West Virginia Ballot Initiative Would Prohibit Euthanasia

By Alex Schadenberg  (pictured right)

The Washington Stand published an article by Sarah Holliday on September 2, 2024 that reports on the West Virginia Ballot Amendment 1 which, if passed, would prohibit euthanasia and assisted suicide in the state constitution.

Holliday reports:

Amendment 1 has recently been added to the state’s November ballot with the intention of providing “protection against medically assisted suicide.” Ultimately, “the amendment just places what’s already illegal in West Virginia into the state constitution for more security going forward,” said Pat McGeehan (R), a West Virginia state delegate, on Tuesday’s episode of “Washington Watch.” If this amendment is passed, West Virginia would become the first state to amend their constitution to prohibit assisted suicide.

Disability Rights Opponents of Assisted Suicide Are Not a “Vocal Minority”

By Meghan Schrader [pictured right]  

Original publication 08/01/24

Meghan is an autistic person who is an instructor at E4 - University of Texas (Austin) and an EPC [Euthanasia Prevention Coalition]-USA board member.

Over and over again assisted suicide proponents claim that disabled people who oppose assisted suicide are a “vocal minority.” For instance, American euthanasia advocate Thaddeus Mason Pope ridiculously wrote on X that “millions” of disabled people want the right to have “MAiD.” Well, it’s not true. 

Off Topic: The Bombing

By Margaret Dore, Esq.

My mother had always thought that Silas "Trim" Bissell of the Bissell Vacuum Fortune, and of the SDS, (Students for a Democratic Society), had bombed our Seattle home.

The bomb, dynamite, had been thrown on the roof above my parents' bedroom closet adjacent to our carport. She was home with my four siblings. My father, a state legislator, and I were in the state capitol, staying at different places. I was 12 years old.  It was 1970.

A Thump on the Roof

My mother told me that she had heard a thump on the roof above her bedroom closet, which had caused her to put her head in the closet, under the bomb, to try and figure out what had caused the noise.

She then went outside the house and into our carport, once again, physically placing herself under the bomb.

Blinded by Tradition: The Politics Of Medicine vs. Optometry

By Margaret K. Dore, Esq., MBA

AS PUBLISHED IN THE JOURNAL OF OPTOMETRIC VISION DEVELOPMENT. *

THE CASE HISTORY

As a child, I had double vision when I looked at an object close to my face, for example, a pencil or a finger. I now understand that this was due to “convergence insufficiency.” My eyes had an inability to converge (come together) at near. With convergence insufficiency, a person’s ability to read can be compromised. But I had a milder version and was a good reader.

As a college student, I noticed a change. To study took more effort and had I thought about it, I no longer read much for pleasure. I now understand that college reading demands were overloading my compromised visual system. My ability to read and comprehend was gradually decreasing. In short, it was becoming harder for me to learn.

Delaware Medical-Aid-in-Dying Bill (Assisted Suicide & Euthanasia) in Limbo

By Melissa Steele, July 26, 2024.

The Cape Gazette  

The fate of medical-aid-in-dying bill that cleared the General Assembly in June is uncertain as it has yet to be delivered to Gov. John Carney to sign.

Sponsor of the bill, Rep. Paul Baumbach, D-Newark, said July 15, the bill still resides in the House.

“Thus far, the governor has not led me to believe that he will sign the bill when it makes it to his desk,” Baumbach said.

Baumbach did not say when he plans to deliver the bill to the governor, or whether he has heard if Carney will veto it.

California: Plaintiffs Appeal Dismissal of Assisted Suicide Lawsuit Under the ADA and US Constitution

Diane Coleman, President and CEO of  NDY (Not Dead Yet) [pictured right]

* * *

Today, the 34th Anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the the perfect day for an update on the groundbreaking lawsuit, United Spinal v. California, which challenges the California assisted suicide law as violations of the ADA and the U.S. Constitution's Due Process and Equal Protection provisions. The federal District Court dismissed the lawsuit in the spring and plaintiffs promptly gave notice that we would appeal. This week, United Spinal Association, Not Dead Yet and the other plaintiffs filed our appeal. Here is the press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Disability Organizations and Individuals Partner to Appeal the Deadly and Discriminatory Public Policy of Physician-Assisted Suicide California Law Unlawful and Unconstitutional.