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Euthanasia, PG-13

By on 4.18.11 @ 6:07AM

Children given instructions on suicide.

(Page 2 of 2)

“I have very deep reservations about this video because it has the potential for young people to think about ending their lives.

“There is a wealth of evidence that media — films, DVDs and videos — have encouraged a form of experimentation in suicide. And a film like this may well encourage young people to think they are a burden, that they don’t fit in or encourage them to feel vulnerable in another way.

“If they are discussing euthanasia it could also lead to a cluster of suicides.”

A spokesman for the Department for Education has been quoted as saying: “The Government sets the curriculum but we leave it to teachers to use their common sense and professional judgment on what is best for their set of pupils.” It is hard to know exactly what this means, but anyone who trusts the common sense and judgment of at least some school-teachers regarding life-or-death propaganda is at best taking a very big risk indeed.

Meanwhile, in another, not unconnected, front of the British culture war, a 64-year-old electrician, Colin Atkinson, faces the sack for displaying an 8-inch-long Christian palm cross on the dashboard of his company van. This was in spite of — or should that be because of? — the fact that his boss at the publicly-funded Wakefield and District Housing Association displays a large picture of Che Guevara in his office.

Former soldier Atkinson said: “The treatment of Christians in this country is becoming diabolical, but I will stand up for my faith.” The association, which claims that it “aims to influence the embedding of diversity” has provided stalls at gay pride events, held “diversity days” for “travellers” (gypsies), and hosted a “gender reassignment event,” titled “A World That Includes Transpeople.” It is fairly obvious who it does not include. Without going into Mr. Atkinson’s personal circumstances it would seem obvious that for a 64-year-old man to lose his job in Britain today could be personally catastrophic.

This may be another chance for the Tory sock-puppets to surprise everyone by showing some backbone.

Page:   12

About the Author

Hal G.P. Colebatch’s “Immram,” Counterstrike, is being published by Australian publisher Imaginites.

Letter to the Editor View all comments (54) |

Robbins Mitchell| 4.18.11 @ 6:27AM

Yea,teaching them to kill themselves before they've even started to live...yea,that's the ticket

henry| 4.18.11 @ 6:38AM

Nothing new here. What we need now is suicide centres and factories to make biscuits of the remains. Check out Soylent Green.

Brian Mc| 4.18.11 @ 6:39AM

Articles like this should open the eyes of liberals. That it doesn't causes me to shiver. The inherent wrong associated with these tenets of the left are shruggingly accepted to what end? When is it going to come time to show that decency is tired of playing these very deadly games that are constantly perptrated on the common good?

Appleby| 4.18.11 @ 7:19AM

Read Matthew 24. Lamps filled, wicks trimmed, eyes open. Oh, and make sure your family follows suit.

Britain is lost. The first Iranian nuke is being armed as we speak.

Ken (Old Texican)| 4.18.11 @ 9:05AM

Appleby, did you get part two yet?
www.americaalonesaidno.com

I Survived Arlen Specter| 4.18.11 @ 8:00AM

This is on its way here & anyone who doesn't believe so is naive. With the Federeral gov't still funding killing machines like Planned Infanticide don't be surprised when they announce they will be branching out into assisted suicide with help from your tax dollars. Anyone who believes The Stupid Party won a victory last week while continuing to fund abortion providers like Planned Infanticide are totally nuts! First they came for the children. Adults, your time is quickly approaching. You have a duty to die. It is only a matter of time. The left & Democrats are bloodthirsty & The Stupid Party are their spineless enablers.

Teaghan| 4.18.11 @ 8:07AM

And don't you think it's only a matter of time before this slipped in to Sex Ed class here in the good ole' US of A? Perhaps right after they let the girls know that they can get birth control and an abortion without their mother's knowledge or permission and how to put a condom on their boyfriend. History? Math? Ahh, who needs it!

nina in ma| 4.20.11 @ 5:19PM

Well, we already have a website funded by my tax dollars with information regarding abortions. They tell the kids it's not as bad as it sounds. The "contents of the womb" etc. BS! I wrote to my governor, not that that will do any good in this state, that I'm not happy that my $$ funds such a thing. So, now adults can get rid of the kids via suicides if they missed the class on abortions. OMG, my mother, God rest her soul, was a Brit thru and thru and I'm so glad she's not around to see this happening to her beloved homeland!

Booker | 4.18.11 @ 8:19AM

Mr Colebatch, I must again comment on your reporting of my country which I feel fails to paint an accurate picture (ditto the earlier articles on UK defence) and seems (again) to be based upon reports in the sensationialist and vitriolic Daily Mail newspaper.
Firstly, the video by Australian Dr Nitschke is not part of any government programme and is simply being produced by an educational video company as a resource which schools can buy if they wish. This is not illegal, and nor should it be.
Secondly, the Colin Atkinson story fails to stress that Mr Atkinson is in fact refusing to remove a personal accessory from a vehicle that he does not own. If an artefact from another religion had been involved, the situation would be the same. Customising your own vehicle is not an issue, but the same is not true of company vehicles. This is common sense and I would expect similar to apply in most countries.
You obviously have many issues with the UK, but this seems to be affecting the accuracy of your reporting. Perhaps trawling the Daily Telegraph might be a better idea?

Ken (Old Texican)| 4.18.11 @ 9:02AM

Booker,
perhaps your trawling in the sewer overcomes your filthy smell...to your own senses, but not to ours.
Mr. Atkinson is merely quietly witnessing his faith in Jesus Christ. Why don't you get someone to issue a fatwa for his death?

Jeamar37| 4.18.11 @ 4:11PM

Old Tex... Usually you sound pretty sensible. Can I use this as an ad hominem argument?

Purple Lips| 4.18.11 @ 9:24AM

And if Mr Atkinson, was say named Achmed, and he wished to display a crescent moon on the company vehicle? We all know what you would do and say. Fearing for your life and the life of your family, you would not only allow him to display the crescent moon, you would buy him an entire fleet of Mohamedmobiles decked out with gun toting jihadists and hot burqa babes!

PJ| 4.18.11 @ 10:09AM

Booker,
I think the point the video was produced & targeted to teenagers is 1 of the issues in this article.

Many teenagers go through "growing pains," making them vulnerable to such horrible messages. It wouldn't surprise me that a mentally confused teenager would end his/her life after watching this assisted suicide video.

Booker | 4.18.11 @ 10:36AM

This video is meant to be used as part of personal/social education and would (hopefully) be sensitively incorporated into a planned programme of study and the subject of considered discussion. I doubt that the video would encourage or insight anyone to take their own life. I would have to see the video to be able to comment further, but I certainly wouldn't rely on the regurgitation of stories from the British tabloid press as to the suitability of its content.

Steve A| 4.18.11 @ 10:55AM

Hey Booker, Show it to your kids & report back to us. Be sure to sensitively incorporate it into a planned programme of study on euthanasia.

Occam's Tool| 4.18.11 @ 1:14PM

Sorry, Booker, but I've worked with British Psychiatrists and NICE guidelines. This idiocy would be right in keeping with them. I suggest you familiarize yourself with the guidelines of The National Institute for Clinical Excellence, which is anything but.

Tim the Enchanter| 4.18.11 @ 1:35PM

Occam- have you ever read C.S. Lewis's "That Hideous Strength"? The name of the evil quasi-government entity in that book has the same acronym- NICE. Wonder if it was deliberate?

Occam's Tool| 5.15.11 @ 11:53PM

Don't know. NICE is quite scary, though. Ick.

The other problem I have with all of this is that I view euthanasia as a continuum on the Culture of Death. Abortion/euthanasia. two sides of the same ethos.

Occam's Tool| 5.15.11 @ 11:52PM

Dear Booker,

Perhaps you should read Anthony Daniels. I myself, worked with many UKers in my time in New Zealand, and, I must say, they drank like fish. Much heavier alcohol intake than I witnessed in Kentucky, for example.

The most popular boys' name in the UK is Muhammed. You are the dead.

Too Many Tims| 4.18.11 @ 8:43AM

To die in a battle, God knows when,
By God, but I know why.

And this is the word of Mary,
The word of the world's desire
No more of comfort shall ye get,
Save that the sky grows darker yet
And the sea rises higher."

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/T.....hite_Horse

Purple Lips| 4.18.11 @ 9:19AM

Just think of all of those wealthy Baby Boomers (the richest demographic in the nation), thier spoiled, greedy children and grand children. And now think of OBarryCare and the End of Life diktats which will soon be to a bureuacrat near you. Money, lawyers, bureaucrats, and slobbering aging hippies. What's not to like? It will be the greatest transfer of wealth through murder since the Holocaust.

If I were a 66 year old greying hipster with a McMansion, trophy wife, and $3-4 million in cash and investments, I would think seriously about emigrating to Belize and taking my money with me. Otherwise, one day you will be marked for termination.

One can only imagine the possibilities for future reality shows!

Petronius| 4.18.11 @ 10:07AM

For the left, doing A Clockwork Orange in the street is still not enough.

KyMouse| 4.18.11 @ 10:11AM

A lot of well-meaning people believe that each of us should have the right to end our lives if certain conditions are met (such as terminal illness). One thing they fail to realize is that the right to die becomes the duty to die.

We have seen it happen with abortion: Time and time again, the right to abort one's son or daughter has become the duty to do so. And if the mother refuses to kill her child, the baby's father beats her until she complies, or kills her to get rid of "the problem." Murder is often the leading cause of death for pregnant women.

Occam's Tool| 5.15.11 @ 11:55PM

Perfectly noted, KyMouse. You are a credit to your state.

Citizen Jerry| 4.18.11 @ 10:25AM

To Dr Nitschke, I would only say -- "You first."

kevorkianasaint| 4.18.11 @ 12:10PM

Personally I want to die when I feel like it. Why do you people want to force people to live? People should die or live as they please. Those who force people to live are just another reason I want to die.

Occam's Tool| 4.18.11 @ 1:15PM

It does not stop with personal choice.Check out the Netherlands.

Margie| 4.18.11 @ 2:40PM

Why, you ask?
Because there is no "right" to die.
Why is that?
Because God says so:

"No man has power to retain the spirit, or authority over the day of death; there is no discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it." Ecc. 8:8.

Aww shucks, there I go again, quoting the Words of God.
How dare I!

LFOD| 4.18.11 @ 9:02PM

Well done! This is why I'll still like you even if we have plenty else to disagree about. Here's another:

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Margie| 4.18.11 @ 10:18PM

Aww, thanks, but where is your good name? Bring it back!
All is forgiven.

LFOD| 4.19.11 @ 11:04AM

Anything with my "good" name gets immediately "filtered" lately...

Margie| 4.19.11 @ 7:00PM

I KNOW that we agree on more than you think.
God bless you.

Occam's Tool| 5.15.11 @ 11:55PM

No one is forcing you to live. MDs should not be complicit in helping you to die.

Steve A| 4.18.11 @ 12:20PM

kevorkian, I would gladly pull your plug for you. Just give me a heads up when you need the favor.

Peppermint Tea| 4.18.11 @ 12:21PM

Does your signature mean, "kevorkian as ain't" ?

We're not forcing you to live. Britain is over. Europe is over. Look at the demographics. America is headed that way. To not have to listen to your whining would give us survivors a needed break. But since you say that forcing you to live makes you want to die, then maybe I should change my tune. Live--for heaven's sake--live!

Peppermint Tea| 4.18.11 @ 12:26PM

"God is dead" -Friedrich Nitschke
"Friedrich Nitschke is dead" -God
"Philip Nitschke preaches death" - Am Spectator

kevorkianasaint| 4.18.11 @ 12:37PM

My signature means Kevorkian is a saint. Thanks for the comments.

Tim the Enchanter| 4.18.11 @ 1:38PM

Please define "saint".

kevorkian| 4.18.11 @ 4:33PM

A saint is a person who is a leader in doing good things but sometimes ahead of the understanding of the masses.

Margie| 4.18.11 @ 10:24PM

Yes, but not in all cases~ sometimes the devil disguises himself as an angel of light ya know?

Anastasia Mather| 4.18.11 @ 12:46PM

One could perhaps forgive Mr. Pratchett as he has been diagnosed with a rare form of early-onset Alzheimer's. Don't agree with him, but I can understand his fear.

Unfortunately, for teenagers, unless parents and other family and friends are around to reiterate that life is constantly changing and what seems tragic and overwhelming at this time will change into anything from relief to joy, they will be susceptible to this BS.

Anastasia Mather| 4.18.11 @ 12:46PM

One could perhaps forgive Mr. Pratchett as he has been diagnosed with a rare form of early-onset Alzheimer's. Don't agree with him, but I can understand his fear.

Unfortunately, for teenagers, unless parents and other family and friends are around to reiterate that life is constantly changing and what seems tragic and overwhelming at this time will change into anything from relief to joy, they will be susceptible to this BS.

kevorkianasaint| 4.18.11 @ 2:11PM

So you guys just hate me whether I want to live or die then. Is that it?

Margie| 4.18.11 @ 3:10PM

No hate, I personally would just like to see you come to your right mind, and live.

kevorkian| 4.18.11 @ 4:38PM

I think I have been and quite a lot. And I think I know when I have had enough of it, for whatever reason.

Margie| 4.18.11 @ 10:22PM

I only said "come to your right mind" because taking your own life isn't right minded, that's all.

Kevorkian is no help. Trust God's love for you and He'll give you the strength you need in every situation. When we're weak, He is strong. :^).

Bruce | 4.19.11 @ 3:37AM

Reading this really hit home, since I live in Japan now. And as you probably know suicide is quite rampant here among all age groups. Especially with teens. For the most part, suicide attempts by teens do not succeed (mostly from lack of information on how to kill yourself effectively).

Education is a key here. But we don't want to educate them how to do a better job of it though.
Actually I, myself discovered a man hanging dead in a tree, here in Osaka city on the yodogawa river.
I wonder if he would have benefit from a video.
Bruce

Booker | 4.19.11 @ 7:34AM

This "article" has sparked some interesting responses. A shame that it is nothing more than the selective repackaging of tabloid scaremongering from this side of the Atlantic. The story about the euthanasia video is a joke, and the Colin Atkinson controversy is taken completely out of context. Entertaining? Up to a point. Serious journalism? No way.
If Mr Colebatch wants to continue with his obsessive trashing of the UK, fine. He could at least find something worth reporting. This article deserves the same contempt that Mr Colebatch seems to show his readers. I look forward to his next instalment on the decline and fall of the UK with interest.
Incidently, I am intrigued as to what it is about us that upsets him so much. Smarting Australian pride over the recent loss of the Ashes, perhaps?

Therese| 4.19.11 @ 8:43AM

Can't you picture the future? These children will grow up thinking it's perfectly all right to kill off the elderly because they consume too much carbon footprint, or are costing too much in health care, or because they might want to get their gleeby hands on mom and dad's money and don't want to wait 'til their natural deaths. What kind of a world are the Leftists creating? It is truly frightening to behold how they are warping young minds. Parents, homeschool your children and protect them from popular culture's agenda!

synthetic rope winch | 4.20.11 @ 4:21AM

There is obviously a lot to know about this. I think you made some good points in Features also.

Christian Louboutin | 6.23.11 @ 6:23AM

What they have in common is a vision of a society in which individual human life has no value. Nor, of course, does individual conscience or belief.

Creative Recreation | 8.10.11 @ 10:12PM

is good

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