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October 1993 Hye Sharzhoom Opinion—3 Kevorkian Faces "Whose right to die?" issue again By Lara Simonian staff writer Your 68 year old grandmother has lung cancer. She is mentally and physically crippled, as a result she cannot feed herself, stand, or even control her bowels. She tells you the pain has become too much, that she is tired, and that she finally WANTS to die. Will you help her? Well, Dr. Jack Kevorkian decided to help, and as a result, he was once again ordered on Monday, October 11, 1993 to face trial for violating Michigan state's new assisted suicide law. Kevorkian currently is facing new charges for the death of Donald O'Keefe, a 73-year-old bone cancer patient, and Thomas Hyde, a 30-year-old terminally ill patient, both of whom used his "death machine." Dr. Kevorkian, a 62-year-old retired pathologist, had previously defeated a similar charge in February 1991. Oakland County, Michigan Distric Judge, Gerald McNally ruled that his patient, Janet Adkins, "...had caused her own death when she pressed a button which released a heart-stopping mixture of potassium chloride and Anectine into her veins." Yet Kevorkian is back again, charged for another "assisted suicide." The crux of Kevorkian's argument does not depend on economics, laws, regulations, politics, or technicalities. His main concern deals with dignity and your RIGHT as a sentient human being, to die when you want, and how you want. If you WANTED to die, should the right belong to you, your neighbor, society, or the government? It seems that for Fresno State students, the right to die is a question that is either already answered by your natural rights, or, oppositely, one that only God controls. In a random poll taken in October, 1993, 30% of those surveyed stated that they did not support Dr. Kevorkian for the following reasons: "The natural course of events should be allowed to run its course.... People do not have the right to take their own lives.... Only God can give and take away life.... No one else can play God." In response to those FSU students opposing Kevorkian, 70% of those surveyed expressed strong support for him. One anonymous student firmly stated that, "People all too easily give up control of their lives to the government.... They are less and less willing to make decisions for themselves, and make harsh judgements on those that differ from the norm. As adults, fully functioning, intelligent human beings, why shouldn't we be allowed to make our own decisions?" If an adult gives his consent, exercising his free choices, how can we say that that is wrong? Is the question even up for society to debate? Another student, a nursing major, asks, "Have YOU ever seen a dying man plagued with such a disease as cancer? I have, and it is an unsettling experience... Until you experience that pain and inevitable death, you cannot dispute or take this right away from anyone else." "If life is a gift and should be respected, is pain a damnation and should be extended?" What about the other points made by those opposing Kevorkian? Can we ask, who really is playing God? Would a doctor who uses medicine to save someone's life be restricting "the natural course of death?" What happens if you are not religious? Or even more problematically, what if you believe that God does grant you the right to die? Opponents of the "right to die" issue have argued that, "...we focus too much on death, when, instead, we should be helping those who are struggling to live.... 'Those terminally ill would find it easier to fight if society encouraged people to live, rather than to make it easier for them to die." They, in fact, find it unnecessary to discuss the right to die, when society has come to that point in history where, "...medicine has reduced the amount of pain we have to bear." Proponents conversely respond that we are too preoccupied with extending life and preventing death. When opponents cry out, "You're playing God when you take a life!", proponents are tempted to cry out, "Then you are playing God when you save a life!" Who can really argue for what God said? How does someone know whether or not God intended for that person to die? As far as "God's support" is concerned, it looks like both sides would have trouble claiming it. "If life is a gift, and should be respected, is pain a damnation, and should be extended?" The two points don't seem to follow each other, do they? In today's society, we believe that a dog that's been hit by a car (when it can't be saved) should be mercifully put to death to end its inevitable misery. Yet, when we place a human being in the same situation, we tend to prefer forcing him too suffer and deal with his pain. Is a human being not as valuable as a dog, or is his pain not as important? It's understandable for people to think that human life is at a different level than a dog's life, but how can one consciously justify damning another human being in a life full of misery, sadness, and suffering. Is it right to condemn an innocent person (the terminally ill) to a horrid life in prison (his sentence of living his life as terminally ill)? YOU in fact, are not the person who has to suffer, so should you, or society (who never feels an ounce of his torment) tell him that he has to endure the pain till he dies, for he simply does not have "the right to die?" What crime did the terminally ill person commit to have received such a cruel, life sentence, to be spent in torment, pain, and anguish? What is it about the right to die that involves others, and upsets them so much? Let's take for example, the fact that society can not, should not, and does not tell you "when, how, and where" you should give birth. Yet, in retrospect, society DOES force its legal hand into the "when, how, and where's" of your death. Why is there such an inconsistency? Does it make sense to say that in this "great land ofthe free", you do have the right to be born, but you do not have the right to die? Doesn't the right to be born and the right to die fall under the same category? Today, the American Medical Association states that about 27 states have prohibitions against assisting suicide, another 10 prosecute such an assistance as homicide, and the rest have no laws on the subject. In 1991, Washington state had Initiative 119, which would allow any person who (in the opinion of Please see Doctor, Page 6 Norwegians take an "Armenian Journey" By Hanne Bentzon and Brigitte Lund Staff Writers Armenia has always been a friend of Norway. We have all heard about the Nansen passport... or have we? Norwegian help was provided through the Nansen passport, and most Armenians know about this. But are all the Norwegians aware of this part of their history? We doubt that. Norway has always claimed to be a caring and informed nation. Why was this left out of our general education? Armenian Studies 10, at Fresno State, gave us the chance to make up for the lost information. As the author of "Passage to Ararat", Michael Arlen wrote, " At a particular time in my life, I set out on a voyage to discover for myself what it is to be Armenian"... we decided to start our own "Armenian Journey" with Dr. Kouymjian as our guide. This class has taught us about a country that is so different from ours in their history, culture and way of life. Despite these differences, we discovered an important similarity. Both countries have spent too many years fighting for their independence. Armenia and Norway have been through a long struggle for freedom. Historical facts about Armenia came to our knowledge, but we started to get confused. We were drowning in information about a country, but we knew little about the people of Armenia. The Armenian Studies Program Banquet came up and we saw our chance to change this. We have to admit that we were pretty excited when we left home to, however, we were unsure of what to expect. Somehow we felt a little scared and nervous... but we didn' t know why. Would we feel.out of place, not being Armenians? Maybe the Armenians had a strong bond between them, which could difficult for us to relate to. Many thoughts crossed our minds on our way to the banquet. The minute we stepped into the cafeteria, we were taken by change of atmosphere that had taken place there. This place, that usually drowned in junkfood and noisy students, was all of a sudden " a little Armenia." With many very nice and open people, beautiful interior and a Kanon playing in the background, we vere suddenly a part of another world... an Armenian world. What had we been scared of? Maybe we had been frightened to look the Armenians in the eyes, well aware of the tragedy they had suffered, and the ignorance we had shown. Something was wrong with our conscience. That is why we were intimidated by the Armenians. This showed us how important it is to stop focusing on your own tragedy and open your eyes to other peoples exreriences. Piece by piece the information has come together. We are starting to get the whole picture of Armenia. But there are still pieces missing from the puzzle. Pieces we will find further down the road of our "Armenian Journey." US Citizenship Questioned By Mike Pogosian Staff Writer Recently on the campus of California State University Fresno, Armenian students have been discussing a topic that has attracted a lot of attention. The subject that brought about these discussions, among Armenian students, was about citizenship. Are Armenians more patriotic towards the United States, or a country halfway around the world. I went around campus and conducted a survey of Armenian students, and asked them if they as Armenians were proud of being American citizens. This is what I found. Caroline Arakelian: "Yes, although I'm Armenian, I'm proud to be an American citizen because, I grew up here and have taken advantage of all the opportunities offered here to people living in this country." Tania Alikian: "I'm very proud of being an American citizen as well as being Armenian. I'm also very lucky to live in this country because ofthe many opportunities that are offered to me here." Marine Pogosian: "Yes I am proud of being an Americn citizen, since I am going to live here the rest of my life. I am also proud of who I am, an Armenian." Vartan Vartanian: "I am proud of being Armenian first and then I am proud of being an American citizen." Kha jag Zeitlian: "No, absolutely not! I was born in Lebanon and I was a proud Lebanese citizen and when my parents became U.S. citizens, I had to comply also, because I was under 18 and couldn't make a legal choice about it. The only thing that a U.S. citizenship gives me is a U.S. passport, which makes traveling easier. Otherwise, a U.S. citizenship is worthless if you aren't proud about the U.S. I would like an Armenian citizenship though." Character, from page 2 She wanted me to have the bracelet, but she wasn't letting me pay for it. She knew I was a tourist, and I knew she needed the money, so why wasn't she taking it? Istood there andsilently watched her melancholy ways. All she did was smile and urge me to go on with the bracelet. In lingering steps, I gradually began walking away from her booth. An old woman living in a nation in poverty, gives away her product to an Armenian tourist. This made little sense to me then, but it allowed me to understand the Armenian character years later. I turned to her one last time, smiled, and nodded in an understanding fashion. "Shnorhagalyem (I am thankful)." I walked to many other booths that day, encountering similar cir cumstances with other sellers. They refused not to hold their head up high by placing their hands out to anyone. I was astonished by the conflicting interests in the situations, and even more astonished to see which interest overcame the other. After a while, I stopped and put on the copper bracelet. Its beauty wasn't in its metal. It was in the value from the people. I kept my head up higher than usual that day and felt especially proud for being an Armenian. What can be said about the Armenian character? It still can't be said in one sentence. It can only be understood that: "Haygagan ngarakeeruh ... meyayn an eh." The Armenian character ... it just is.
Object Description
Title | 1993_10 Hye Sharzhoom Newspaper October 1993 |
Alternative Title | Armenian Action, Vol. 15 No. 1, October 1993; Ethnic Supplement to the Collegian. |
Publisher | Armenian Studies Program, California State University, Fresno. |
Publication Date | 1993 |
Description | Published two to four times a year. The newspaper of the California State University, Fresno Armenian Students Organization and Armenian Studies Program. |
Subject | California State University, Fresno – Periodicals. |
Contributors | Armenian Studies Program; Armenian Students Organization, California State University, Fresno. |
Coverage | 1979-2014 |
Format | Newspaper print |
Language | eng |
Full-Text-Search | Scanned at 200-360 dpi, 18-bit greyscale - 24-bit color, TIFF or PDF. PDFs were converted to TIF using Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro. |
Description
Title | October 1993 Page 3 |
Full-Text-Search | October 1993 Hye Sharzhoom Opinion—3 Kevorkian Faces "Whose right to die?" issue again By Lara Simonian staff writer Your 68 year old grandmother has lung cancer. She is mentally and physically crippled, as a result she cannot feed herself, stand, or even control her bowels. She tells you the pain has become too much, that she is tired, and that she finally WANTS to die. Will you help her? Well, Dr. Jack Kevorkian decided to help, and as a result, he was once again ordered on Monday, October 11, 1993 to face trial for violating Michigan state's new assisted suicide law. Kevorkian currently is facing new charges for the death of Donald O'Keefe, a 73-year-old bone cancer patient, and Thomas Hyde, a 30-year-old terminally ill patient, both of whom used his "death machine." Dr. Kevorkian, a 62-year-old retired pathologist, had previously defeated a similar charge in February 1991. Oakland County, Michigan Distric Judge, Gerald McNally ruled that his patient, Janet Adkins, "...had caused her own death when she pressed a button which released a heart-stopping mixture of potassium chloride and Anectine into her veins." Yet Kevorkian is back again, charged for another "assisted suicide." The crux of Kevorkian's argument does not depend on economics, laws, regulations, politics, or technicalities. His main concern deals with dignity and your RIGHT as a sentient human being, to die when you want, and how you want. If you WANTED to die, should the right belong to you, your neighbor, society, or the government? It seems that for Fresno State students, the right to die is a question that is either already answered by your natural rights, or, oppositely, one that only God controls. In a random poll taken in October, 1993, 30% of those surveyed stated that they did not support Dr. Kevorkian for the following reasons: "The natural course of events should be allowed to run its course.... People do not have the right to take their own lives.... Only God can give and take away life.... No one else can play God." In response to those FSU students opposing Kevorkian, 70% of those surveyed expressed strong support for him. One anonymous student firmly stated that, "People all too easily give up control of their lives to the government.... They are less and less willing to make decisions for themselves, and make harsh judgements on those that differ from the norm. As adults, fully functioning, intelligent human beings, why shouldn't we be allowed to make our own decisions?" If an adult gives his consent, exercising his free choices, how can we say that that is wrong? Is the question even up for society to debate? Another student, a nursing major, asks, "Have YOU ever seen a dying man plagued with such a disease as cancer? I have, and it is an unsettling experience... Until you experience that pain and inevitable death, you cannot dispute or take this right away from anyone else." "If life is a gift and should be respected, is pain a damnation and should be extended?" What about the other points made by those opposing Kevorkian? Can we ask, who really is playing God? Would a doctor who uses medicine to save someone's life be restricting "the natural course of death?" What happens if you are not religious? Or even more problematically, what if you believe that God does grant you the right to die? Opponents of the "right to die" issue have argued that, "...we focus too much on death, when, instead, we should be helping those who are struggling to live.... 'Those terminally ill would find it easier to fight if society encouraged people to live, rather than to make it easier for them to die." They, in fact, find it unnecessary to discuss the right to die, when society has come to that point in history where, "...medicine has reduced the amount of pain we have to bear." Proponents conversely respond that we are too preoccupied with extending life and preventing death. When opponents cry out, "You're playing God when you take a life!", proponents are tempted to cry out, "Then you are playing God when you save a life!" Who can really argue for what God said? How does someone know whether or not God intended for that person to die? As far as "God's support" is concerned, it looks like both sides would have trouble claiming it. "If life is a gift, and should be respected, is pain a damnation, and should be extended?" The two points don't seem to follow each other, do they? In today's society, we believe that a dog that's been hit by a car (when it can't be saved) should be mercifully put to death to end its inevitable misery. Yet, when we place a human being in the same situation, we tend to prefer forcing him too suffer and deal with his pain. Is a human being not as valuable as a dog, or is his pain not as important? It's understandable for people to think that human life is at a different level than a dog's life, but how can one consciously justify damning another human being in a life full of misery, sadness, and suffering. Is it right to condemn an innocent person (the terminally ill) to a horrid life in prison (his sentence of living his life as terminally ill)? YOU in fact, are not the person who has to suffer, so should you, or society (who never feels an ounce of his torment) tell him that he has to endure the pain till he dies, for he simply does not have "the right to die?" What crime did the terminally ill person commit to have received such a cruel, life sentence, to be spent in torment, pain, and anguish? What is it about the right to die that involves others, and upsets them so much? Let's take for example, the fact that society can not, should not, and does not tell you "when, how, and where" you should give birth. Yet, in retrospect, society DOES force its legal hand into the "when, how, and where's" of your death. Why is there such an inconsistency? Does it make sense to say that in this "great land ofthe free", you do have the right to be born, but you do not have the right to die? Doesn't the right to be born and the right to die fall under the same category? Today, the American Medical Association states that about 27 states have prohibitions against assisting suicide, another 10 prosecute such an assistance as homicide, and the rest have no laws on the subject. In 1991, Washington state had Initiative 119, which would allow any person who (in the opinion of Please see Doctor, Page 6 Norwegians take an "Armenian Journey" By Hanne Bentzon and Brigitte Lund Staff Writers Armenia has always been a friend of Norway. We have all heard about the Nansen passport... or have we? Norwegian help was provided through the Nansen passport, and most Armenians know about this. But are all the Norwegians aware of this part of their history? We doubt that. Norway has always claimed to be a caring and informed nation. Why was this left out of our general education? Armenian Studies 10, at Fresno State, gave us the chance to make up for the lost information. As the author of "Passage to Ararat", Michael Arlen wrote, " At a particular time in my life, I set out on a voyage to discover for myself what it is to be Armenian"... we decided to start our own "Armenian Journey" with Dr. Kouymjian as our guide. This class has taught us about a country that is so different from ours in their history, culture and way of life. Despite these differences, we discovered an important similarity. Both countries have spent too many years fighting for their independence. Armenia and Norway have been through a long struggle for freedom. Historical facts about Armenia came to our knowledge, but we started to get confused. We were drowning in information about a country, but we knew little about the people of Armenia. The Armenian Studies Program Banquet came up and we saw our chance to change this. We have to admit that we were pretty excited when we left home to, however, we were unsure of what to expect. Somehow we felt a little scared and nervous... but we didn' t know why. Would we feel.out of place, not being Armenians? Maybe the Armenians had a strong bond between them, which could difficult for us to relate to. Many thoughts crossed our minds on our way to the banquet. The minute we stepped into the cafeteria, we were taken by change of atmosphere that had taken place there. This place, that usually drowned in junkfood and noisy students, was all of a sudden " a little Armenia." With many very nice and open people, beautiful interior and a Kanon playing in the background, we vere suddenly a part of another world... an Armenian world. What had we been scared of? Maybe we had been frightened to look the Armenians in the eyes, well aware of the tragedy they had suffered, and the ignorance we had shown. Something was wrong with our conscience. That is why we were intimidated by the Armenians. This showed us how important it is to stop focusing on your own tragedy and open your eyes to other peoples exreriences. Piece by piece the information has come together. We are starting to get the whole picture of Armenia. But there are still pieces missing from the puzzle. Pieces we will find further down the road of our "Armenian Journey." US Citizenship Questioned By Mike Pogosian Staff Writer Recently on the campus of California State University Fresno, Armenian students have been discussing a topic that has attracted a lot of attention. The subject that brought about these discussions, among Armenian students, was about citizenship. Are Armenians more patriotic towards the United States, or a country halfway around the world. I went around campus and conducted a survey of Armenian students, and asked them if they as Armenians were proud of being American citizens. This is what I found. Caroline Arakelian: "Yes, although I'm Armenian, I'm proud to be an American citizen because, I grew up here and have taken advantage of all the opportunities offered here to people living in this country." Tania Alikian: "I'm very proud of being an American citizen as well as being Armenian. I'm also very lucky to live in this country because ofthe many opportunities that are offered to me here." Marine Pogosian: "Yes I am proud of being an Americn citizen, since I am going to live here the rest of my life. I am also proud of who I am, an Armenian." Vartan Vartanian: "I am proud of being Armenian first and then I am proud of being an American citizen." Kha jag Zeitlian: "No, absolutely not! I was born in Lebanon and I was a proud Lebanese citizen and when my parents became U.S. citizens, I had to comply also, because I was under 18 and couldn't make a legal choice about it. The only thing that a U.S. citizenship gives me is a U.S. passport, which makes traveling easier. Otherwise, a U.S. citizenship is worthless if you aren't proud about the U.S. I would like an Armenian citizenship though." Character, from page 2 She wanted me to have the bracelet, but she wasn't letting me pay for it. She knew I was a tourist, and I knew she needed the money, so why wasn't she taking it? Istood there andsilently watched her melancholy ways. All she did was smile and urge me to go on with the bracelet. In lingering steps, I gradually began walking away from her booth. An old woman living in a nation in poverty, gives away her product to an Armenian tourist. This made little sense to me then, but it allowed me to understand the Armenian character years later. I turned to her one last time, smiled, and nodded in an understanding fashion. "Shnorhagalyem (I am thankful)." I walked to many other booths that day, encountering similar cir cumstances with other sellers. They refused not to hold their head up high by placing their hands out to anyone. I was astonished by the conflicting interests in the situations, and even more astonished to see which interest overcame the other. After a while, I stopped and put on the copper bracelet. Its beauty wasn't in its metal. It was in the value from the people. I kept my head up higher than usual that day and felt especially proud for being an Armenian. What can be said about the Armenian character? It still can't be said in one sentence. It can only be understood that: "Haygagan ngarakeeruh ... meyayn an eh." The Armenian character ... it just is. |