Free Republic

Thirty-seven Oregonians died by doctor-assisted suicide last year, a slight decrease from 42 the year before, according to a new state report. During the seven-year history of Oregon's Death With Dignity Act, assisted-suicide has accounted for 208 deaths -- roughly one in 1,000 deaths in the state. In 2004, 40 doctors wrote a total of 60 prescriptions for lethal doses of barbiturates. The prescription total fell from 68 the year before -- the first decrease in prescriptions since doctor-assisted suicide became legal in Oregon. The numbers released March 10 by the Oregon Department of Human Services, are unremarkable in light...

SACRAMENTO - A series of e-mails and telephone calls related to two high-profile environmental decisions in California has prompted criticism that business interests may be gaining too much influence over the U.S. Interior Department. According to court records, Deputy Assistant Interior Secretary Julie MacDonald tried to change scientific recommendations related to protecting wetland species and endangered fish. In the first instance, the correspondence was between MacDonald, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service managers and the California Farm Bureau Federation in April. A month later, the federation used the information to back a federal lawsuit in Washington, D.C., seeking to overturn the...

DETROIT (AP) — An attorney for Jack Kevorkian is seeking to have the assisted suicide proponent pardoned, or his sentence commuted. Mayer Morganroth said Tuesday he filed the necessary papers with both Gov. Jennifer Granholm and the state Department of Corrections. The announcement came the same day an Oakland County judge denied a motion seeking to have Kevorkian released because of health problems. The request to the governor was filed last month, reported The Daily Oakland Press. Morganroth said there was little to be gained from keeping the ailing 75-year-old in prison. Kevorkian was sentenced to 10 to 25 years...

"Hellary Lies Again? Ho-Hum..." Posted by Doc Farmer Saturday, June 14, 2003 For the past week or so, we've all been inundated by the MAJOR NEWS EVENT that is Hellary Clinton's new book ''Living History.'' Yes, the tentacles of this monster news story have stretched to the farthest reaches of the globe. From New York City to Pango-Pango to Doha to a primitive mud-hut in Newark, New Jersey, you just can't get away from her. No matter how hard you try. And you can't get away from the many opinions about her new book. Including here. So sit back, relax,...