blackbird

It is a major mistake to try to boil it down to whose life it is or it is my right to have assisted death if I wish. It is wrong to use that to try to prove one has the right to end their life when they want. That solves nothing and benefits nobody. The problem is as I described that lack of proper palliative care for people. Nobody should want to end their lives because of lack of proper care. Society has a responsibility to take care of it's old, infirm, ill, and handicapped people with excellent care for every aspect of their needs. That is the solution, not offering someone a quick death by an injection. That just devalues human life and makes society nothing more than animals. The answer is compassion and quality care for everyone.

I can not picture any situation where one could legitimately say someone's life isn't worth living. Instead of the government allowing such a possibility to even exist, it should be treating the lack of good palliative care. It is much like the situation of the high number of long term care residents who died because they were infected with Covid. Many were found to be neglected in their day to day needs. They were really neglected as far as protecting them from Covid. It is a similar situation when people in palliative care homes who are not given proper care to deal with every aspect of their needs, including pain management if needed. But this care must be provided long before they get to the point of a hospice. Proper care must be provided in all long term care homes. If proper care were provided, there should be nobody living in unmanaged pain and misery every day. There is no limit to the pain medications doctors can prescribe to treat patients. Addiction is not even an issue in palliative care. That is the solution, not assisted dying as a medical procedure. That is not care for people. That is not a legitimate solution. It is an easy escape for people and an economical solution for health care providers. MAID lets the government off the hook because it reduces the cost of providing proper palliative care and lessens the overall provincial budget for long term care. Just one less patient to care for each year saves the government tens of thousands of dollars. Over 15,000 people have been given MAID since it was legalized across Canada in 2016. This must have saved the provincial and federal governments hundreds of millions of dollars, maybe over a billion dollars.

The purpose of good palliative care has always been to reduce pain as much as possible and provide whatever pychological or spiritual counseling and supports needed. We should never accept the concept that "life is not worth living any more". That is a negative outlook and should always be rejected. There is always a reason for living whether we understand it fully or not. We would not even be here if there was no reason. The reason may be a spiritual one and may not be understood by everyone but there is still a reason. The fact that we exist is clear proof there is a reason for our being. We need to find the compassion and resources to provide care for everyone in society who is suffering and enable them to live in as humane and dignified way as possible and reject the culture of death which is being foisted on society by the misguided individuals who do not understand life.

"someone wanting it" is an enormously oversimplification of the issue but it is the common argument for those in favour of it. There are many aspects to this subject. Many people have a difficult time in life for a variety of reasons. Some of these people will, without giving much thought to it, think that an assisted death is the solution, just as many youth in some native reserves also think suicide is the solution to their problems. Or they will be pressured into seeking assisted death by various other people such as those in the medical system for other reasons. Many handicapped and people suffering various forms of illness recognize that assisted death is easier to access for $400 in some cases than appropriate disability supports to live. One man with a disability in a care facility was repeatedly told he would be better off to get an assisted death than to carry on in his situation. This is not care under any definition. We live in a society where proper care with all the necessary supports is becoming harder to obtain and more expensive than a quick assisted death. Society is more and more turning it's back on those who need help and proper care. The central purpose of medicine has always been to provide good care for those in need and reduce their suffering or pain or eliminate it entirely while letting them still live. This concept of compassion and love for life is being discarded or shoved aside. Whatever happened to the higher principle we have known for thousands of years of love thy neighbour as thyself? That is fast disappearing. Once the flood gates are opened, where will it end? Will the ever increasng costs of providing the medical system mean people of a certain age or condition be encouraged to seek an assisted death and leave more space and resources for those younger or in better shape? This present direction of devaluing life and the meaning of life cannot be the correct path. We know it costs government or society more and requires a lot of resources to provide proper palliative care for people in difficult circumstances, but it is the humane thing to do if we are to love our neighbour.

I never actually said bars, concerts, etc. would be closed after 70% of the population is vaccinated. I doubt there will be mandatory restrictions once that many people are vaccinated, providing it gets the virus under control, which I assume it will. In fact, once a significant percentage of the population is vaccinated and we don't see the high numbers of new cases, the government will likely lift most restrictions.

The numbers I found globally were 107,458,667 cases and 2,357,475 deaths. In Canada the numbers are 816,169 cases and 21,063 deaths. So globally that is about 2.2%. In Canada the death rate is about 2.5% of the number of people who get Covid. So your number seems way too low. 95% of Americans killed by Covid were aged 50 plus. So I think it is tragic and irresponsible to not do what can be done to save people's lives. Wearing a mask and following the health guidelines is not too much of a burden for people to follow. Hopefully when enough people are vaccinated, we can get back to a more normal life. But wearing masks and distancing from people may be with us for years to come because it may not be totally eradicated and there may be new deadly viruses. Best just to accept it as the way of life now and live accordingly. It is a heavier burden for younger people who are used to socializing and going to bars sports activities, etc. But someday they will be old and might appreciate people helping them survive. .

Trudeau still claims everyone who wants a vaccine shot will get it by the end of September. I'm not sure he can make such a promise, but if so, hopefully 70% or more of the population will be vaccinated by that time and we will be rid of the China virus. But I don't trust Trudeau. Will see how the vaccination process goes in the next few months. We might be able to tell by summer if it will be a success.

Actually, I did take steps over the years to avoid the flu, pneumonia, and shingles by getting vaccinated. The last 20 or 30 years I have had a flu shot every year as well. I also tried to stay away from people who have the flu. I know mainstream media is by and large fake news, especially when it comes to liberal, left ideology, which they wholeheartedly support and spread. But on the China virus spread and death statistics, I think they have that correct. Thinking it is a hoax and not taking it seriously means you are probably not taking proper health measures to protect yourself and therefore puts yourself at greater risk of serious health issues or death if you catch it. You could also spread it to other people which is tragic and irresponsible.

This title is the title of an article by Gerrit Van Dorland in The Post Millennial on the internet. Part of an article: Quote An upstream approach to medicine has always been to look at the root of the problem, address the source of suffering, and try to eliminate the suffering. If that fails, the next option is not to eliminate the sufferer, but rather, make the patient comfortable in their suffering, and help them find a purpose in it. As Victor Frankl famously penned in Man's Search for Meaning, "suffering ceases to be suffering at the moment it finds a meaning." But the burden lies not only on caregivers and legislators to assist those suffering in finding meaning, it lies on each one of us.............. I believe that the individualistic nature of Western society is the primary factor driving the increasing demand for MAiD today. In an era of toilet paper hoarding, social isolation, and the abandonment of care homes, we have largely forgotten what it means to care for and love our neighbour. To be a good Samaritan is to put the needs of our neighbour before our own without expecting anything in return. And so, while we must hold caregivers and legislators to a higher standard, we must each accept personal responsibility for failing to properly love our neighbour as a brother. Frankl noted that "being human always points, and is directed, to something or someone, other than oneself... the more one forgets himself—by giving himself to a cause to serve or another person to love—the more human he is and the more he actualizes himself." In other words, to share the burdens of those suffering is to be human. And If there's one takeaway from this bizarre year, it's that we could all stand to be a little more of it. Unquote Another point I would add to this is that the Supreme Court speaking on this subject included a requirement that there be some consideration in the MAID to take into consideration those people who oppose MAID. But this was not done. There were no stipulations to protect the freedom of conscience of those who believe they could not participate in MAID or support MAID in any way. This refers to doctors, nurses and other staff who oppose MAID on religious or conscience grounds. Their rights are being violated and no consideration was given to them in the MAID law even though this was part of the Supreme Court directive.

"Just who are all of these people that are catching and dying from this China virus anyway?" 97% of those who died are seniors. Many in the long term care homes. So, if you have grandparents in your list of contacts, you could give it to them and some of them might die. I am a senior and a heart attack survivor with a damaged heart. So if I get Covid, my chance of survival is very slim. That is why we self-isolate, and avoid going to the dentist, although I need a filling, avoid the eye doctor, and generally avoid going in any business unless I absolutely have to. And then with caution, wearing a mask and keeping distance. Over 20,000 have died in Canada. So I don't think it is a hoax or overblown like some people I hear. Usually those people are young and would likely survive the virus anyway. Hopefully they don't have old relatives in their contact list.

Is there any truth in this? I wouldn't touch a gay loonie. Will have to resort to quarters.

Funny how some people make assumptions. Where is the evidence he is a dual citizen first? Even if he is a dual citizen, where is the evidence this is anything negative? Secondly where is the evidence he is a racist? How about producing some evidence instead of making wild allegations?

Were you a member of the Conservative party and participated in the choice of the new leader, Scheer? People who didn't participate don't have much to complain about.

China is a totalitarian country and does not believe in any kind of human rights. Without America there is no freedom. The freedom we enjoy is because America and the west defended it in the world. You sound like you are on the wrong side. America and the west are our allies, not China.

One cannot make assumptions about religion if they know nothing about it. Belief in God is by faith and the Bible says faith is a gift of God. (King James Bible) Modern translations are corrupted because they are based on some corrupt manuscripts.

In what way?

It is a secular government, but there are a lot of Christians in it.

The election of the 3 Green MLAs and the NDP in BC was one of the worst things that portion of the voters did to BC. The majority of people in BC support the Kinder Morgan pipeline but we will all pay the price for the disastrous decisions of the Green - NDP coalition.

The U.S. legal system allows illegals to cross the border and remain in the U.S. I believe it was allowed by the previous administrations because of international conventions, possibly connected with the U.N. on rights of refugees. Europe has had the same problems. To change that would probably cause a backlash from the UN and other countries. I am not sure why the U.S. does not do what Australia does. Perhaps the legal system in the U.S. would make it more difficult.

The idea was to build a high wall with very sharp razors along the top to discourage and make it next to impossible to climb over. But they need to change the law to make it possible to deal with illegal border migrants right at the wall, question them, and immediately ship them back to Mexico. The trouble is the UN has taken over nation's sovereignty and made if very difficult to stop illegal migrants. There are countries in the UN who want to tear down borders and enable the billions of people to move wherever they wish.

The reason why a physical border wall is necessary is because if one illegal migrant steps across the border, the U.S. is obligated to let the person stay while their application goes through the process and hearing which could take a long time. In the meantime, they may just disappear somewhere in the country and refuse to report to any hearings, knowing they will be ordered deported. The only way to stop a person from setting foot on American soil is a wall. The National Guard or border police cannot stop a person from stepping across the border and claiming refugee status. That is the way the laws are written apparently and cannot be changed possibly because of U.N. conventions which were signed onto by previous administrations.

Better to believe the Holy Scripture. Read Luke ch17 vs 19-31. King James Bible. Jesus gave this account of a rich man in hell and Lazarus. It doesn't say it was a parable. It must be taken as fact.

The thing to remember the Bible says all are sinners and worthy of damnation. Sure there are different kinds of sinners. Some hedonists, some adulterers, some crooked in their dealings with others, and some crooked politicians who will say anything to get elected. No use going through the list of possible sins. The fact is someone who not as bad a sinner as others still doesn't get into heaven according to the Bible unless he is born again. So non-believers in Christ will be in the company of all kinds of different sinners from the world's worst tyrants, the sexual sinners, the crime gangs, and all the down to the kid on the block whose sins might seem insignificant. It is foolish to compare one's self with somebody like Trump and think that will get one into heaven. It won't. Maybe one hasn't committed the same class of sins but that doesn't absolve one from all the other sins that people commit daily. That's why God sent his son into the world to save lost sinners, including someone like Trump. Who knows what he believes? It is foolish to judge. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16 The worst mistake someone can make is to think he is not as bad as some other guy and think that this will be enough to get him into heaven.

I think Trudeau killed the Northern Gateway Pipeline project because he believed it would offend the Spirit Bear in the Great Bear Rainforest. The pipeline would have gone through a small part of the so-called Great Bear Rainforest to reach Kitimat. But he killed it and said the Great Bear Rainforest was no place for a pipeline. Don't offend the Kermode Bear.

Don't know if you ever watch those channels that show border security agents running around the U.S.-Mexican border trying to catch illegal migrants coming but it is a steady struggle. Also watch the cocaine manufacturing and underworld in Columbia and other places and how they ship it into America. Billions of dollars worth. The Americans use helicopters, ATVs, trucks, police on foot constantly struggling. One the illegals come in all they can do is arrest them and process them and let them go. They are supposed to appear in a future hearing. It is a hopeless situation because previous administrations laws allow border crossers to stay once they set foot on American soil. Similar to Canada. A wall might do a lot by making it physically impossible to get in. Without the wall there is no hope of stopping them from continuing to pour in. Also, a lot of these migrants are coming from central America and Africa, bad places. Lots of crime and bad dudes. Many of the ones who get into America head for Canada because they know our system is generous and possibly they will have a better chance of staying in Canada. If rejected by the refugee board at some distant time, they might just disappear into the woodwork and work under the table.