On the 17th of May I was invited by the Sydney University Union to speak at a 'Q & A style' debate on the issue of euthanasia & assisted suicide. With me on the 'no' side was Dr. Andrew Pesce, President of the  who spoke exceptionally well about why the AMA does not support euthanasia & assisted suicide. Continue reading

Last week's headline in the South Australian Advertiser:   was a welcome, if not entirely true, statement.Bill to allow euthenasia (sic) in limited circumstances looks likely to fail in Parliament Continue reading

Recent news in respect to court proceedings against Mr. David Scott Mathers for the assisted suicide of his partner, Eva Griffith in July 2009, deserve scrutiny; as do comments from Dr. Nitschke and from Michael Duffy in the  .Sydney Morning Herald Continue reading

English school children exposed to Dr. Death's suicide methods as BBC plans to show documentary of a suicide death at Dignitas. Revelations this week that a UK company that produces educational videos for school children has included in its production vision of Dr. Nitschke's 'death machine', explanations on how it works and footage from his workshops explaining his other suicide methods has shocked even pro-euthanasia advocates in the UK.The Daily Mail report suggests that children as young as 14 years of age have seen the video sparking angry responses from pro-life groups and church leaders who described the video as an 'invitation to commit suicide'. Continue reading

HOPE director, Paul Russell was invited to comment on euthanasia on the ABC's 7:30 Report twice in recent weeks:  ABC in Hobart: CLICK HERE to view Continue reading

Now that's a headline direct from the 'now that I've got your attention' files! I never thought I'd be giving a bouquet to 'doctor death'.  After all, there's nothing that he has said or done in the public eye that I find the least bit agreeable (except, perhaps, the recent picture of his visit with his mother).But Dr. Nitschke has in fact, done us a favour by his grandstanding about setting up a 'killing centre' in Adelaide to take advantage of what he no doubt hopes will be the successful passage of the Key bill through the SA parliament. Continue reading

Debate on Steph Key's Euthanasia bill stifled by the stench of subterfuge in the house. The latest euthanasia attempt in the SA Parliament was introduced by backbencher, Steph Key on the 10th of March.  Styled on Health Minister, John Hill's draft from late 2010, the bill would usher in euthanasia on demand and an open season on patients.  The only protection offered by this latest 'kill bill' is for doctors.  Apparently patients don't rate.Private Member's bills such as this usually move slowly with little time allocated during the sitting week and each speech usually followed by an adjournment for either another MP or the completion of the current speech to be heard on another sitting day.  But all conventions were overridden on Thursday the 24th of March when the bill's main supporters rushed through the second reading stage without any opportunity for a dissenting voice to be heard. Continue reading

March 2011 Update and Action Request: As reported earlier, Member for Ashford, Steph Key tabled a new euthanasia bill on the 10th of March.  This effectively replaces her earlier bill that was a duplicate of the Parnell Bill defeated last year in the Upper House.The  Continue reading

I recently spent four days visiting supporters, local leaders and friendly politicians in Tasmania to discuss the upcoming euthanasia legislation and to encourage people to get active and organised. Whilst I was in the beautiful city of Hobart, Premier Lara Giddings announced that euthanasia legislation would be held off until late in the year.  She also suggested that, at that time, a consultation might precede the bill.This is surely good news for a state facing significant other hurdles not the least of which is how to manage their significant budget deficit.  Playing around with social agenda in such circumstances could be seen as 'fiddling while Rome burns' as they say. Continue reading

What a fascinating 24 hours in Federal politics! As suggested in yesterday's post, Bob Brown's  has been referred to the Senate's Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee with a report date of the 21st of March. Continue reading