SI
SI
discoversearch

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor.  We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community.  If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.
Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated
 Public ReplyPrvt ReplyMark as Last ReadFilePrevious 10Next 10PreviousNext  
To: Ilaine who wrote (107115)4/1/2005 6:31:29 PM
From: Lane3  Read Replies (2) of 793914
 
Is that too much to ask?

A while back I had a series of conversations with a friend from the office about organ donation. I think that the context was that they had just offered a checkbox on the driver's license. She had felt threatened by the whole notion of organ donation and said that she wouldn't consider being an organ donor because she was concerned that someone would be so eager for her organs that she would be declared dead prematurely in order to harvest them. This is normal, intelligent woman whose husband (whom she met thought Mensa) does not appear to be an axe murderer. I tried to figure out what might make someone that paranoid but she was so agitated about the notion that I backed off.

I think about that conversation from time to time. I thought of it again recently as we discussed the Schiavo case. It goes to the question of the level of of trust in our families and our institutions that we set as the default.

You ask if it's too much to ask people to put some thought and effort into protecting themselves from their relatives and the medical community. I think that the better question is whether it is too much to ask people to put some thought and effort into picking their spouses. That risk is within the control of the individual and doesn't impose an undue burden on the rest of us.
Report TOU ViolationShare This Post
 Public ReplyPrvt ReplyMark as Last ReadFilePrevious 10Next 10PreviousNext  

HomeMailHotSubjectMarksPeopleMarksKeepersSettings
Terms Of UseContact UsCopyright/IP PolicyPrivacy PolicyAbout UsFAQAdvertise on SI
© 2025 Knight Sac Media.  Data provided by Twelve Data, Alpha Vantage, and CityFALCON News