X-Message-Number: 522 Date: 03 Nov 91 12:02:55 EST From: "Allen J. Lopp" <> Subject: California Humane and Dignified Death Initiative Kevin, please post this on CryoNet, if it isn't too "political" (snear): I would like to announce that a consortium of organizations have again filed with the California Secretary of State to collect signatures for the California Humane & Dignified Death Act, which would allow a terminally ill individual to request physician-assisted "aid in dying"---in other words, to ask for his/hes physician to administer a death-inducing medication. Many of you are familiar with the details of this initiative, since it was circulated in almost exactly the same form circa 1988 and failed to receive all the needed signatures. This time around the sponsors, two organizations called Americans Against Human Suffering and Californians Against Human Suffering, are much more politically savvy and well organized. They need to collect 600,000 signatures by February 1992 in order to get this initiative on the November 3, 1992 ballot. I personally believe their chances of success this time are very good, both for collecting the needed signatures as well as voter approval. The passage of this initiative would make a court case such as Thomas Donaldson's moot. For this reason, I urge all cryonicists to support the effort to pass the California Humane and Dignified Death Act in California. Although not designed for this purpose, this law would allow each of us to exercise far greater control over the ultimate conditions under which our suspensions take place. In the cases of inidividuals known to have advances terminal conditions, suspensions could be planned and scheduled almost as if they were elective medical procedures. The **total elimination** of ischemic injury is just one of several ways that the scientific quality of our suspensions could improve. Moreover, complications because of the unavailability of key suspension team members would be eliminated as well. Just the same, other issues of social ethics are relevant, and each of you can make your own choice as to whether to support this initiative. I, for one, will be helping to collect signatures, and I would like to hear from other California cryonicists who also wish to help. My contact info is: Allen J. Lopp 13354 Veracruz Street Cerritos CA 90701 HOME VOICE, MSG & FAX: (310) 926-5470 WORK: (310) 215-5367 EMAIL: CompuServe 73750,670 I hope to collect a list of volunteers large and impressive enough to impress the sponsoring organizations to work with us. Historically, the attitudes of the right-to-die rank and file toward cryonicists has been dreadful. I'd like to see us change that by taking an energetic role in passing this initiative without hiding who we really are and what we really want. If anyone wants me to get you copies of the initiative to use for signature-collecting, please contact me and tell me how many signatures you hope to collect. (Each form holds only five signatures.) Or you may contact the sponsoring organizations directly. In Southern California: Californians Against Human Suffering 5750 Wilshie Blvd., Suite 561 Los Angeles CA 90036 VOICE: (213) 937-6295 FAX: (213) 937-9613 - OR, in Northern Califronia: Californians Against Human Suffering 3200 Cutter Way Sacramento CA 95818 VOICE: (916) 454-4221 FAX: (916) 454-3686 If you are interested, get involved! Please let me hear from you! Those of you who are outside California, obviously you cannot sign or help collect signatures. But you can get out your checkbook and send a donation to one of the addresses for CAHS above. (Your donation is considered a political contribution by the IRS and is NOT tax deductible.) --- Allen J. Lopp Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=522