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| Oregon's Assisted Suicides Upheld |
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Posted by FoM on April 17, 2002 at 21:31:47 PT By William Booth, Washington Post Staff Writer Source: Washington Post 
A federal judge in Portland ruled today that the Bush administration lacks the authority to overturn a voter-backed Oregon law permitting physician-assisted suicide.U.S. District Judge Robert Jones scolded Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, saying that the federal government was attempting to usurp the rights of a state when the Justice Department announced its intent to prosecute doctors who prescribe lethal doses of drugs to their terminally ill and dying patients. "The citizens of Oregon, through their democratic initiative process, have chosen to resolve the moral, legal and ethical debate on physician-assisted suicide for themselves by voting -- not once, but twice -- in favor of the Oregon act," Jones wrote in his order. Jones said that Ashcroft attempted to "stifle an ongoing, earnest and profound debate in the various states concerning physician-assisted suicide," and that "with no advance warning . . . fired the first shot in the battle between the state of Oregon and the federal government." Oregon is the only state to have legalized physician-assisted suicide -- an immensely controversial practice that raises ethical, medical and religious questions about the appropriate role for doctors in hastening or forbidding what advocates call "an early exit." Today's decision was a clear victory for advocates of allowing doctors to prescribe drugs to hasten an inevitable death. But this will not end the debate in the courts, in Washington and in hospital corridors. The Justice Department is considering an appeal, said Robert McCallum, an assistant attorney general. It would be heard by the 9th Circuit Court in San Francisco, and the process would likely take about 18 months. Meanwhile, the Oregon law remains in force, and other states are considering similar measures. McCallum repeated the administration's contention that "assisting suicide is not medicine." "Terminally ill patients are among the most vulnerable members of our society," he said. "Medical studies make clear that these individuals often suffer from undiagnosed depression and inadequately treated pain. A just and caring society should do its best to assist in coping with the problems that afflict the terminally ill. It should not abandon or assist in killing them." Oregon voters first approved the Death With Dignity Act in 1994, and then again three years later after a failed legal challenge. Under that law, a patient who seeks a prescription for lethal drugs must be shown to be mentally competent and must have, in the opinion of two doctors, less than six months to live. Although doctors prescribe the powerful sedatives or narcotics, they are not allowed to administer them to cause death.If the patient is incapable of taking the drugs without aid, a friend or relative may help. In the past four years, 91 people in Oregon have chosen to end their lives with the help of their physicians, according to records kept by the state. "The system has worked in Oregon," said Kathryn Tucker, one of the attorneys who defended the law in court and the director of legal affairs for the group Compassion in Dying Federation. Tucker said that the number of patients choosing suicide has been relatively low and that there have not been allegations of abuse or coercion. Opponents of physician-assisted suicide decried the court action. Burke Balch, a director of the National Right to Life Committee, said, "The American people do not want their federal government to facilitate euthanasia." Balch said he was confident the decision would be reversed on appeal. Jan LaRue, a director of the Family Research Council, said, "Medicine by definition is the art of treating and curing. Drugs are for curing, not killing." During the Clinton administration, Attorney General Janet Reno concluded that the federal government could not bar Oregon doctors from prescribing drugs to hasten death. But in November, Ashcroft ordered Drug Enforcement Administration agents to pursue cases against such doctors. Ashcroft argued that the lethal prescriptions served no "legitimate medical purpose" and violated the federal Controlled Substances Act, whose primary purpose is to regulate drugs that can be abused, from marijuana to prescription pain killers. Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers immediately went to court and challenged the "Ashcroft directive," and Jones issued a temporary restraining order against Ashcroft in November. Today, Jones ruled again for the state, blocking the federal government from pursuing Oregon doctors. Jones said he was not required to rule on the practice of physician-assisted suicide, but a narrower point of law -- whether the federal government, through the Controlled Substances Act, can seek to bar physicians from writing prescriptions to assist in suicide. Jones concluded that the Controlled Substances Act, as well as legislative history behind the act, did not support the Ashcroft directive. The federal government, Jones wrote, is not authorized "to act as a national medical board" and regulate how physicians treat their patients. Steve Bushong, a deputy Oregon attorney general who has defended the state law, argued that Congress intended only to prevent illegal drug-trafficking by doctors under the Controlled Substances Act, and it left any decisions about medical practice up to the states. Alan Bates, a physician and a member of the Oregon Legislature, said today's ruling "allows us to continue to practice medicine without fear of losing our licenses." He warned that "once you start telling physicians how to handle their patients, you've made a huge mistake." Supporters of the Oregon law said a ruling in favor of Ashcroft could have had a chilling effect on the care of gravely ill patients because doctors might fear that prescribing too much pain medication could invite federal prosecution. McCallum, the assistant attorney general, made clear that was not the intent of the Justice Department, saying that appropriate use of pain medications was "one of the most important positive alternatives to suicide." Jones said he understood that society has not settled its mind on the question. "My task is not to criticize those who oppose the concept of assisted suicide for any reason," Jones wrote. "Many of our citizens, including the highest respected leaders of this country, oppose assisted suicide. But the fact that opposition to assisted suicide may be fully justified, morally, ethically, religiously or otherwise, does not permit a federal statute to be manipulated from its true meaning to satisfy even a worthy goal." Note: Ashcroft Challenge Called Attempt to Usurp State Rights. Source: Washington Post (DC) Related Articles: Ashcroft Ruling Blocks Ore. Assisted-Suicide Law Will of Oregon Voters Meaningless To Ashcroft Feds Are Busting The Wrong `Drug Ring' Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #10 posted by dddd on April 19, 2002 at 11:58:36 PT |
| ...I really appreciate the appreciation....dddd [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #9 posted by SansSuperego on April 18, 2002 at 20:39:51 PT:
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| The word, I mean. That is, I meant to write the word "funny," but I hit "t" instead of "y," so it came out "funnt," which, according to my dictionary, doesn't mean anything, though I'm sure one of the many creative minds here at C-News can discover and apply a meaning to this previously nonexistent word. Then, we can patent the word and charge a fee for any dictionary wanting to print it. Then, we can use the money we make to fund research into the strange phenomenon of ddddhumorgutsgushingitis, which is (I believe) adequately described in comment #8. SansSuperego [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #8 posted by SansSuperego on April 18, 2002 at 20:34:33 PT:
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| Once again, you had me practically rolling on the floor, holding my sides in pain from all the laughter. Laughter pain is the best kind, as long as you can hold your sides. I hear that if you can't hold your sides, you run a risk of a hernia--possibly an intestinal breach of the bellybutton--and then you'll really have some problems. When I start to feel like my guts are going to spew forth from my gut, I usually stop reading for a little bit. That settles my tummy, and then I can keep reading. Just a friendly safety tip for reading funnt comments by dddd. SansSuperego [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #7 posted by dddd on April 18, 2002 at 06:36:13 PT |
| ...you are cool p4me!.................If ya wanna have some cheap entertainment,,here's a hint,,,,If you ever have occassion to be socializing with republicans,,,try pretending that you're a republican too! ....Go all out,,and praise dubya,,and rave about 'the Gipper'...It's rather simple fun,,and suprizingly easy to to find Snuffbucket republicans who will 'approve' of you ,as long as you can play the false republican game.....If your lying,and deceiving skills are not up to par,, this makes excellent practice,,and you will find it is rather fun... ...Then,,if you want to go into the advanced stages of toying with republican country club imperialists,,,,, start downtalking minorities,,even if you're a minority yourself,,,,dress up as a gay Vietnamese Negro,,and start talkin' shit about Mexicans,,and your republican victim will join in on the cheap fun!,,trashing Mexicans..and after a few glasses of wine,,your new republican comrade will even laugh at Vietnamese Negro jokes, at your expense.......... .. ..yes,,it's true....This is cheap silly fun,,,but it's not illegal yet,,and if you do meet up with a brainDryCleaned republican,,you must be careful not to appear 'non-republican'....pretend to be wealthy,,one thing about republicans;they will almost always appear to be successful...Bankrupt ,and driving a new Lexus.. ...and all this is not to say that you couldn't have the same sort of political recreational activities with democrats, but democrats wont take the bait as easily..........Democrats are usually not that convinced that they are a"democrat".. ..If I was a homeless person,,pushing a shopping cart around town,,I would tell everybody that I am a Republican homeless person,,, and that I was tired of being abused by all those dam homeless democrats!...I would explain ,(to my republican 'mark'),,that I was the only republican hobo in town,,and that the democrat homeless people were treating me as an outcast,,just because I was a republican!...... .....If you can master the fine art of republican homeless panhandling,, ,all the other hobos will be dazzled by your success!,... If you follow the instructions on the 4D "Millionaire Panhandler" video,,,most republicans will give you $20 bucks!!,,the democrat panhandler would be lucky to get a dime!................YES!..4D,,Known as King Of The Hobos,,will show you how to succeed with NO MONEY DOWN!!!,,and we will send you information about a special offer on our 'Fat Burning,,Wrinkle Removing,,Ab Sculpting,,Hair Restoring,,hover-round Lark shopping cart scooter!!! ...I have this weird thing about anyone who proclaims they are a "republican"!!!If you say,"I am a republican",,then you are just slightly more of a Fuckin' Idiot,,than if you said you were a "democrat"!.. ..here's a hint about the US 'demockracy',,,,,When you register to "vote",,you are asked about what party you are in...?...what a grand fake-out!..did you hear that they have "apologized",to Ralph Nader for excluding him from the debates!...,./..That's about like apologizing forremoving the contents of someones Scrotum with a skilsaw! ............................... ..and,,,if ya wanna get around this "assisted suicide", thing,,then just set up some weird accident,,,,have grandpa sit in the back seat of a convertible Lincoln,,and cruise slowly thru grassy knolls around Houston,(Dallas?).,,, or dress grandma up as a Canadian Bin laden,before sending her on a vacation in Afghanistan.,, better yet! Drop a dime on the one you are assuisting suicidally,,and tell the cops that grandpa is a terrorist coke dealer,,and that he is in the parking lot at Wal-mart,shooting at children with an automatic weapon!,,,,,then ya send grandpa out wandering in the parking lot, with a nylon stocking over his face,,and a phony assault rifle.!.. Please, ,,dont be offended by the crass nature of my jokings!....Keep in mind,,that this whole thing is about "assisted suicide",,and as long as you're careful,,you can assist grandpas' suicide,,and it will be considered "legal",because some police soldiers peppered him with state sponsored gunfire.,,,but then,,instead of feeling bad about grandpa passing away,,,I'd feel sorry for the poor Cop guy who peppered grandpa with bullets,,and then realized that he was a grandpa,,with a fake gun......I dont think this plan would work that well if grandpa cannot walk.It would not be easy for grandpa to draw fire from the cops,if he was on a gurney.....dddd [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #6 posted by mayan on April 18, 2002 at 03:38:34 PT |
| Perhaps ol' Henry Hyde should read the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #5 posted by dddd on April 18, 2002 at 00:47:23 PT |
| ..from Henry Hyde,,,about the assisted suicide thing!..It will make you pissed......dddd http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/first/0417-145.html [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #4 posted by p4me on April 18, 2002 at 00:39:20 PT |
| I made a mistake in referring to EJ instead of SoberStoner in comment three. I have only recently started using the "Recent Comments" button that appears when you expand a link because I want to check that I do not miss comments. EJ had just put something up and I was confused. I have just read an article at Salon.com by David Talbot. It really has to do with the current political situation and if you do not understand what I mean by Republican Venom, you should read this. It is impossible to seperate politics from the current marijuana situation so I will just put up the link. http://www.salon.com/politics/feature/2002/04/17/wimps/index.html I think Salon.com is much better at the news than that old newspaper I used to go and pick up every morning. No more watered down news for me. I take my news straight. Congratulations on getting your satellite, FoM. It will be about 10 days until I get DSL and I understand your excitement. You are right that we all have a lot of work to do. I make no bones about being for the total relegalization of marijuana, but for the current administration to act this way about MMJ is heartless and at least bordering evil. Then when you think about Kubby and Tuck being treated the way they are while they were in exile anyway, it is hard to use qualifiers and moderation. I have to say it. The Busch treatment of MMJ is evil. VAAI [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by p4me on April 18, 2002 at 00:02:25 PT |
| I first wanted to put up a link to the brief statement Richard Cowan put up on 4/16. It is brief and basically says that Kubby and Tuck are in custody, represented by gooc attorneys, and in jeopardy of dying. http://216.9.192.67/news.php3?sid=490 McCallum repeated the administration's contention that "assisting suicide is not medicine." At least I can admit I can see why he said this. I can also see why many physicians would not want to be involved with the termination of life even if dead is sure to come and the pain is tremendous. I can see that a doctor must be involved under present circumstances because they control the Rx pad. I could just as easily see a special permanent committee that may not even be doctors give an approval to let someone end their life so as not to involve someone dedicated to saving lives. It is easy to understand why safeguards are important as many people may want to end their life in order to avoid the huge expenses that often come in the last few months of life for the benefit of their heirs. And then there is the financial interest of life insurance companies on a related theme. The main thing to gather from this article is that just because Ashcroft wants something, doesn't mean he can have it. The court should say the same thing about medical marijuana as EJ pointed out. We will see. Whatever. Don't smoke. VAAI [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #2 posted by SoberStoner on April 17, 2002 at 22:53:34 PT:
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| U.S. District Judge Robert Jones scolded Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, saying that the federal government was attempting to usurp the rights of a state when the Justice Department announced its intent to prosecute doctors who prescribe lethal doses of drugs to their terminally ill and dying patients. Now let's change this ruling to: U.S. District Judge Robert Jones scolded Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, saying that the federal government was attempting to usurp the rights of a state when the Justice Department announced its intent to prosecute people using or distruting cannabis under state law. This is a good sign. It's for an equally volatile issue, but it begins to show where this District Course Judge stands..any law approved by a state is theirs to enforce, not Asscrofts.. My only question now is...how can they rule it is legal to kill youself, but not legal to want to keep yourself alive by using whatever medicine that works? SS [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by Robbie on April 17, 2002 at 22:07:20 PT |
| F**K YOU, JOHN ASSCRUST! YOUR DAYS ARE NUMBERED! LET YOUR ASS, SOAR STRAIGHT TO THE UNEMPLOYMENT LINE! Now if we can get someone to stand up for the rights of the Cannabis Clubs, we'll be all set. [ Post Comment ] |
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