A - Right to Die

			assisted suicide euthanasia mercy killing Dr. Kevorkian: “Dying is not a crime.” hospice DNR - do not resuscitate advance directive/ living will quality of life “death with dignity” "elephant in the room" (ER story - Mark Green: father dying of a painful disease, control of pain medication)

			What do you think of Keoni Tabido’s decision?

			When is it acceptable/unacceptable to let or assist someone commit suicide?

			Discuss the difference between allowing someone to die, helping someone to die, and causing someone to die?

			Is withholding medical treatment murder?

			How does Japan’s tradition affect current thinking about suicide?

			What would you do if you found yourself in Keoni Tabido’s situation?

			What about someone close to you?

			Who does life “belong to”?

			Do you have any knowledge or experience with other culture’s traditions regarding the dying? (Eskimos, Obasuteyama...)

			Do you think attitudes about suicide will change much in the future? How? Why or why not?

			Galen: “First, do no harm.” What are the implications? (Hippocratic Oath - Hippocrates)

			Textbook: eternal youth. Does this appeal to you?

			If you could be one age for the rest of your life, what would it be?

The Who, a famous rock group of the sixties, in a song titled, “My Generation” sing, “Hope I die before I get old.” <http://snipurl.com/3ecrm> What’s your reaction to this idea?

Another two great sonsg about facing death:

Elephant, Jason Isbell (Lyrics)
Live Like You Were Dying, Tim McGraw

These two songs each contain some very full, rich ideas. I hope some of you take the time to listen to them and discuss them in class. おねがいします。

			Other experiences, stories, research... Extra Material: http://www.impactseries.com/Issues_new/issues_link.html Video (opinions): http://www.impactseries.com/Issues_new/issues_personal_opi.html

			Recommended: ER https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ER_(TV_series) “Welcome to the Monkey House”, Kurt Vonnegut http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welcome_to_the_Monkey_House http://sn.im/s1zub “Welcome to the Monkey House” takes place in a dystopian future, a setting that is very common in Kurt Vonnegut’s short stories. In this one, the world has become very overpopulated, and the government is forced to take drastic actions. This involves a two pronged attack. The government encourages the citizens to painlessly end their lives in “ethical suicide parlors,” and they’re given “ethical birth control pills” which don’t do anything to affect reproduction, but instead take all the pleasure out of sex. Someone who refuses to take the pills is called a nothinghead. The story centers around Nancy, a suicide parlor hostess who is kidnapped by the infamous nothinghead Billy the Poet and taken to his hideout, where he rapes her. Nancy is very angry about this, but Billy says that eventually she will come to thank him. Billy is shown as not a twisted rapist who wants a sexual harem, but instead a good-natured freedom fighter trying to open the eyes of the citizens who for so long have had their rights taken away. He then leaves to room but leaves behind a bottle of pills with a note on them saying “Welcome to the Monkey House.” Difficult to find, but worth it. An older film with very unconventional ideas about youth, age, and death: Harold & Maude <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_and_Maude>