Dying Man Opposes Assisted Suicide – The transcript of the interview follows:
Reporter: And talk about power to the people. Joining us from his home in Kent, Washington is a man suffering from Lou Gehrig’s disease. This former Boeing computer programmer has been told that he only has months to live, but John Peyton is using that time to accomplish a mighty task. John thank you so much for being with us.
John: Thank you for the opportunity.
Reporter: John, first of all, how are you doing? I know you only have a few short months to live. Are you in pain right now as you’re doing this interview?
John: No. Pain is not normally a component of Lou Gehrig’s disease. My breathing difficulties give an indication of what I’m in for. We typically die from pulmonary insufficiency.
Well John, I want to know how a man with only a few months to live decides to focus on one task and you are focussed on defeating Washington State’s ballot initiative that would allow for so-called “death with dignity” which is assisted suicide. Why that issue?
Well I am one of those people who is somewhat a target of the initiative and I don’t know how we as a society could really consider making doctors into killers. That’s what we are really doing with this. A physician writes a prescription for a lethal dose of medicine, he becomes an accomplice in suicide. He’s really assisting in the killing of an innocent human being.
And John I think a lot of people who are for this type of assisted suicide would say “Look, well what about the quality of life. People suffering like you, what kind of quality of life do you really have?” What do you say to those people?
I have a marvellous quality of life. Right now I am totally dependent. I can do nothing for myself. I’m effectively paralysed, but I have a family. I have friends. I have my church community. I have love and support all around me. I don’t understand how anyone could deny that I have a very high quality of life. And it gets me to understand and be compassionate toward those without the support that I have. But rather than giving them the temptation to kill themselves we should be trying to figure out how to help them have the quality of life that I enjoy.
Well, John, your family must be so proud of you. I’m trying to hold back to tears right here, right now but what an amazing life lesson of every moment on this earth we all have something to give and every life no matter how compromised or medically compromised or the challenges every single life is worth protecting and to be cherished and I just want to say this is the best segment of the show. This is the best segment this whole week, because you were on it. And thank you for doing what you are doing. And thank you for just being there. As long as you’re here, thank you.
You’re quite welcome, Laura. Thank you for helping me get the message out.
Absolutely. God Bless you.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Qr9_hzVfYI&feature=related
See also UK Christian, The Problems with Assisted Suicide: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_OD339vr5g&NR=1
