Comments on: Palliative Care for Atheists? http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists A Blog of Atheist Thought Sat, 20 Mar 2010 05:25:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Rusty Shackleford http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68356 Rusty Shackleford Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68356 This seems like a silly thing to study, but if he/she is serious the Duke student should check out the Oct./Nov. 2007 issue of <i>Free Inquiry</i> magazine. This seems like a silly thing to study, but if he/she is serious the Duke student should check out the Oct./Nov. 2007 issue of Free Inquiry magazine.

]]> By: dsilverman http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68357 dsilverman Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68357 My personal opinion here is that I would avoid the palliative care. As an Atheist, I know that this existence is all there is, and frankly, I want it. If there's a 1% chance of a reasonable survival, I'll take it. I would not give up. My personal opinion here is that I would avoid the palliative care. As an Atheist, I know that this existence is all there is, and frankly, I want it. If there’s a 1% chance of a reasonable survival, I’ll take it. I would not give up.

]]> By: what http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68358 what Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68358 Both questions are poorly chosen with respect to your intention of determining how atheists would deal with the process of dying. You are asking us to tell you what atheists <b>in general</b> think. Also you are asking us about making a decision for which you have poorly defined the parameters. You should ask want we as <b>individual</b> atheists think and you should be more specific about the question. Palliative therapy varies with the disease, stage, individual, support system, living conditions and finances. Whether to go with a high-risk treament - in terms of outcomes and side effects - or palliative therapy would obviously depend upon similar considerations including stage of the new treatments development. The variance in the responses to these questions is just going to be to high and will overwhelm any differences between groups that you wish to investigate. Both questions are poorly chosen with respect to your intention of determining how atheists would deal with the process of dying. You are asking us to tell you what atheists in general think. Also you are asking us about making a decision for which you have poorly defined the parameters. You should ask want we as individual atheists think and you should be more specific about the question. Palliative therapy varies with the disease, stage, individual, support system, living conditions and finances. Whether to go with a high-risk treament – in terms of outcomes and side effects – or palliative therapy would obviously depend upon similar considerations including stage of the new treatments development. The variance in the responses to these questions is just going to be to high and will overwhelm any differences between groups that you wish to investigate.

]]> By: billh http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68359 billh Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68359 If there is any chance of survival, yes. If not, let me go.<br /> <br /> I do not believe in gods, in fact I know the gods are man made. Is there an escense that continues? Not sure. I do believe that reincarnation is a posibility, far more so than so god, so let me go on to another life, or if not, it does not matter anyway. Just avoid a painful death is what I would want. If there is any chance of survival, yes. If not, let me go.

I do not believe in gods, in fact I know the gods are man made. Is there an escense that continues? Not sure. I do believe that reincarnation is a posibility, far more so than so god, so let me go on to another life, or if not, it does not matter anyway. Just avoid a painful death is what I would want.

]]> By: reedbraden http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68360 reedbraden Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68360 I would take the palliative care. I know that this life is all I get, but I would not want to take a dangerous risk to extend this life into 6 more months of bed-ridden misery, which is how the majority of people who insist on taking that gamble end up, if not dead from surgery.<br /> <br /> I am not afraid of death. I know it's inevitable and there's nothing I can do to stop it. When it happens, I'll be too dead to care. The hospital staff should be doing more important things than playing god to keep me alive for another miserable month. When they could be removing a tumour or aiding a birth, they shouldn't be tinkering with my failing organs. I would take the palliative care. I know that this life is all I get, but I would not want to take a dangerous risk to extend this life into 6 more months of bed-ridden misery, which is how the majority of people who insist on taking that gamble end up, if not dead from surgery.

I am not afraid of death. I know it’s inevitable and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. When it happens, I’ll be too dead to care. The hospital staff should be doing more important things than playing god to keep me alive for another miserable month. When they could be removing a tumour or aiding a birth, they shouldn’t be tinkering with my failing organs.

]]> By: reedbraden http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68361 reedbraden Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68361 ...<br /> <br /> As long as I get my morphine shots, I can be happy. …

As long as I get my morphine shots, I can be happy.

]]> By: kvetch http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68363 kvetch Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68363 As I understand the word palliative to mean "Relieving or soothing the symptoms of a disease or disorder without effecting a cure," according to Dictionary.com, I think it's the best way for me and my loved ones to deal with a sad part of life - its end. I would accept it for practical reasons.<br /> <br /> <br /> As I understand the word palliative to mean “Relieving or soothing the symptoms of a disease or disorder without effecting a cure,” according to Dictionary.com, I think it’s the best way for me and my loved ones to deal with a sad part of life – its end. I would accept it for practical reasons.

]]> By: suttsteve http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68364 suttsteve Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68364 "...one who believes in atheism..."<br /> <br /> How does one believe in a lack of belief in gods?<br /> <br /> Speaking for myself, I wouldn't want to put the financial burden of paying for a treatment that has little chance of working on my family, so I would accept palliative care, unless they insisted, which they probably would. “…one who believes in atheism…”

How does one believe in a lack of belief in gods?

Speaking for myself, I wouldn’t want to put the financial burden of paying for a treatment that has little chance of working on my family, so I would accept palliative care, unless they insisted, which they probably would.

]]> By: jshanewhit http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68365 jshanewhit Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68365 What,<br /> <br /> I agree with you on this point. Atheists are not a consolidated group. We have no "bible" to ensure we all think the same. I am very glad for that. It is why we do not even use the same term to define ourselves. Some use words like "free thinker", "bright" or "humanist" in place of Atheist. If we do not even agree on a name, I find it hard to believe we can agree on how we prefer to die. <br /> <br /> I personally, had to see my grandfather die of emphazema. Sorry for spelling, my in browser spell checker is blank on the spelling. When he died, he had a quarter of one lung left. He suffered a couple years of not being able to breath, fighting for air with every breath. There was nothing to do except give him encouragement and watch him suffer and slowly die.<br /> I saw him an hour before he passed. He was smiling for the first time in years. I stood there crying, looking down at him. He shook his head, no, do not feel bad. He tried to communicate that he was happy to see the end of his struggle. He did not want to endure it anymore. I learned a lot from him, one thing being that life has no value if you cannot actually BE alive, in any real sense. What,

I agree with you on this point. Atheists are not a consolidated group. We have no “bible” to ensure we all think the same. I am very glad for that. It is why we do not even use the same term to define ourselves. Some use words like “free thinker”, “bright” or “humanist” in place of Atheist. If we do not even agree on a name, I find it hard to believe we can agree on how we prefer to die.

I personally, had to see my grandfather die of emphazema. Sorry for spelling, my in browser spell checker is blank on the spelling. When he died, he had a quarter of one lung left. He suffered a couple years of not being able to breath, fighting for air with every breath. There was nothing to do except give him encouragement and watch him suffer and slowly die.
I saw him an hour before he passed. He was smiling for the first time in years. I stood there crying, looking down at him. He shook his head, no, do not feel bad. He tried to communicate that he was happy to see the end of his struggle. He did not want to endure it anymore. I learned a lot from him, one thing being that life has no value if you cannot actually BE alive, in any real sense.

]]> By: alexatheist http://atheists.org/blog/2007/10/18/pallative_care_for_atheists/comment-page-1#comment-68368 alexatheist Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-68368 Does anyone know how I can contact this student? Duke is only a few minutes from my house.<br /> Does anyone know how I can contact this student? Duke is only a few minutes from my house.

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