Jack Kevorkian

[Jen]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

^^

I totally agree with you.

[armeniantaco]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

Kevorkian was just doing wat others were afraid of excuse my lang for a sec but he is the only that had balls and wasnt a xxxxx like some of these damn government queers that make everything worse and say its for the better

[freakyfreaky]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

Kevorkian shall be released on 6/1/07.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070527/ap_on_re_us/kevorkian_s_release

[freakyfreaky]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

More straight from the source.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-kevorkian27may27,0,438421.story?coll=la-home-center

[Federate]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

The artist inside Dr. Death
Jack Kevorkian to open exhibition of paintings at Armenian Library

The art is severe, and at times disturbing.

So is the artist, Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who will be in Watertown on Sunday to unveil an exhibition of 16 of his paintings owned by the Armenian Library and Museum of America.

This weekend's planned appearance will be a rare out-of-state trip for Kevorkian, a former pathologist from Michigan who earned the nickname "Dr. Death" for his advocacy of assisted suicide, and who by his estimate helped 130 terminally ill people take their lives. Kevorkian has been free on parole since June 2007, after serving eight years in prison. He was convicted of second-degree murder in 1999 for giving a lethal injection to a 52-year-old man with Lou Gehrig's disease.

Visiting the museum is a homecoming of sorts. Kevorkian, 80, is the child of two Armenian genocide survivors, and the anguish suffered by his ancestors is reflected in several of his pieces. "1915 Genocide 1945" mixes real human blood with paint to commemorate the extinction of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Turkish empire, and three decades later the murder of 6 million xxxs under the Nazi German regime.

In a phone interview last week, Kevorkian said he doesn't consider himself an artist, just someone who "puts in paint the condition of the world that we live in."

He said he began to paint as a hobby when he was a young man. But he kept delving into the topics of life and death that he dealt with as a medical examiner. "Everyone was painting landscapes and clowns and I couldn't see the value in that. I guess the rebel in me was thinking I'll shock them," he recalled.

That urge provoked him to paint "Very Still Life," a brightly rendered image of an iris bloom growing through a denuded skull and scattered bones.

"I thought I'd shake them up and they'd be shocked," he said of the piece. But instead, he said, his classmates and instructor "were fascinated."

Most of Kevorkian's artworks are political or religious in nature, although the exhibition includes a later triptych tribute to composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his music that portrays a brighter view of life, said museum curator Gary Lind-Sinanian.

Many of his original works were stolen from a storage unit in California, where Kevorkian was living in the late 1970s, but he repainted many from memory. He donated them and other personal effects to the Watertown museum before entering prison in Michigan to serve a 10- to 25-year term, which was shortened for good behavior and because Kevorkian was ill with hepatitis and diabetes.

The upcoming exhibition will feature some new works, including portraits of the artist's parents, that are on loan to the museum, Lind-Sinanian said. The opening reception at 3 p.m. Sunday is part of a slate of provocative events at the museum this fall, including an appearance next Wednesday by Mark Krikorian, author of "The New Case Against Immigration, Both Legal and Illegal."

Bringing Kevorkian to the Armenian Library and Museum may upset some people who disagree with physician-assisted suicide, acknowledged director Mariam Stepanyan. But the museum's mission is "to preserve the heritage of Armenians for future generations, and to make it relevant for current generations," she said.

The doctor is among the world's most famous Armenian-Americans, she said.

"His art and how he intersects it with religion and the present day is informed by the experience of the Armenian people," she said. "He is very connected to his heritage."

Kevorkian is scheduled to follow his Watertown appearance with an open forum Monday at Harvard Law School, where he expects to discuss his current run for Congress, among other topics.

"My platform is talking about the real problems in this country," he said. "I call myself a radical, which some people think implies violent behavior. But it comes from the Latin root, which means 'growing straight from the ground.' I see it as getting straight to the gist of a problem."

He runs as a independent, Kevorkian said, because belonging to a political party "straitjackets your mind."

Kevorkian, who was stripped of his Michigan medical license in 1991, is forbidden under his parole agreement to discuss specific euthanasia techniques or his assisted-suicide work, including the 1998 case that led to his conviction after a videotape of the procedure was broadcast on "60 Minutes." He must also get special permission to travel out of Michigan.

Kevorkian's political platform includes prison reform, public education overhaul, and constitutional rights. He's also quick to opine on the news of the day, including the current economic meltdown: "The solution is not so simple as to throw a lot of money at it," Kevorkian said. "It will just make leaders more corrupt."

His art will stay on public display in Watertown for two months. "We're hoping people come and keep an open mind and see the rest of the treasures that are here," said Lind-Sinanian.

From http://www.boston.com/news/local/art...side_dr_death/

[Haykakan]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

Kevorkian: The Right to Die and Other 9th Amendment Freedoms


Loving compassion for terminally ill patients drives 81-year-old
Dr. Jack Kevorkian, but his advocacy is fierce and dramatic. He spoke
before an audience of 2,500 at a South Florida university on February
5th. After comparing U.S. society with each of Laurence Britt's
Fourteen Points of Fascism, Kevorkian revealed his view of a more
honest American flag:

The audience reacted with audible shock to the swastika, prompting one
man to yell, "They should use the machine on you!" Kevorkian designed
machines that allow the terminally ill to end their lives. Protestors
disrupted his speech twice by marching in and out en masse.

Unperturbed, Kevorkian maintained a sense of humor. During the
question period, someone asked, "What do you think happens after
someone dies?" He answered, "They stink." The audience laughed and
applauded. Several times, Kevorkian earned applause as people showed
their support of an individual's right to determine the manner and
timing of his or her death.

The freedom to die has gained much media attention lately. In
December, a Montana court upheld iatric euthanasia (physician assisted
suicide). In November, the State of Washington voted for the right to
die, joining Oregon. In March of last year, Luxembourg legalized it.
Also in 2008, a highly publicized case in Italy ended after ten years
when the courts finally allowed a man to remove the feeding tubes of
his daughter who had been in a coma for 17 years. A documentary on
the right to die aired in Britain in December (see video below for
footage and an interview of the director).

Kevorkian admits to euthanizing 130 patients. Though unsuccessfully
prosecuted for several of them, the one that earned him an eight-year
prison sentence was his televised broadcast of Thomas Youk's death in
1998. The 52-year-old had ALS, a progressive, usually fatal,
neurodegenerative disease. Physicist Stephen Hawking suffers from
ALS, and baseball Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig died of it in 1941. Youk
was physically unable to self-administer the lethal dose, but provided
fully-informed consent to Kevorkian to end his life. The Michigan
justice system violated his 9th amendment rights when prosecuting
Kevorkian for what many deem to be the highly ethical and
compassionate act of a trained physician. Just as we euthanize our
terminally ill pets, Kevorkian argues that humans have the natural
right to demand the same.

In defending against that first degree murder charge, Kevorkian had
hoped the US Supreme Court would hear his 9th Amendment defense.
SCOTUS declined, a cowardly move that Kevorkian called corrupt and
unethical. In Amendment IX: Our Cornucopia of Rights (Penumbra Press,
Bloomfield Hills, MI, 2005), which he wrote while in prison, Kevorkian
stated:

"Without a doubt the Court's insouciance and trepidation are welcomed
and encouraged by extremely powerful lobbies representing antagonistic
and self-serving financial, medical, pharmaceutical, governmental, and
religious organizations. Despite the enormous pressure they and their
economic and political clout can exert, a really dedicated, stalwart,
and ethical Court would be doing its noble duty as the ultimate
guardian of our innate natural rights by being perpetually and
single-mindedly focused on the people's welfare...."

After his release from prison in June 2007, Dr. Kevorkian began a
speaking tour that included Harvard Law School last October, where
famed Alan Dershowitz introduced him with high acclaim. Praises
aside, murderous zealots who seek to impose their religious beliefs on
others have apparently targeted Kevorkian. Police and security formed
a large presence inside and outside the Nova Southeastern University
arena. Attendees endured a search of their bodies and purses and
relinquished all drinks before entering the arena. When confiscating
my coffee, one officer explained, "You might have acid in that drink.
We don't know."

Unusual for NSU's Distinguished Speaker Series, and contrary to the
printed program, no one introduced Dr. Kevorkian. Poor acoustics
suppressed his message for the upper tier, half of whom left early
when part of the audio system failed. Adding to further difficulties
for the audience, at the end, handicapped seniors were required to
climb to the second floor to exit the arena, instead of leaving
through the doors on the first floor that were blocked "for security
reasons."

Kevorkian had a little trouble articulating his thoughts during the
speech, which never directly mentioned iatric euthanasia. His acumen
distinctly showed during open questions, though, when he finally
connected for the audience the three admitted passions in his speech
to the freedom to die:

The protection of human rights against government tyranny;

The reformation of our penal system to include the more humane
sanctuary system; and

A complete and radical change to public education.

For Kevorkian, the damage to personal liberty by a tyrannical
government includes the suppression of our inalienable right to die,
but it doesn't stop there. A justice system based purely on
punishment warps prisoners and destroys families. An education system
that fails to teach its citizens about personal liberties and the
nature of tyranny ensures the demise of a free society. To regain the
right to die, or any natural right, all three institutions `
government, justice, and education ` must be reformed.

Given that much of the audience was shocked by easy comparisons
between Nazi Germany and the modern United States, advocating for
education reform is indeed wise. Kevorkian hammered at the Patriot
Act and Homeland Security Act, which he compared to Hitler's 1933
Enabling Act.

He scolded the audience for allowing their inalienable rights to be
forfeited in exchange for security. "You are letting the government
spy on you because you aren't in the streets protesting about it."
Benjamin Franklin once observed, "Those who sacrifice liberty for
security deserve neither." Yet, these ideas are mere abstraction to
today's youth, where even elite colleges fail to properly educate
their students in civics. Instead of the Pledge of Allegiance,
Kevorkian would prefer students recite the Bill of Rights.

The Netherlands, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the U.S. states
of Oregon, Washington and Montana specifically permit iatric
euthanasia. Britain is again debating the issue after it aired
Oscar-winning director John Zaritsky's The Suicide Tourist (under the
rename, The Right to Die) in December. Prime Minister Gordon Brown
voiced his opposition to legislation allowing it, but affirmed his
support of personal choice. This video interview of Zaritsky opens
with footage from The Suicide Tourist:

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Kevorkian-The-Right-to-Di-by-Rady-Ananda-090208-69.html

I respect this man and what he tries to do.I wish the people who oppose him will one day get their heads out of their asses.A man who speaks the truth and does the right thing despite the dire consenquences is worth a thousend ignorent sheep that roam this world and stink it up with their ignorence.

[londontsi]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13644926

Jack Kevorkian: 'Doctor Death' dies in US aged 83





Jack Kevorkian, the man known as "Dr Death" for helping the terminally ill end their lives, has died in the US aged of 83, his lawyer has said.

Mayer Morganroth told the Associated Press news agency Kevorkian died on Friday at Michigan's Beaumont Hospital.

Kevorkian died after a blood clot from his leg broke free and lodged in his heart, the Detroit Free Press reported.

He was believed to have assisted in 130 suicides and was released from prison in 2007, after serving eight years.

Murder conviction

Kevorkian was originally given a 10-25 year sentence for a second-degree murder conviction in the death of terminally ill Thomas Youk.

But the former pathologist later won an appeal based on his own failing health and served only eight years.

He told the BBC in 2007 he had no regrets for conducting assisted suicides.

"I knew what I was doing... I accepted the consequences because I had to do the right thing," he said.

Kevorkian had claimed to have assisted in some 130 suicides mostly in the Detroit area between 1990 and 1998.

Many assisted suicides were conducted using his so-called mercy machine, which delivered lethal amounts of drugs intravenously.

[KanadaHye]

R.I.P. Hagop "Jack" Kevorkian

Jack Kevokian has died at the age of 83.



Assisted suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian, who spent eight years in prison for second-degree murder, died early Friday in a Detroit-area hospital after battling respiratory and renal problems, his lawyer confirmed to CBC News.

Mayer Morganroth said in a telephone interview from Birmingham, Mich., that he and Kevorkian's niece were by the 83-year-old's side when he died in Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak.

"I was there all last night until he passed away," Morganroth said.

He added that Kevorkian had several problems that were treatable, including having a cancerous lesion on his liver but that could have been removed, and the respiratory and renal issues.

"But he had a pulmonary thrombosis [blood clot] that came to his lung, and that changed everything, and then it was a matter of hours before he passed away," between 2:30 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. ET.

Kevorkian had been admitted to hospital about two weeks ago. The hospital hasn't released an official cause of death.

The Armenian-American pathologist, who claimed to have assisted in 130 suicides, advocated the rights of the terminally ill, famously saying, "Dying is not a crime."

In 1999, Kevorkian, who became known by the nickname Dr. Death, began serving eight years of a 10- to 25-year prison term, and was released in 2007 on the condition he not offer suicide advice.

Life story subject of award-winning show

Despite his controversial preachings, "I think the great majority were in [Kevorkian's] corner, no question about it," Morganroth said. "You always get that percentage that will go for anything and take an antagonistic position. But the very substantial majority ... will mourn his loss.

"He advocated [the right to die] right up to the end, however, he did not perform it," Morganroth said, adding that Kevorkian continued to lecture following his release from prison.

His last lecture was at UCLA in front of 1,800 people in February.

In 2008, Kevorkian also ran for Congress as an Independent, but received just 2.7 per cent of the vote in a suburban Detroit district.

Morganroth was a constant travelling companion of Kevorkian. They both attended awards ceremonies honouring the 2010 HBO movie You Don't Know Jack, which tells his life story and features Al Pacino in the lead role.

Pacino won both Emmy and Golden Globe awards for his portrayal of Kevorkian.

Morganroth said funeral plans haven't been made, but he expects it to be a private, small service in the Detroit area.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2...kevorkian.html

[Siggie]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

No idea where my post went... Fed, you merged at just the magical moment.

Sad news. Kevorkian helped draw attention to the "right to die" and helped to set the stage for states like Oregon do the right thing.

[One-Way]

Re: Jack Kevorkian

This is sad.

I had always wanted to see him person and hear him talk, and I finally got that chance a few months ago in January.

Jack Kevorkian came to UCLA and gave the Armenian students there a lecture and it was an amazing experience. I'm glad I at least had that opportunity.

I think one day, years from now, they'll understand that what he was doing was the right thing.