is while palliative care can ease physical suffering she wants to be the person she has always been when she says goodbye. Not some drugged up version who no longer recognises her family and friends.

    And somebody is lying.

    According to the link above, "Feedback from NZMA members on the issue showed universal opposition to voluntary euthanasia and doctor-assisted suicide."

    Yet,

    "Nearly half of Kiwi doctors are in favour of euthanasia, or physician-assisted dying (PAD), according to a survey covered in the New Zealand Medical Journal today."

    Read more: http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/nearly-half-of-gps-back-euthanasia---survey-2015021913#ixzz3TLlhQ2dy


    http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/nearly-half-of-gps-back-euthanasia---survey-2015021913#axzz3TLlMHauq

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    Replies
    1. Good points Lindsay.

      I've got two blog posts in here on my correspondence with the chair of NZMA (they're on the right hand menu). NZMA have never polled their members on this issue: 'feedback' is not polling, and likely skewed to those against. When the UK MA polled its membership they overwhelmingly voted that the issue was for society to decide not them.

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