Final Exit: Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying by Derek Humphrey has been BANNED in several states, according to this Missouri news brief.
EXCERPT: The third edition of the book has been banned in several states, and now a group of parents are trying to file a class action lawsuit to ban the book.
Admittedly, this is a tragic story. A woman's son used an idea from the book -- written for terminally ill patients -- to take his own life and referenced the book in his suicide note. It's a horrifying story for any parent, and I'm a parent. But the book didn't cause her son's dispair, even if it did direct him in finding a way out. I regret her loss, more than I can say. I'd be a pool of nothing if I lost either of my children this way. But banning the book won't ease one child's pain.
Free speech isn't always easy. This was a tough one. But if books on suicide prevention exist, books on assisted suicide also have their place, even after they're misused.
I do ache for these parents, though. Truly.
Don't Ask! Don't Tell! My Ass!
13 years ago
1 comment:
I am Andrew Conley. I was in the news story, as well as my mother. Theres a very thin line between freedom of speech and having a book that in second grade language details how to end your life. Also, when I say second grade language, I also mean that any child can get their hands on this book. I personally do not blame the book for my brothers' suicide, however I also do not think he would have done it if he had not found this book. He said in his suicide letter that he did not want to shoot himself or do something horrific for me to find. We knew he was depressed, if he did not have this book it may have bought us a few more weeks as we were planning an intervention. By the way, my father also died by suicide, my mothers husband. So she is now on disability for mental issues and I know I will never be the same since I found him. Thank you for your empathy for my mother.
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