X-Message-Number: 7465 From: Peter Merel <> Subject: Euthanasia in Holland? Date: Fri, 10 Jan 1997 00:44:22 +1100 (EST) I was pleased and horrified to read Mike Darwin's latest message. Pleased because Darwin thinks deeply and writes beautifully; horrified at the experiences he relates. Reading Darwin is good for a cryonicist - it's the kick in the arse we need to understand the dangers of complacency. I'd like to ask whether Mike or the other medical folks think that there is much CNS damage deriving from the starving/dehydrating kind of euthanasia, or whether this damage pales beside what would have occurred otherwise? Also, I recently came across some details online of the Dutch euthanasia laws. It seems that, while there is no specific law sanctioning VE in Holland, their law does make VE a defence against criminal prosecution of doctors who perform VE, provided that appropriate procedures are followed. The problem for cryonicists, however, is that the Dutch laws are specifically limited to application to resident Dutch citizens. I'm afraid that a moderate amount of surfing didn't reveal to me the requirements for Dutch citizenship. I suspect they're too onerous to apply to the vast majority of us, but I'm not certain - has anyone pursued this? Oh, and for Thomas Donaldson, I shall reply, but cryonet has been so focused for the last week that I feel our thread would bring down the excellent s/n. I'll pop it on when there's a lull. Peter Merel. Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=7465