[Link] Terry Pratchett begins formal process to end his life

ata

http://blastr.com/2011/06/terry-pratchett-begins-fo.php

Another great mind that will be needlessly lost forever. :(

http://blastr.com/2011/06/terry-pratchett-begins-fo.php

Another great mind that will be needlessly lost forever. :(

I don't believe Pratchett signed up for cryonics, but if he had, what good argument could there be for not letting him commit assisted suicide in the way that best prepared his body for cryopreservation, followed by immediate cryopreservation?

If medical science admittedly can't do anything for these people other than offering palliative care, it seems like from a sanctity of human life perspective, cryopreservation under optimal conditions at least offers a chance to preserve the life that assisted suicide opponents hold to be so sacred. Maybe rather than repealing laws against assisted suicide, we could work towards getting exemptions for cryopreservation?

To the best of my knowledge, countries which allow assisted suicide frown upon cryopreservation, and vice-versa. Many places also require autopsies for suicides; I'm not sure whether that applies to the assisted ones.

24MixedNuts15y

Would be bad for cryonics. Assisted suicide opponents would scream "Cryonics gives people false hope so they can kill themselves!". People with bad but solvable problems would be more likely to choose suicide + cryo, as opposed to solving their problems (also as opposed to regular suicide, so it's unsure which is sadder - but the opposition would see the extra expected deaths more than the prevented ones).

5ata15y

None that I know of; I'd fully support that, particularly considering he has Alzheimer's. Best to preserve a brain while it's still relatively intact rather than waiting for a natural death at which point it would have deteriorated much further.

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[Link] Terry Pratchett begins formal process to end his life

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[Link] Terry Pratchett begins formal process to end his life

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