Suicide Solution

Those of you in Massachusetts may be aware of a Physician-Assisted Suicide initiative going up for vote.  It's also been referred to as "Death with Dignity" or sometimes simply "Question 2."  I do not live in Massachusetts so I am merely a spectator, even though I live less than an hour away from the Massachusetts State House.

I do understand that if someone has been suffering and is about to pass away, many people see little or no reason to unnaturally extend that person's life.  Unfortunately, that is not what this initiative is about.  The physician-assisted suicide involves a physician prescribing a dose of a medication that is so massive that it is lethal.  That physician does not need to be present when the patient chooses to administer their prescription.  In fact, anyone who's ever tried to reschedule a medical appointment could tell you that it would be much easier and more convenient to self-administer the prescription without the physician present.

Sure, it is recommended that another person be present, but it is not required.  The physician is also expected to recommend that the patient notify the next of kin of their intention but neither the patient nor the physician are required to notify that next of kin.  This, of course, brings up another issue.  What if the patient is suffering from depression in addition to, or perhaps as a result of, their physical condition?  Sure, the physician is required to refer the patient for psychiatric or psychological consultation but only if the physician believes there's a problem in that regard.  If the attending physician dealing with the physical issue, who is not likely to be either a psychiatrist or psychologist, sees no problem with the patient's mind, then there is no such requirement.

The attending physician is required to refer the patient to a consulting physician, a specialist, for a diagnosis and prognosis regarding the patient’s disease, and confirmation in writing that the patient is capable, acting voluntarily, and making an informed decision.  But just like the attending physician, this consulting physician is also unlikely to be either a psychiatrist or psychologist.  Besides, people suffering from depression are just as likely to be capable, acting voluntarily, and making informed decisions as those who are not.  It's just that such decisions would likely be very different if they were not suffering from depression.  The human mind goes to some very dark places when the person who possesses it is infirmed.  It is a very lonely experience, not to mention the helpless and powerless feelings associated with such vulnerability and desolation.  It is at this time when those who are ill are in most need of people reaching out to them.

We are called to comfort the suffering, not enable them to end their lives.  Such enabling would amount to ignoring them at a time when they are most in need of attention.  As undignified as a patient's life may seem in their physical condition, the act of poisoning oneself is never a digified way to die.  Not only that but the cause of death would not even be listed as an overdose.  It would just be listed as whatever disease the patient was suffering from.  In other words the suicidal overdose would never be recorded.  It would be covered up, ignored as if it were never there.  This would compromise the integrity of the medical profession and would further violate and cheapen the sanctity of human life.  Please consider these things before making a decision on this issue.

Here is a link to the website containing the ballot question:
http://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/ele12/ballot_questions_12/quest_2.htm

Mark 10: 46-52

Where's Your Crown?

I have recently had the good fortune to work with the undergraduate Brothers of a new and thriving local Chapter of my Fraternity, Phi Delta Theta.  This is an excellent and enthusiastic group of men who are proud to serve in whatever capacity fits them and the Chapter the best.  They are not concerned about whether they get a position on a committee or get to be the officer who leads the committee.  They are not concerned about whether their office position is on the executive committee or not.  They are not concerned about the status or prestige associated with certain office or committee positions.  The position of Fund Raising Chair, for example, is taken quite seriously.  In other words, one need not be the President for the position one serves in to be highly regarded and honorable.

During my undergraduate days in my now-inactive home Chapter, people clamored for certain positions, primarily office positions.  Being "just" a committee member was very lightly regarded and that lack of respect was true even for certain office positions.  There seemed to be a certain mentality that involved being driven to serve on the Executive Committee for as long as possible and to hold certain positions at the right time (e.g. Spring Semester) so as to stay on the top row of the Chapter's composite photograph as many times as possible even if not on the Executive Committee.  Being on the top row of the composite multiple times was an effective way of getting attention, as well as for posterity through the years and generations of active Brothers who may view the composite in the future.  Having a dreadful hairstyle for one of those top row photos would be all the more effective in getting attention at the present time and through the years.  Holding certain positions at the right times to stay on the top row for multiple years was definitely status related.

The obvious irony is the fact that my home Chapter is now inactive while the new local Chapter is thriving.  Another thing I find rather ironic is that certain people in my home Chapter were not actually that well qualified for the positions they held.  They were just driven, persuasive, and headstrong.  Unfortunately they were neither particularly thoughtful nor bright.  On the other hand, the men in the new local Chapter are very well qualified for the positions they serve in and sometimes even for some positions they did not get to serve in.  When it comes down to it, serving in the Fraternity means exactly that - serving.  The cutthroat mentality is more appropriate for being a ruler, not a servant.  One can not serve the Fraternity effectively when trying to rule their Chapter.  A Chapter is not meant to be ruled.

Mark 10: 35-45

Something for Nothing

During the past couple of weeks I have been planning my big ski trip for the season.  In recent years I have been more interested in multi-day, hut-to-hut, backcountry ski tours than in vacations to destination ski resorts.  Besides, these tours generally begin and end near destination resorts anyway.  The Chamonix-Zermatt Haute Route comes to mind.  Those that don't begin and end near resorts tend to have their home base at a resort.  For example, the Tour de Soleil in Switzerland's eastern Valais does not begin or end at a ski resort but the base of operations for this tour is in Andermatt in the nearby Canton of Uri.  In other words, if I wanted to get a dose of resort skiing, I could easily get it in addition to whatever tour I choose to go on.

The act of choosing is a task in and of itself because I would like to go on a vast majority of tours offered by any one given tour company.  And then there are tours provided by some companies but not others.  In other words, there is a STAGGERING number of scheduled tours one could go on.  However, just like any ski trip, going on a tour will cost a bit of money.  Furthermore, that kind of travel tends to use up a lot of work holidays.  Where I am from in the United States, we tend to have a relative shortage of work holidays compared to most other 1st world countries.  Therefore, I do not expect to go on more than one tour of this sort per year.

Needless to say, going on every tour I would like to go on would be a project that could take several years, if not decades.  Although I am single now I am nevertheless aware of the fact that this sort of activity is not very compatible with raising a family.  When one has children, one's world becomes smaller.  Travel becomes less exotic and more ordinary.  Priorities change, and rightly so.

But even before that, marriage could change things as well.  Decisions about certain matters, particularly vacations, are made together, not independently.  One's life is not entirely one's own when one is married.  Compromises sometimes have to be made and that would get in the way of doing what one would like to do in a timely manner.  A celibate vocation would be difficult as well, given the matter regarding the vow of poverty, not to mention other duties typically associated with such a vocation.  A $3000+ vacation that takes nearly 2 weeks may not be so feasible or well-regarded.  One's life is not one's own when living any kind of celibate vocation.  Compromises sometimes have to be made and that would get in the way of doing what one would like to do in a timely manner.

Finding a vocation, whether married or celibate, is not about having a list of lifestyle-related expectations and seeing who or what fits them the best.  It's about making oneself the right kind of person for whoever or whatever one is destined for.  It's not about selfishly imposing one's will upon one's vocation and treating it like a decoration or status symbol.  It's about humbly putting others' needs before one's own wants.  It's about being willing to let go.

Being married or celibate is generally considered to be more desirable than being perpetually single.  But the more desirable vocations come at a price.  One has to be willing to make compromises.  The only vocation that comes with seemingly endless flexibility and very few strings attached is being single.  But that also has considerably less reward and generally gets less respect.

In my case, I should also consider the fact that each tour I've gone on was my first choice tour among those that still remained.  So if I've already done the tours I most wanted, the decision should be easy then, right?  Not quite.  Although the tours that remain do not seem quite as appealing as the tours I've already done, they are still WAY "cooler" than any family-friendly vacation or anything within the budget or time constraints associated with a celibate vocation.  So the question is, am I willing to lose a good deal of my independent and adventurous spirit for the sake of gaining a rightful place in my life and getting out of this unsettled transitional state known as singlehood?  No sacrifice means no reward...

Mark 10: 17-27

Swingers

Back in the olden days, it was common for men and women, each individually, to meet their future spouse during the first half of their 20s, sometimes even earlier.  Looking around the world today, the idea of that does seem rather quaint and dated, now doesn't it?  Many people think they're too "cool" to settle down at such a young age.  Being a "swinger" keeps you young while settling down and starting a family makes you old.  Living that kind of single lifestyle seems to be a form of vanity, a means of seeking status.  It's all about being good with the ladies or getting all the guys.  Getting married "early" would put a "premature" end to that extended adolescence and many people will have no part of that!

Unfortunately this kind of social climate has complicated matters for those who just wish to settle down.  There are simply far fewer like-minded people around to choose from than there had been decades ago.  It's no longer necessarily good enough to just be the right kind of person for someone else, whoever that someone ends up being.  That someone is simply less likely to cross paths with you because there are fewer people like them in existence.  So even those who do act their age end up settling down at a later age than people did decades ago.

Now what about the swingers who have poisoned the social climate with their desire to stroke their egos?  Well, they get married too, eventually - and often reluctantly.  The guy notices that he's not getting the ladies like he used to so he decides to settle down with whatever girlfriend he happens to be with at the time.  The girl feels her biological clock ticking so she suddenly decides to get serious about her relationships and settle down with whatever guy she's dating, or sort of dating, at the time.  Not exactly convincing recipes for success.  So what is it these people used to be good at when they were slightly younger?  Not much, really.  Basically, they were good at being manipulative, which is a skill that will get you nowhere in the long run unless every hour of your existence is spent in the business world, and then that would be a very meaningless life.  So when their youthful looks begin to fade, they have nothing really going for them.

Someone who's more mature and family-oriented will eventually lose their youthful looks as well but they have many other qualities about them just waiting to be discovered by someone else.  I know some happily married people who are still discovering beautiful things about their spouses that they did not know before.  Yes, even after they're already married.  And then each individual is always changing and developing too, thus introducing the potential for even more pleasant surprises.  Sometimes they even learn something about themselves that they did not know before.  It's almost as if that spouse brings out the best in them.  Marriage may not be considered "cool" in certain crowds these days but it is definitely GOOD!

Mark 10: 2-12