In June 2010 this little boat turned and sailed into the sunset taking Mary with it.
Humanity has lost a champion …….heaven has gained an Angel.
Deepest Sympathies to Kevin and all who have loved and lost this incredible woman.
	God bless Mary.

Conroy pledges not to broaden filter scope

By Quentin McDermott

Updated 5 hours 42 minutes ago

Federal Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has given a pre-election undertaking not to broaden the Government’s proposed level of internet censorship.

Senator Conroy says the scope of the content covered by the Government’s proposed mandatory filter will not be widened by a future Labor government.

“We’re making it very clear, this is our policy: refused classification only,” Mr Conroy told the ABC’s Four Corners program.

“If a majority of the Parliament in the future want to broaden the classification, well then, Australians should stand up and say ‘just a minute’, and I’ll be one of them.”

Eighteen months ago Senator Conroy galvanised his critics by suggesting that the scope of a mandatory internet filter would include any online material that was deemed to be “prohibited content” by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

“You can’t opt in or out of the prohibited material,” he said at the time.

Prohibited material includes not just Refused Classification and X-rated content, but also any R-18+ and MA-15+ content that is not protected by an ACMA-approved age-verification gateway restricting access to underage users.

However, last December, Senator Conroy announced the revised secret blacklist of material to be censored by internet service providers (ISPs) would be limited to individual webpages that had been refused classification by the Classification Board.

Refused classification material includes child pornography and detailed instruction in crime or drug use.

But it also includes any material that the Classification Board judges will “offend against the standards of morality, decency and propriety generally accepted by reasonable adults”.

Critics of the mandatory filter say the category is far too broad.

Polarised debate

Jim Wallace of the Australian Christian Lobby says he finds it “quite amazing” that anyone would oppose the filter plans.

“The material that the Government is looking to block is illegal material,” he told Four Corners.

“I think if people believe that they should be using child pornography, bestiality material, sexual violence or instructions to crime, then really somebody somewhere should be raising a file on them.

“The bigger principle here is to establish the principle that the internet is not a free zone and I think that given the movement of technology and given the expectation of society that what the Government is proposing is therefore a good solution.”

On the other side of the debate, Google Australia’s head of policy, Iarla Flynn, says the proposed mandatory filter goes too far.

“It’s a heavy-handed measure,” he said.

“Our primary concern is that the scope of content which the Government is seeking to block is too wide. Remember, this would apply to every internet user in Australia, whether they like it or not.”

Legislation to introduce a mandatory internet filter is unlikely to come before Parliament before the next election. But Senator Conroy has made it clear he remains committed to its introduction.

Blacklist concerns

Critics of the filter point to several examples of web content that they say could be blocked under a mandatory filter.

Pages about safe injecting and sites giving tips on how to create graffiti are among those that could be blocked.

Senator Conroy told Four Corners he will not be deciding what is on the list.

“Individual pages will be determined by – at arm’s length from government – by the Classification Board, as it should be,” he said.

“Stephen Conroy and the Government do not make the individual decisions.”

Also liable to be blocked are web pages giving advice on assisted suicide.

The online version of the Peaceful Pill Handbook, written by euthanasia campaigner Philip Nitschke, has been refused classification.

It can be accessed online from Australia now because the website is hosted overseas. Under a mandatory filter however, it will be blocked from view here, but remain visible to internet users overseas.

Critics of the filter say elements of some extremely popular adult websites may also be censored in future.

The vast majority of adult material on the internet is hosted overseas, and is not directly regulated by ACMA.

One adult film which could be blocked online is called Pirates II: Stagnetti’s Revenge. Fiona Patten of the Australian Sex Party describes it as “a very mainstream adult film”.

This film, which is hosted on websites across the world, is sold in Australian sex shops in two separate parts because it depicts sexual acts, and because there is also violence in the film.

But Ms Patten argues the violence is not sexual violence.

“We’re talking cartoon ghosts, cartoon skeletons fighting and pirates having sword-fights,” she said.

“So all of that sort of action and adventure scenes had to be put into one disc, and all of the sex scenes put into another disc. This is the only country in the world where this film is split like this and has to be seen separately.”

Ms Patten says that if attempts had been made to sell the film unedited it would have been refused classification.

The Classification Board confirmed this view.

“Within the context of actual sex, violence cannot be accommodated, and therefore the film, if it contained actual sex and violence, would have been refused classification,” it said.

In future Ms Patten argues every website where the film can be viewed will be liable to be blocked by the Government’s mandatory filter.

Election promises

Other critics of the policy, speaking on Four Corners, point to the policy changes that have occurred since Labor announced a family-friendly cyber-safety policy before the last election.

That policy promised that: “A Rudd Labor Government will require ISPs to offer a clean feed internet service to all homes, schools and public internet points accessible by children, such as public libraries.

“Labor’s ISP policy will prevent Australian children from accessing any content that has been identified as prohibited by ACMA, including sites such as those containing child pornography and X-rated material.”

The Government has now accepted that it will not be possible to mandate ISPs to provide a broad-brush clean feed internet service in this way.

In defending its current policy to limit the scope of censored online material to content which has been refused classification, Senator Conroy concedes that “if you try and do a broader range of things at the mandatory level, then you are likely to have a serious impact on the speed of the internet”.

Colin Jacobs, vice-chair of Electronic Frontiers Australia, says the current plan has no cyber-safety benefit and is a clear move away from the policy Labor originally promised.

Chief executive of the Internet Industry Association Peter Coroneos agrees.

“A lot of the content that families really are concerned about for their children – things like violent material, racial hatred material, material which promotes race hate, maybe even just adult content that you wouldn’t want your children to see – none of that will be picked up by this filtering solution,” he said.

Voluntary scheme ruled out

The Government has also conceded that it will not be able to censor high-traffic websites like YouTube and that the filter will be possible to circumvent.

Even so, Senator Conroy is refusing to follow the example of other countries, such as the UK, Canada and New Zealand, by agreeing to limit the scope of the filter to child pornography and by allowing ISPs to filter out child pornography on a voluntary basis.

Mr Coroneos told Four Corners he has approached the Minister offering a voluntary scheme.

“We’ve actually approached the government on several occasions to propose a solution that would be consistent with best practice in other jurisdictions,” he said.

“But for whatever reasons, the government is intent on pursuing a legislative course here.”

Senator Conroy is determined to legislate.

“They don’t need me to invite them, firstly, they could just do it,” he said.

“They could have announced it five years ago. They could have announced it 10 years ago. They could have announced it yesterday. They’ve got a policy opposing any form of voluntary ISP filtering of anything.”

Senator Conroy told Four Corners he and the United States Government are “going to agree to disagree” on the issue of a mandatory internet filter.

The US State Department has raised concerns about the proposal with the Australian Government.

While standing firm on his intent to legislate, Senator Conroy does concede that he has been troubled by the secrecy of the blacklist which will contain the list of webpages to be blocked if a mandatory filter is introduced.

“One of the things I’ve really struggled with, genuinely struggled with, is this argument that you should publish the list,” he said.

“Because unlike with books or movie titles, when you publish those you don’t give access to the material.

“The problem is if you publish a webpage address, you give direct access to the material.”

Watch the full report on tonight’s Four Corners at 8:30pm on ABC1.

Tags: government-and-politics, federal-government, information-and-communication, censorship, internet, australia

Email I received today, made perfect sense to me!

AFTER YEARS OF  TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY (‘TRY’,  BEING THE KEY WORD) TO ELIMINATE CANCER,JOHNS HOPKINS IS FINALLY STARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY .

Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins:

1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These  cancer

cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have

multiplied to a few billion. When  doctors tell cancer patients

that there  are no more cancer cells in their bodies  after

treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the

cancer  cells because they have not reached the  detectable

size.

2. Cancer cells occur  between 6 to more than 10 times in  a

person’s lifetime.

3. When the  person’s immune system is strong the  cancer

cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and

forming tumors.

4. When a person has  cancer it indicates the person  has

nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to  genetic,

but also  to environmental, food and lifestyle  factors.

5. To overcome the  multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing

diet to eat more adequately and healthy, 4-5 times/day

and by including supplements will strengthen the immune system.

6.  Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing

cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells

in the bone marrow,  gastrointestinal  tract etc, and can

cause organ  damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.

7. Radiation while  destroying cancer cells also burns, scars

and damages healthy cells,  tissues and organs.

8. Initial treatment  with chemotherapy and radiation will often

reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of

chemotherapy and radiation do not  result in more tumor

destruction.

9. When the body has  too much toxic burden from

chemotherapy  and radiation the immune system is either

compromised or destroyed, hence the person can  succumb

to various kinds of infections and complications.

10. Chemotherapy and  radiation can cause cancer cells to

mutate and become  resistant and difficult to destroy.

Surgery can  also cause cancer cells to spread to  other

sites.

11.  An effective way  to battle cancer is to starve the cancer

cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to  multiply.

*CANCER CELLS FEED  ON:

a.    Sugar  substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal,  Spoonful, etc are made

with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute

would be Manuka honey or molasses, but only in very small

amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in

color Better alternative is Bragg’s aminos or sea salt.

b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in  the

gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting

off milk and substituting  with  unsweetened soy milk cancer

cells are being starved.

c. Cancer cells  thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based

diet is acidic and it is best to eat  fish, and a little other meat,

like chicken. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth

hormones and parasites, which  are all harmful, especially to

people with cancer.

d. A diet made  of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains,  seeds, nuts

and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment.  About 20%

can be from  cooked food  including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide

live  enzymes that are easily absorbed and  reach down  to cellular levels within 15

minutes to nourish and enhance growth of  healthy cells.

To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice

(most vegetables including bean  sprouts) and eat some raw

vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are  destroyed at

temperatures of 104  degrees F (40 degrees C)..

e.  Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine Green

tea is a better  alternative e and has cancer  fighting  properties.

Water-best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and

heavy metals in  tap water. Distilled  water is acidic, avoid it.

12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive

enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in  the intestines becomes

putrefied and leads to more toxic buildup.

13. Cancer cell  walls have a tough protein covering.  By refraining from or eating

less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows

the body’s killer cells to  destroy the cancer cells.

14. Some  supplements build up the immune system

(IP6,  Flor-ssence,  Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals,

EFAs etc.) to enable  the bodies own killer cells to destroy cancer cells…

Other  supplements like  vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or  programmed

cell death, the body’s normal method of  disposing of damaged, unwanted,

or unneeded cells.

15. Cancer is a  disease of the mind, body, and  spirit. A proactive and  positive

spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, un-forgiveness and  bitterness put

the body  into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn  to have a loving and

forgiving  spirit. Learn to relax and  enjoy life.

16. Cancer cells  cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep

breathing help to get  more oxygen down to the cellular level.  Oxygen therapy

is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.

1. No plastic  containers in  microwave ovens.

2. No water  bottles in the freezer.

3. No plastic  wrap in microwave..

Johns Hopkins has  recently sent this out in its newsletters. This information is  being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as well.  Dioxin chemicals cause cancer, especially breast  cancer. Dioxins are highly  poisonous to  the cells of our bodies. Don’t freeze your  plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from  the plastic. Recently, Dr Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program manager at Castle Hospital , was on a TV program to explain this  health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad they are for  us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the  microwave using plastic containers. This especially applies to  foods that contain fat. He said that the combination of fat,  high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the food and  ultimately into the cells of the body. Instead, he recommends  using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers  for heating food. You get

the same results, only without the  dioxin. So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen  and soups, etc., should be removed from the container and heated  in something else. Paper isn’t bad but you don’t know what is in  the paper. It’s just safer to use tempered glass, Corning Ware,  etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food  restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper the dioxin problem is one of the reasons.

Please share this with your whole email list…………………….

Also, he pointed out  that plastic  wrap, such as Saran, is just as  dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave.  As the food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to  actually melt out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food.  Cover food with a paper towel instead.

This is an article that should be sent to anyone important in your life.

An email I’d like to share with readers. A genuine love story! Fifty years in the making……I’ve taken out all names, except my own:

It reads as follows

Mary thank you for your warm caring email which I have read with much appreciation.
Having enjoyed and been blessed with fifty years of happy marriage I will draw solace from a treasure chest of fond memories of our life together. My wife, in being such a bright person with a radiant sunny personality was the very centre of our small family’s universe and represented the stars, moon and sunshine that revolved around us.

We all loved and adored her so much and her sudden passing has left us all devastated and at this low point I don’t think that I will ever get over her loss.

I loved and adored my darling so much and I could write volumes about her various great talents and personal qualities and I am going to miss her daily intelligent conversation so much and like my beautiful daughter we are all taking her mother’s sudden loss very hard indeed.

Only in most recent times in reflecting upon our life together she commented on the great life that we have enjoyed together and how we have made a great team. My wife also expressed how much she had enjoyed living in our home together which I built for her in the latter part of 1979, taking up occupancy in January 1980.

Whilst my emotions are settling down, however like my daughter, we are both emotionally fragile and when reflecting on the loss of her, a wave of emotion will uncontrollably and momentarily overtake us as the passing is still so raw to us.
It was most welcomed and of great comfort and support to myself and daughter that my SIL and husband at some inconvenience and great expense kindly came up from where they live on the Gold Coast and spent a week with me which was so much appreciated in my time of most need. In spite of the sad circumstances we had an enjoyable week together and it was not without some emotion that we saw them off at the rail station yesterday as they unfortunately had to return as my SIL is a very busy and energetic lady with lots of commitments at home.

Like all people who lose their loved ones and life long partners, I too am now going to have to confront the loneless of my new found situation which I expect for me is not going to be easy to adjust to.

Whilst I did all the vacuuming and strenuous cleaning I hasten to say that my wife looked after the house chores and also me like a baby, even pouring my wine at night – Thus I am all the worse for it as I am now going to have to reinvent myself where the cooking, washing, making a queen size bed plus-plus is concerned??.
It is with sorrow and grief and a burdened heart that I feel that the lonely birds have laid stone eggs in my heart and flown away and I am just going to have to deal with this great loss and somehow try to move on with life in the weeks and months ahead.
Mary at this point I feel as though I will never write another letter of representation to self serving politicians ever again. I say this because after ten years of being both State and Nationally active in support of the VE cause, all my efforts have been in vain attracting only negative responses and in some instances, discourteously no response at all, Kevin Rudd being a case -in-point.

This has left me wondering just how many politicians actually enter politics with the dedication to influence things to the good or are they only there to toe the Party line and feather their own nest and I have just about had a gut full of them.
Relevant to the above I harbour a bit of home spun philosophy that goes, “Never tell your problems to your friends as they will quickly become bored, tell them to your enemies as they will listen intently and with glee”.

Mary to conclude I trust that both you, and family are all well and I hope I haven’t bored you with my problems.

Dealing with a great loss and my daughter also sends her love

names withheld

Dr Francis Macnab gave an address on Sunday May 2nd “More on Dying with Dignity –  How we choose to live, How we choose to die.”.  A copy is available on request, St Michael’s Uniting Church at 120 Collins Street, Melbourne, 3000 –  on either DVD ($10) or CD ($8.50) plus $2 postage. Email: office@stmichaels.org.au

I took notes as Dr Macnab spoke and I recalled his message along these lines with my own interpretation interwoven.

It is good to live a life that is full and expansive.   People tend to go to ‘experts’ when they require solid foundations on which to base their decisions.  We may go to a dentist, that we’ve used for years and they may make the pronouncement that “our teeth should be removed, rather than waste time and effort in maintaining them”….We may be dissatisfied with that ‘expert’  opinion and seek another one to meet our needs about what we feel is best for us,  at the time…..

Our ‘end of life’ choices are a bit like that!

Death is final though! We will only die the once!   But the dying process is made as a result of our choices.    Abortion too holds the ramifications resulting in major choices in our lives.   We make decisions based on our own needs, health reasons, siblings, and society’s expectations of us. (I was reminded of a doco that advised that 4000 Irish women and girls travelled to England in a single year to have an abortion because it was illegal in Ireland.)   Self/v/pressures.

Dr Macnab spoke of a 92 year old in fine form who could easily live for another twenty years – but he also knew of a 95 yo in decline – body functioning as appropriately an aged body could, but the brain had shut down.   His family cared! But after a full and good life he had a bad death deprived of dignity.

What is dignity? What is indignity?

People are living longer but at great personal cost them in terms of how the ageing process is dealt with.   Living longer is also coming at great cost to the Health System.

Kept alive, suspended living,  – suspending dying?  A type of survival?

Medically assisted living – with pace makers, feeding tubes, prosthesis   - take them away and death results.

Families could care “more”, but recently families are sometimes more dysfunctional themselves.   The Health System simply cannot cater for the individual needs of every single Australian.  The carers who protect the interests of the chronically ill, are just one group, crying out for support.  Choice must be a rational alternative consideration to the prolonged dying which is the current preferred model of dealing with aged care with it overwhelming health needs.

SAGE a group within St Michaels that deals with the trials of ageing, had 20 members some years ago, but today it has 120 attendees.   Afraid of deterioration, they seek support in how to deal with the inevitability of death.

“Respectful, Rational and Rightly” the authorities will deal with you.  “They’ll hose you down, prop you up and feed you!”   “They’ll close their eyes to the anxiety you feel, and if you become too agitated, they’ll restrain you with drugs to prevent the trashing around, and THEN WE DIE.”

How we cope with our living indicates how we will cope with the dying.  In living we make rational decisions in our daily lives – but in the dying process, rationality can seem to disappear in what is the best choice to make.  There can be no rationality in maintaining a life that has actually died in the true sense of the meaning “to live”.

Palliative care does not relieve pain in some individuals and excising choice is a rational option to prevent prolonged dying – when it is not rational  to permit suffering indefinitely!

Dr Macnab spoke of a man with collapsed arteries – who chose to have high risk surgery.  The patient wanted to take the chance! Live a bit longer! He did survive the surgery.  On waking up, the man’s first question was “Who won the football?”   His anxiety had been relieved! The reality was the ‘doctors had won’…you were injured and now you are healed for another day….We deal with anxiety is curious ways.

On another matter:

The three major religions are very strong on violence and cruelty.   So much conflict is propagated. (not actually named but I assumed Islam, Christian and Jewish)  They certainly spring into my mind as violent and cruel in their methods of ‘control’.

The Catholic’s Pope John Paul 2^nd used his influence and power to block any opportunity for intelligent change in doctrine.    To deny suffering in oneself is to devalue God if not accepted with grace.  The religions are great at creating a fear of dying because of the consequences you’ve made while living!  Delay death at all costs because the hereafter may well be worse for you (?)

Also to be considered:

In Victoria we have 85% of Victorians who want to see changes made to the Medical Treatment Act to update and include modern medical technologies.   The problem is that the majority of those 85% are silent when it comes to talking to their politicians and the Right to Life are a noisy though minimal lobby group!  Those people need to be much more vocal in highlighting their concerns about a lack of choice when it comes to end of life decisions for themselves!

Frightened politicians must accept the realities of fact that religious belief systems, with education, are no longer relevant! (ain’t that the truth?)

We must develop a humane society that respects our human rights – It is a social concern that must be addressed.

Several thousand of Melbournians commit suicide each year – yet rarely do we hear a discussion about those figures.

However –  when rational argument is attempted for Physician Assisted Dying for the terminally and chronically ill – then the Pro Life appear in force.

Pro Choice needs to be much more vocal to their politicians as SILENCE is NOT the way it will work.

Being respectful, rational and right about how we choose to live and die should be the right of all Victorians to make their Parliamentarian representatives vote accordingly for CHOICE!

More on Dying with Dignity – How we live, How we Die

Time: Sunday May 2nd 10 am

All welcomed to the venue: St Michael’s Uniting Church, 120 Collins Street, Melbourne

Dr Macnab last spoke April 11, and some of his comments were hard hitting and encouraged one or two ladies to take stock of their views….

He said we had the right to choose to drink, smoke and take part in risky sports and had huge expense to the public purse – but were unable to choose the right to die!

Should we wait passively for the inevitable? Of course the majority of us, in fact all of us would choose life and live, if it meant we could do that without pain and suffering.

Life itself is part of the dying process and we are all going to participate in that action – however if we are no longer a part of the mainstream of life, there needs to be a core of humanity that promotes the opportunity to exercise care and compassion in what would otherwise being an excruciating long dying process. An hour in great pain can seem a week! what do weeks and months do to the soul of the individual’s sense of wellbeing?

Currently with modern medical intervention we can ‘live’ for perhaps 20 years but the reality is that we are already “dead”.

We can be in a vexatious delusion of fighting immorality! We want relief only for ourselves. If others want to suffer to order to raise their status in Heaven, then that is their decision to make – but not on my behalf!

Suffering degrades compassion – there is no great virtue in keeping people alive when they themselves wish for death as a release – Is there a mistaken belief that it is our “duty” to deny this relief when the need remains so great – given the prognosis of that individual? I don’t require you to exercise your sense of duty on my behalf! I want to do that for myself!

No where in the Bible is the self imposed ‘duty’ to protect us from ourselves mentioned? The fact is that the Bible itself speaks of prescribed genocide…..(Don’t they kill babies at a rate of knots in the Bible and sacrifice children with monotonous regularity to please a vengeful God?)

Violence comes in all shades from domestic to starvation (and child slavery in third world sweathouses). (Not to mention the pressures placed on specific cultures by their own Crime Bosses who imitate the weak and needy and never raise a profile in the mainstream media)

Do we care enough to face the political and religious opposition to voluntary euthanasia?

Do we care enough to deal with the cost of speaking out, being seen, being heard?

None of us want to become ‘a coat on a stick’ congealed dying (with a terminal illness earlier in the life span!) and even less so in my view of shrinkage dying ….Nothing left to live for, large spaces of emptiness. Literally nothing to get up for in the morning, or even to lie in bed day after day – the senselessness of the nothingness!!

Of course we can live fully between the two boundaries of new life and death, with a great degree of joy, happiness and purpose but – regardless of who we are the cover on the book of life will close eventually. It must close!

Do we want a ‘book of life’ well read and be pleased to close on the last page? knowing we have done well for ourselves and ready to finish with a gentle sense of completion that I may sleep the long sleep of a good death medically assisted?

I know I do!

Good Morning Ms Pennicuik,

As I have written to all six of my representatives in State Parliament in both Houses, I didn’t want you feeling neglected – even though I know the Greens already have a policy in place supporting the cause for voluntary euthanasia.

I will continue to support the Greens because of that support which is so necessary to assist those too sick and frail to be politically active.   I endeavour to represent them to a large extent by continual writing and promoting the cause throughout the State Parliament system.   I am eternally grateful to Colleen Hartland, Bill Smith and Candy Broad for their support in the face of it being an uphill battle….This year I am focusing on the financial cost to the State Government by ignoring the elephant in the room….. The chronic, terminal and aged of us, who want to make choices as adults about our end of life choices.

Thank you for your time,

Mary Walsh

Good Morning Mr Lenders

Again I am contacting you to ask you to reconsider your position on choice and dignity in dying and attitudes towards the Physician Assisted Dying Bill which failed so dismally in this Parliamentary term because of manipulation of the democratic process.  You have your beliefs, but I hold an alternative view along with many other constituents of yours and you are there I believe to represent OUR interests, that is the majority!.

85% of Victorians as surveys consistently show want and need the Medical Treatment Act to be modified to accommodate changing medical technology and social attitudes.

As the financial whiz of the State’s Labor Party it shouldn’t be too hard to appeal to your financial hip pocket if the simple idea of ordinary compassion doesn’t move you.    Already there are clear indications that geriatric is not the preferred career choice of our young educated with the world at their finger tips.     Buildings and beds will not solve the problem of a haemorrhaging health budget, and set to become worse very soon.

What more can Victorians do to persuade politicians that the taxpayers cannot sustain an unproductive and ever increasing aged, chronic and terminally ill patients with prolonged dying the order of the day.    Death is seen as a blessed relief to many of us with chronic health problems and when it comes time to go! Quite simply I believe there is little point in delaying the inevitable outcome which is surely the end of us all, regardless of who and how!

As educated adults charged with the care of our newer generations, we should be permitted the courtesy of acknowledging our  intelligence to know what is best for ourselves as individuals.   It is always about choice!   In the same way legislation covers driving and places limits with penalties, the law could also deal with voluntary euthanasia if there was the will.

Governments have little compunction at all about sending off 20 year old fine, healthy strapping young people off to fight wars in far away countries, not even protecting Australian soil – and yet these same governments become so coy when old people approach them about providing the legal means to end of life choices!

I am not worried about becoming “a burden on society” but I am selfish enough to want to know that I can live a full and purposeful life until I die.    I don’t want to spend the last five years confined and relying on others for my every need.   I am asking you as my sitting member to ensure that my needs are as important to you as any Right to Life activist!   Choice for the individual solves conflicting ethics according to creed.

Thank you for you time.

Mary Walsh

Good Morning Ms Huppert,

I had no luck at all with your predecessor, Evan Thornley, as the Southern Metropolitan Labor Rep,  but I am hopeful that you have a more open mind towards choice and dignity in dying when the Physician Assisted Dying Bill is reintroduced into Victorian Parliament by any other name.

I’ve already had many years of shattering unsuccess with Ann Barker as my Member for Oakleigh on this matter but a new broom sweeps clean and perhaps that will be the case with you in the upcoming Victorian State election.

As I’ve explained to Ms Barker, I am going to actively campaign against any politician who does not support the concept of choice for the individual. I have already ceased to be an active campaigner since my resignation from the Labor Party,  but will support members such as Rob Hudson who has shown himself to be a compassionate humane politician.

I am appealing for all politicians to consider the financial ramifications of ignoring those of us in the community, all 85% of Victorians, who prefer choice to enduring pain.

I would appreciate your support in allowing adults to make adult choices about their own end of life arrangements – by supporting the appropriate legislation that would enable us to do that.     I cannot emphasise too much that activists such as myself, are promoting only self determination for self! Its called voluntary euthanasia, apparently an unpopular term to use in these days of euphemisms, but I prefer honesty above all else!

Thank you for your time,

Mary Walsh

Good Morning Mr Davis,

I am not just picking on you, you’ll be pleased to know – but I am writing to my local representatives at this time in order to promote a better outcome for the Physician Assisted Dying Bill or its equivalent when it comes to the Victorian Parliament again.

I am asking that the Liberal Party who prides itself on giving autonomy to the individual in all matters to do with business and commerce, to extend that compliment of implied intelligence to end of life choices.

If we activists can’t get past first base by appealing to simple compassion, perhaps the financial pain will help politicians understand the needs and wants of the chronic, terminal and ageing communities.     We need the law to protect the interests who those who cannot physically help themselves!   And to stop people hanging themselves because there is no where else for them to turn to relieving the stress of continual pain and suffering!

Governments need to show leadership and make provision for the ‘hard decisions’ on social issues.   The Labor Party leadership hasn’t never provided this security in terms of voluntary euthanasia, but I recall very well that Premier Jeff Kennett understood the importance of this matter to us as activists for choice.   Successive Liberal Opposition Leaders have said they will allow for conscience, but not the way it was treated at the last attempt to promote choice for the individual…..that was mean spirited!

Legislation could provide those in the later stages of their lives with the security of knowing, they don’t have to endure unless that is their choice.

Please help in this matter with your vote and I thank you for your time.

Mary Walsh