In Qébec. our Charter of rights recognize our right to die in dignity

Yesterday afternoon I was listening to a discussion on RDI (CBC News, French-Canadian division).

They were asking a well respected lawyer (specialist on health care consumers rights) if we could have a Terry.... case in here.

No way, he said.

First: Canadian politicians wouldn't play with issues like life and death (euthanasia) on TV for the sole purpose of gaining political points.. The Canadian citizens would not accept it and the Québecquers would not forgive any politician for trying.

For the moment, in Québec, euthanasia is still a family choice as long as you don't take unlawful ways for doing it. Like you can't take a gun and kill your loved one. But nobody will stir shit if you allow the medical personal to give a little more morphine. Plus, no coroner would start an inquiry if your dying family member doesn't wake up after a prescribed dose of morphine has been injected.

In Québec our Chart of Rights guarantees us the right to die with dignity. There would not be a national division about it. There is already some precedents stating so.


Talking about death and dignity...

Did you guys see "Les invasions barbares" the movie who won the Oscar for best foreign movie last year?

If you have a chance to rent it, the timing is perfect.

It's about the right to decide when you want to die and how someone chose to do it. It's also about friendship, good books, wine and making love.

Its was written ,directed and produced in Québec by one of our best director: Denis Arcand.

The whole movie is about a (50 something) male university teacher who discovers that his life is over. No treatment, no nothing will work. The cancer is too advanced. His rich, estranged son find somebody, (a young female junkie ) to supply the dope that would alleviate the pain and coach his dad how to use it.

At the end, the main character, says : "It's time, I'm tired, I said everything I needed to say. Time to go.

The young junkie had already accepted to be the one who would put the heroine (or morphine) in his IV line. It's a powerful scene: There you have that vibrant sensuous young female,who's been slowly killing herself with the Shit and now she has to administer it to "kill", deliver a man...

It's not a sad movie, on the contrary, its a celebration of life and all the pleasures we can get from it.

It's also a personal vision about the basic right we all have, to end our own life with dignity and generosity when we know it's over. There is nothing sad about that.

The movie "Les Invasions Barbares" Barbarian Invasion is not about the right to kill ourselves (or ask to be killed) when life seems unbearable.

The premise is very clear: the man has no future, its a matter of days, (weeks at the most) before all his organs shut down.

When that movie came out, there was absolutely no, and I repeat, no controversy about the fact that a junkie was "hired" to coach the dying man on how to use the Shit.
There is a scene where she shares with him the pleasure you get the first time you use it. She calls it :"Riding the Dragon"... Nobody, to my knowledge, was scandalized.

I did not ear or read anything claiming that the movie could be an incentive for the teens to try that specific dope, neither as being an incentive to kill any of your friends or family members. In fact, if I recall well, the only public discussions stirred by the movie was about our hospitals inadequacies.

Here I have to add that the Québec people (being so small in number) had learned not to quarrel between each other when our reputation was at stake. One of us is getting a well deserved recognition: lets stand behind him.

(Mind you,I would not state the same thing about our famous Celine Dion.) lol

Since the Revolution Tranquille in the 60s our culture has been more oriented toward the merit of an "art-piece" rather than its moral value. Unless it's absolutely outrageous, we tend, as a society, to tolerate the different ways artists use to express themselves.

I feel privilege to be a Québequer.

P.S. The title of the movie "Barbarian Invasions" is referring to the future invasions of the Americains...

And guys, I am sorry for the poor grammar and the syntax. If somebody as the patience for it, please correct it and PM me.


lise

I still have to convince my husband and I have been researching since Nov. 2. I can't take living in this country anymore. We are moving so fast back to the dark ages it is frightening.

last Friday I met a young New York city "expatriate". He came to Québec to see if he could learn french and move here. Anyway, if it's not here in Québec he will definitively stay in Canada. He could not and would not put up with all shit happening in the big US of A.

lise

French in 10 minutes a day! I will start it this week! :)

Good luck with your french lesson. Good luck also with you hubby...


I would love to have Americans neighbors.


lise

very depressing, but appropriate right now.

conveying the message of the finality of the decision one comes to when they are dieing. I am fully aware that we will all eventually die, but to witness the realization of it, the evolution of the decision was just so sad. I think this is one of the problems with Western societies. We don't necessarily confront the ideas involved with death and we tend to live life in fear of disappearing.

other society reactions towards death.

In North America, well I should say in Québec, death used to be a "normal" event. An event witch was as much a part of the human experience as birth was.

All the rituals around the death of a family member were occasions for the extended family to gather around and help the close relatives to go through it.

Now the main focus is on the BIRTH. The whole family, including the very young are admitted in the delivery room. The main witness beeing The Video Camera...

People in general have a hard time thinking or talking about death even thou it is as much a part of the human experience.

capitalism, and imperialism....

unfortunately the US congress doesn't feel a need to respect that.