TED英语演讲稿：让我们来谈谈死亡

详细内容

' 我们无法控制死亡的到来，但也许我们可以选择用何种态度来面对它。特护专家PeterSaul博士希望通过演讲帮助人们弄清临终者真正的意愿，并选择适当的方式去面对。"Thetruthwillsetyoufree,butfirstitwillpissyouoff."本站今天为大家精心准备了TED英语演讲稿：让我们来谈谈死亡，希望对大家有所帮助!TED英语演讲稿：让我们来谈谈死亡

look,ihadsecondthoughts,really,aboutwhethericouldtalkaboutthistosuchavitalandaliveaudienceasyouguys.thenirememberedthequotefromgloriasteinem,whichgoes,"thetruthwillsetyoufree,butfirstitwillpissyouoff."(laughter)so--(laughter)

sowiththatinmind,i'mgoingtosetabouttryingtodothosethingshere,andtalkaboutdyinginthe21stcentury.nowthefirstthingthatwillpissyouoff,undoubtedly,isthatallofusare,infact,goingtodieinthe21stcentury.therewillbenoexceptionstothat.thereare,apparently,aboutoneineightofyouwhothinkyou'reimmortal,onsurveys,but--(laughter)unfortunately,thatisn'tgoingtohappen.

whileigivethistalk,inthenext10minutes,ahundredmillionofmycellswilldie,andoverthecourseoftoday,2,000ofmybraincellswilldieandnevereback,soyoucouldarguethatthedyingprocessstartsprettyearlyinthepiece.

anyway,thesecondthingiwanttosayaboutdyinginthe21stcentury,apartfromit'sgoingtohappentoeverybody,isit'sshapinguptobeabitofatrainwreckformostofus,unlesswedosomethingtotryandreclaimthisprocessfromtheratherinexorabletrajectorythatit'scurrentlyon.

sothereyougo.that'sthetruth.nodoubtthatwillpissyouoff,andnowlet'sseewhetherwecansetyoufree.idon'tpromiseanything.now,asyouheardintheintro,iworkinintensivecare,andithinki'vekindoflivedthroughtheheydayofintensivecare.it'sbeenaride,man.thishasbeenfantastic.wehavemachinesthatgoping.there'smanyofthemupthere.andwehavesomewizardtechnologywhichithinkhasworkedreallywell,andoverthecourseofthetimei'veworkedinintensivecare,thedeathrateformalesinaustraliahashalved,andintensivecarehashadsomethingtodowiththat.certainly,alotofthetechnologiesthatweusehavegotsomethingtodowiththat.

sowehavehadtremendoussuess,andwekindofgotcaughtupinourownsuessquiteabit,andwestartedusingexpressionslike"lifesaving."ireallyapologizetoeverybodyfordoingthat,becauseobviously,wedon't.whatwedoisprolongpeople'slives,anddelaydeath,andredirectdeath,butwecan't,strictlyspeaking,savelivesonanysortofpermanentbasis.

andwhat'sreallyhappenedovertheperiodoftimethati'vebeenworkinginintensivecareisthatthepeoplewhoseliveswestartedsavingbackinthe'70s,'80s,and'90s,arenowingtodieinthe21stcenturyofdiseasesthatwenolongerhavetheanswerstoinquitethewaywedidthen.

sowhat'shappeningnowisthere'sbeenabigshiftinthewaythatpeopledie,andmostofwhatthey'redyingofnowisn'tasamenabletowhatwecandoaswhatitusedtobelikewheniwasdoingthisinthe'80sand'90s.

sowekindofgotabitcaughtupwiththis,andwehaven'treallysquaredwithyouguysaboutwhat'sreallyhappeningnow,andit'sabouttimewedid.ikindofwokeuptothisbitinthelate'90swhenimetthisguy.thisguyiscalledjim,jimsmith,andhelookedlikethis.iwascalleddowntothewardtoseehim.hisisthelittlehand.iwascalleddowntothewardtoseehimbyarespiratoryphysician.hesaid,"look,there'saguydownhere.he'sgotpneumonia,andhelookslikeheneedsintensivecare.hisdaughter'shereandshewantseverythingpossibletobedone."whichisafamiliarphrasetous.soigodowntothewardandseejim,andhisskinhistranslucentlikethis.youcanseehisbonesthroughtheskin.he'svery,verythin,andheis,indeed,verysickwithpneumonia,andhe'stoosicktotalktome,soitalktohisdaughterkathleen,andisaytoher,"didyouandjimevertalkaboutwhatyouwouldwantdoneifheendedupinthiskindofsituation?"andshelookedatmeandsaid,

"no,ofcoursenot!"ithought,"okay.takethissteady."andigottalkingtoher,andafterawhile,shesaidtome,"youknow,wealwaysthoughtthere'dbetime."

jimwas94.(laughter)andirealizedthatsomethingwasn'thappeninghere.therewasn'tthisdialoguegoingonthatiimaginedwashappening.soagroupofusstarteddoingsurveywork,andwelookedatfourandahalfthousandnursinghomeresidentsinnewcastle,inthenewcastlearea,anddiscoveredthatonlyoneinahundredofthemhadaplanaboutwhattodowhentheirheartsstoppedbeating.oneinahundred.andonlyonein500ofthemhadplanaboutwhattodoiftheybecameseriouslyill.andirealized,ofcourse,thisdialogueisdefinitelynotourringinthepublicatlarge.

now,iworkinacutecare.thisisjohnhunterhospital.andithought,surely,wedobetterthanthat.soacolleagueofminefromnursingcalledlisashawandiwentthroughhundredsandhundredsofsetsofnotesinthemedicalrecordsdepartmentlookingatwhethertherewasanysignatallthatanybodyhadhadanyconversationaboutwhatmighthappentothemifthetreatmenttheywerereceivingwasunsuessfultothepointthattheywoulddie.andwedidn'tfindasinglerecordofanypreferenceaboutgoals,treatmentsoroutesfromanyofthesetsofnotesinitiatedbyadoctororbyapatient.

sowestartedtorealizethatwehadaproblem,andtheproblemismoreseriousbecauseofthis.

whatweknowisthatobviouslyweareallgoingtodie,buthowwedieisactuallyreallyimportant,obviouslynotjusttous,butalsotohowthatfeaturesinthelivesofallthepeoplewholiveonafterwards.howwedielivesoninthemindsofeverybodywhosurvivesus,andthestresscreatedinfamiliesbydyingisenormous,andinfactyougetseventimesasmuchstressbydyinginintensivecareasbydyingjustaboutanywhereelse,sodyinginintensivecareisnotyourtopoptionifyou'vegotachoice.

and,ifthatwasn'tbadenough,ofcourse,allofthisisrapidlyprogressingtowardsthefactthatmanyofyou,infact,aboutonein10ofyouatthispoint,willdieinintensivecare.intheu.s.,it'soneinfive.inmiami,it'sthreeoutoffivepeopledieinintensivecare.sothisisthesortofmomentumthatwe'vegotatthemoment.

thereasonwhythisisallhappeningisduetothis,andidohavetotakeyouthroughwhatthisisabout.thesearethefourwaystogo.sooneofthesewillhappentoallofus.theonesyoumayknowmostaboutaretheonesthatarebeingincreasinglyofhistoricalinterest:suddendeath.it'squitelikelyinanaudiencethissizethiswon'thappentoanybodyhere.suddendeathhasbeeveryrare.thedeathoflittlenellandcordeliaandallthatsortofstuffjustdoesn'thappenanymore.thedyingprocessofthosewithterminalillnessthatwe'vejustseenourstoyoungerpeople.bythetimeyou'vereached80,thisisunlikelytohappentoyou.onlyonein10peoplewhoareover80willdieofcancer.

thebiggrowthindustryarethese.whatyoudieofisincreasinganfailure,withyourrespiratory,cardiac,renal,whateveranspackingup.eachofthesewouldbeanadmissiontoanacutecarehospital,attheendofwhich,oratsomepointduringwhich,somebodysays,enoughisenough,andwestop.

andthisone'sthebiggestgrowthindustryofall,andatleastsixoutof10ofthepeopleinthisroomwilldieinthisform,whichisthedwindlingofcapacitywithincreasingfrailty,andfrailty'saninevitablepartofaging,andincreasingfrailtyisinfactthemainthingthatpeopledieofnow,andthelastfewyears,orthelastyearofyourlifeisspentwithagreatdealofdisability,unfortunately.

enjoyingitsofar?(laughs)(laughter)sorry,ijustfeelsucha,ifeelsuchacassandrahere.(laughter)

whatcanisaythat'spositive?what'spositiveisthatthisishappeningatverygreatage,now.weareall,mostofus,livingtoreachthispoint.youknow,historically,wedidn'tdothat.thisiswhathappenstoyouwhenyoulivetobeagreatage,andunfortunately,increasinglongevitydoesmeanmoreoldage,notmoreyouth.i'msorrytosaythat.(laughter)whatwedid,anyway,look,whatwedid,wedidn'tjusttakethislyingdownatjohnhunterhospitalandelsewhere.we'vestartedawholeseriesofprojectstotryandlookaboutwhetherwecould,infact,involvepeoplemuchmoreinthewaythatthingshappentothem.butwerealized,ofcourse,thatwearedealingwithculturalissues,andthisis,ilovethisklimtpainting,becausethemoreyoulookatit,themoreyoukindofgetthewholeissuethat'sgoingonhere,whichisclearlytheseparationofdeathfromtheliving,andthefear—like,ifyouactuallylook,there'sonewomantherewhohashereyesopen.she'stheonehe'slookingat,and[she's]theonehe'singfor.canyouseethat?shelooksterrified.it'sanamazingpicture.

anyway,wehadamajorculturalissue.clearly,peopledidn'twantustotalkaboutdeath,or,wethoughtthat.sowithloadsoffundingfromthefederalgovernmentandthelocalhealthservice,weintroducedathingatjohnhuntercalledrespectingpatientchoices.wetrainedhundredsofpeopletogotothewardsandtalktopeopleaboutthefactthattheywoulddie,andwhatwouldtheypreferunderthosecircumstances.theylovedit.thefamiliesandthepatients,theylovedit.niy-eightpercentofpeoplereallythoughtthisjustshouldhavebeennormalpractice,andthatthisishowthingsshouldwork.andwhentheyexpressedwishes,allofthosewishescametrue,asitwere.wewereabletomakethathappenforthem.butthen,whenthefundingranout,wewentbacktolooksixmonthslater,andeverybodyhadstoppedagain,andnobodywashavingtheseconversationsanymore.sothatwasreallykindofheartbreakingforus,becausewethoughtthiswasgoingtoreallytakeoff.theculturalissuehadreasserteditself.

sohere'sthepitch:ithinkit'simportantthatwedon'tjustgetonthisfreewaytoicuwithoutthinkinghardaboutwhetherornotthat'swhereweallwanttoendup,particularlyaswebeeolderandincreasinglyfrailandicuhaslessandlessandlesstoofferus.therehastobealittlesideroadoffthereforpeoplewhodon'twanttogoonthattrack.andihaveonesmallidea,andonebigideaaboutwhatcouldhappen.

andthisisthesmallidea.thesmallideais,let'sallofusengagemorewiththisinthewaythatjasonhasillustrated.whycan'twehavethesekindsofconversationswithourowneldersandpeoplewhomightbeapproachingthis?thereareacoupleofthingsyoucando.oneofthemis,youcan,justaskthissimplequestion.thisquestionneverfails."intheeventthatyoubecametoosicktospeakforyourself,whowouldyouliketospeakforyou?"that'sareallyimportantquestiontoaskpeople,becausegivingpeoplethecontroloverwhothatisproducesanamazingoute.thesecondthingyoucansayis,"haveyouspokentothatpersonaboutthethingsthatareimportanttoyousothatwe'vegotabetterideaofwhatitiswecando?"sothat'sthelittleidea.

thebigidea,ithink,ismorepolitical.ithinkwehavetogetontothis.isuggestedweshouldhaveoupydeath.(laughter)mywifesaid,"yeah,right,sit-insinthemortuary.yeah,yeah.sure."(laughter)sothatonedidn'treallyrun,butiwasverystruckbythis.now,i'managinghippie.idon'tknow,idon'tthinkilooklikethatanymore,butihad,twoofmykidswerebornathomeinthe'80swhenhomebirthwasabigthing,andwebabyboomersareusedtotakingchargeofthesituation,soifyoujustreplaceallthesewordsofbirth,ilike"peace,love,naturaldeath"asanoption.idothinkwehavetogetpoliticalandstarttoreclaimthisprocessfromthemedicalizedmodelinwhichit'sgoing.

now,listen,thatsoundslikeapitchforeuthanasia.iwanttomakeitabsolutelycrystalcleartoyouall,ihateeuthanasia.ithinkit'sasideshow.idon'tthinkeuthanasiamatters.iactuallythinkthat,inplaceslikeoregon,whereyoucanhavephysician-assistedsuicide,youtakeapoisonousdoseofstuff,onlyhalfapercentofpeopleeverdothat.i'mmoreinterestedinwhathappenstothe99.5percentofpeoplewhodon'twanttodothat.ithinkmostpeopledon'twanttobedead,butidothinkmostpeoplewanttohavesomecontroloverhowtheirdyingprocessproceeds.soi'manopponentofeuthanasia,butidothinkwehavetogivepeoplebacksomecontrol.itdepriveseuthanasiaofitsoxygensupply.ithinkweshouldbelookingatstoppingthewantforeuthanasia,notformakingitillegalorlegalorworryingaboutitatall.

thisisaquotefromdamecicelysaunders,whomimetwheniwasamedicalstudent.shefoundedthehospicemovement.andshesaid,"youmatterbecauseyouare,andyoumattertothelastmomentofyourlife."andifirmlybelievethatthat'sthemessagethatwehavetocarryforward.thankyou.(applause)

TED英语演讲稿：让我们来谈谈死亡

WhileIgivethistalk,inthenext10minutes,ahundredmillionofmycellswilldie,andoverthecourseoftoday,2,000ofmybraincellswilldieandnevereback,soyoucouldarguethatthedyingprocessstartsprettyearlyinthepiece.

Anyway,thesecondthingIwanttosayaboutdyinginthe21stcentury,apartfromit'sgoingtohappentoeverybody,isit'sshapinguptobeabitofatrainwreckformostofus,unlesswedosomethingtotryandreclaimthisprocessfromtheratherinexorabletrajectorythatit'scurrentlyon.

Sothereyougo.That'sthetruth.Nodoubtthatwillpissyouoff,andnowlet'sseewhetherwecansetyoufree.Idon'tpromiseanything.Now,asyouheardintheintro,Iworkinintensivecare,andIthinkI'vekindoflivedthroughtheheydayofintensivecare.It'sbeenaride,man.Thishasbeenfantastic.Wehavemachinesthatgoping.There'smanyofthemupthere.AndwehavesomewizardtechnologywhichIthinkhasworkedreallywell,andoverthecourseofthetimeI'veworkedinintensivecare,thedeathrateformalesinAustraliahashalved,andintensivecarehashadsomethingtodowiththat.Certainly,alotofthetechnologiesthatweusehavegotsomethingtodowiththat.

Sowehavehadtremendoussuess,andwekindofgotcaughtupinourownsuessquiteabit,andwestartedusingexpressionslike"lifesaving."Ireallyapologizetoeverybodyfordoingthat,becauseobviously,wedon't.Whatwedoisprolongpeople'slives,anddelaydeath,andredirectdeath,butwecan't,strictlyspeaking,savelivesonanysortofpermanentbasis.

Andwhat'sreallyhappenedovertheperiodoftimethatI'vebeenworkinginintensivecareisthatthepeoplewhoseliveswestartedsavingbackinthe'70s,'80s,and'90s,arenowingtodieinthe21stcenturyofdiseasesthatwenolongerhavetheanswerstoinquitethewaywedidthen.

TED英语演讲稿：让我们来谈谈死亡

Sowhat'shappeningnowisthere'sbeenabigshiftinthewaythatpeopledie,andmostofwhatthey'redyingofnowisn'tasamenabletowhatwecandoaswhatitusedtobelikewhenIwasdoingthisinthe'80sand'90s.

Sowekindofgotabitcaughtupwiththis,andwehaven'treallysquaredwithyouguysaboutwhat'sreallyhappeningnow,andit'sabouttimewedid.Ikindofwokeuptothisbitinthelate'90swhenImetthisguy.ThisguyiscalledJim,JimSmith,andhelookedlikethis.Iwascalleddowntothewardtoseehim.Hisisthelittlehand.Iwascalleddowntothewardtoseehimbyarespiratoryphysician.Hesaid,"Look,there'saguydownhere.He'sgotpneumonia,andhelookslikeheneedsintensivecare.Hisdaughter'shereandshewantseverythingpossibletobedone."Whichisafamiliarphrasetous.SoIgodowntothewardandseeJim,andhisskinhistranslucentlikethis.Youcanseehisbonesthroughtheskin.He'svery,verythin,andheis,indeed,verysickwithpneumonia,andhe'stoosicktotalktome,soItalktohisdaughterKathleen,andIsaytoher,"DidyouandJimevertalkaboutwhatyouwouldwantdoneifheendedupinthiskindofsituation?"Andshelookedatmeandsaid,

"No,ofcoursenot!"Ithought,"Okay.Takethissteady."AndIgottalkingtoher,andafterawhile,shesaidtome,"Youknow,wealwaysthoughtthere'dbetime."

Jimwas94.(Laughter)AndIrealizedthatsomethingwasn'thappeninghere.Therewasn'tthisdialoguegoingonthatIimaginedwashappening.Soagroupofusstarteddoingsurveywork,andwelookedatfourandahalfthousandnursinghomeresidentsinNewcastle,intheNewcastlearea,anddiscoveredthatonlyoneinahundredofthemhadaplanaboutwhattodowhentheirheartsstoppedbeating.Oneinahundred.Andonlyonein500ofthemhadplanaboutwhattodoiftheybecameseriouslyill.AndIrealized,ofcourse,thisdialogueisdefinitelynotourringinthepublicatlarge.

Now,Iworkinacutecare.ThisisJohnHunterHospital.AndIthought,surely,wedobetterthanthat.SoacolleagueofminefromnursingcalledLisaShawandIwentthroughhundredsandhundredsofsetsofnotesinthemedicalrecordsdepartmentlookingatwhethertherewasanysignatallthatanybodyhadhadanyconversationaboutwhatmighthappentothemifthetreatmenttheywerereceivingwasunsuessfultothepointthattheywoulddie.Andwedidn'tfindasinglerecordofanypreferenceaboutgoals,treatmentsoroutesfromanyofthesetsofnotesinitiatedbyadoctororbyapatient.

Sowestartedtorealizethatwehadaproblem,andtheproblemismoreseriousbecauseofthis.

Whatweknowisthatobviouslyweareallgoingtodie,buthowwedieisactuallyreallyimportant,obviouslynotjusttous,butalsotohowthatfeaturesinthelivesofallthepeoplewholiveonafterwards.Howwedielivesoninthemindsofeverybodywhosurvivesus,andthestresscreatedinfamiliesbydyingisenormous,andinfactyougetseventimesasmuchstressbydyinginintensivecareasbydyingjustaboutanywhereelse,sodyinginintensivecareisnotyourtopoptionifyou'vegotachoice.

And,ifthatwasn'tbadenough,ofcourse,allofthisisrapidlyprogressingtowardsthefactthatmanyofyou,infact,aboutonein10ofyouatthispoint,willdieinintensivecare.IntheU.S.,it'soneinfive.InMiami,it'sthreeoutoffivepeopledieinintensivecare.Sothisisthesortofmomentumthatwe'vegotatthemoment.

Thereasonwhythisisallhappeningisduetothis,andIdohavetotakeyouthroughwhatthisisabout.Thesearethefourwaystogo.Sooneofthesewillhappentoallofus.Theonesyoumayknowmostaboutaretheonesthatarebeingincreasinglyofhistoricalinterest:suddendeath.It'squitelikelyinanaudiencethissizethiswon'thappentoanybodyhere.Suddendeathhasbeeveryrare.ThedeathofLittleNellandCordeliaandallthatsortofstuffjustdoesn'thappenanymore.Thedyingprocessofthosewithterminalillnessthatwe'vejustseenourstoyoungerpeople.Bythetimeyou'vereached80,thisisunlikelytohappentoyou.Onlyonein10peoplewhoareover80willdieofcancer.

Thebiggrowthindustryarethese.Whatyoudieofisincreasinganfailure,withyourrespiratory,cardiac,renal,whateveranspackingup.Eachofthesewouldbeanadmissiontoanacutecarehospital,attheendofwhich,oratsomepointduringwhich,somebodysays,enoughisenough,andwestop.

Andthisone'sthebiggestgrowthindustryofall,andatleastsixoutof10ofthepeopleinthisroomwilldieinthisform,whichisthedwindlingofcapacitywithincreasingfrailty,andfrailty'saninevitablepartofaging,andincreasingfrailtyisinfactthemainthingthatpeopledieofnow,andthelastfewyears,orthelastyearofyourlifeisspentwithagreatdealofdisability,unfortunately.

Enjoyingitsofar?(Laughs)(Laughter)Sorry,Ijustfeelsucha,IfeelsuchaCassandrahere.(Laughter)

WhatcanIsaythat'spositive?What'spositiveisthatthisishappeningatverygreatage,now.Weareall,mostofus,livingtoreachthispoint.Youknow,historically,wedidn'tdothat.Thisiswhathappenstoyouwhenyoulivetobeagreatage,andunfortunately,increasinglongevitydoesmeanmoreoldage,notmoreyouth.I'msorrytosaythat.(Laughter)Whatwedid,anyway,look,whatwedid,wedidn'tjusttakethislyingdownatJohnHunterHospitalandelsewhere.We'vestartedawholeseriesofprojectstotryandlookaboutwhetherwecould,infact,involvepeoplemuchmoreinthewaythatthingshappentothem.Butwerealized,ofcourse,thatwearedealingwithculturalissues,andthisis,IlovethisKlimtpainting,becausethemoreyoulookatit,themoreyoukindofgetthewholeissuethat'sgoingonhere,whichisclearlytheseparationofdeathfromtheliving,andthefear—Like,ifyouactuallylook,there'sonewomantherewhohashereyesopen.She'stheonehe'slookingat,and[she's]theonehe'singfor.Canyouseethat?Shelooksterrified.It'sanamazingpicture.

Anyway,wehadamajorculturalissue.Clearly,peopledidn'twantustotalkaboutdeath,or,wethoughtthat.SowithloadsoffundingfromtheFederalGovernmentandthelocalHealthService,weintroducedathingatJohnHuntercalledRespectingPatientChoices.Wetrainedhundredsofpeopletogotothewardsandtalktopeopleaboutthefactthattheywoulddie,andwhatwouldtheypreferunderthosecircumstances.Theylovedit.Thefamiliesandthepatients,theylovedit.Niy-eightpercentofpeoplereallythoughtthisjustshouldhavebeennormalpractice,andthatthisishowthingsshouldwork.Andwhentheyexpressedwishes,allofthosewishescametrue,asitwere.Wewereabletomakethathappenforthem.Butthen,whenthefundingranout,wewentbacktolooksixmonthslater,andeverybodyhadstoppedagain,andnobodywashavingtheseconversationsanymore.Sothatwasreallykindofheartbreakingforus,becausewethoughtthiswasgoingtoreallytakeoff.Theculturalissuehadreasserteditself.

Sohere'sthepitch:Ithinkit'simportantthatwedon'tjustgetonthisfreewaytoICUwithoutthinkinghardaboutwhetherornotthat'swhereweallwanttoendup,particularlyaswebeeolderandincreasinglyfrailandICUhaslessandlessandlesstoofferus.Therehastobealittlesideroadoffthereforpeoplewhodon'twanttogoonthattrack.AndIhaveonesmallidea,andonebigideaaboutwhatcouldhappen.

Andthisisthesmallidea.Thesmallideais,let'sallofusengagemorewiththisinthewaythatJasonhasillustrated.Whycan'twehavethesekindsofconversationswithourowneldersandpeoplewhomightbeapproachingthis?Thereareacoupleofthingsyoucando.Oneofthemis,youcan,justaskthissimplequestion.Thisquestionneverfails."Intheeventthatyoubecametoosicktospeakforyourself,whowouldyouliketospeakforyou?"That'sareallyimportantquestiontoaskpeople,becausegivingpeoplethecontroloverwhothatisproducesanamazingoute.Thesecondthingyoucansayis,"Haveyouspokentothatpersonaboutthethingsthatareimportanttoyousothatwe'vegotabetterideaofwhatitiswecando?"Sothat'sthelittleidea.

Thebigidea,Ithink,ismorepolitical.Ithinkwehavetogetontothis.IsuggestedweshouldhaveOupyDeath.(Laughter)Mywifesaid,"Yeah,right,sit-insinthemortuary.Yeah,yeah.Sure."(Laughter)Sothatonedidn'treallyrun,butIwasverystruckbythis.Now,I'managinghippie.Idon'tknow,Idon'tthinkIlooklikethatanymore,butIhad,twoofmykidswerebornathomeinthe'80swhenhomebirthwasabigthing,andwebabyboomersareusedtotakingchargeofthesituation,soifyoujustreplaceallthesewordsofbirth,Ilike"Peace,Love,NaturalDeath"asanoption.Idothinkwehavetogetpoliticalandstarttoreclaimthisprocessfromthemedicalizedmodelinwhichit'sgoing.

Now,listen,thatsoundslikeapitchforeuthanasia.Iwanttomakeitabsolutelycrystalcleartoyouall,Ihateeuthanasia.Ithinkit'sasideshow.Idon'tthinkeuthanasiamatters.Iactuallythinkthat,inplaceslikeOregon,whereyoucanhavephysician-assistedsuicide,youtakeapoisonousdoseofstuff,onlyhalfapercentofpeopleeverdothat.I'mmoreinterestedinwhathappenstothe99.5percentofpeoplewhodon'twanttodothat.Ithinkmostpeopledon'twanttobedead,butIdothinkmostpeoplewanttohavesomecontroloverhowtheirdyingprocessproceeds.SoI'manopponentofeuthanasia,butIdothinkwehavetogivepeoplebacksomecontrol.Itdepriveseuthanasiaofitsoxygensupply.Ithinkweshouldbelookingatstoppingthewantforeuthanasia,notformakingitillegalorlegalorworryingaboutitatall.

ThisisaquotefromDameCicelySaunders,whomImetwhenIwasamedicalstudent.Shefoundedthehospicemovement.Andshesaid,"Youmatterbecauseyouare,andyoumattertothelastmomentofyourlife."AndIfirmlybelievethatthat'sthemessagethatwehavetocarryforward.Thankyou.