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In the summer of 2016, Canada legalized euthanasia, also known as a “medical assistance in dying” (MAID) law. The current policy states only those with “a serious and incurable illness, disease, or disability” is eligible to die by assisted suicide. However, by 2027, the country plans to allow people with mental illness to choose death as well. Some groups, such as Death with Dignity, see euthanasia as “a good death.” But a ballot initiative in West Virginia is attempting to keep the practice illegal there. Amendment 1 has recently been added to the state’s November ballot with the intention of providing “protection against medically assisted suicide.” Ultimately, “the amendment just places what’s already illegal in West Virginia into the state constitution for more security going forward,” said Pat McGeehan, a Republican state delegate in West Virginia, on an episode last week of “Washington Watch.” If this amendment is passed, West Virginia would become the first state to amend its constitution to prohibit assisted suicide. The amendment states: “No person, physician, or health care provider in the State of West Virginia shall participate in the practice of medically assisted suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing of a person. Nothing in this section prohibits the administration or prescription of medication for the purpose of alleviating pain or discomfort while the patient’s condition follows its natural course; nor does anything in this section prohibit the withholding or withdrawing of life-sustaining treatment, as requested by the patient or the patient’s decision-maker, in accordance with State law. Further, nothing in this section prevents the State from providing capital punishment.” Even though assisted suicide is “implicitly illegal in West Virginia,” McGeehan stated, “we want to send a message against this sort of nihilistic euthanasia movement sweeping the Western world.” And to fight against it properly, “You need to have it in the state constitution, because laws are not simply prescriptive, they’re also pedagogical. They teach people.” It’s McGeehan’s goal for West Virginia to become “the gold standard” in this push against euthanasia. McGeehan referred to Canada’s MAID program as “just a fancy way of saying they’re killing their own citizens in Canada,” and he noted that it’s “horrific” that the practice is the “fifth-leading cause of death” in the country. But Canada is far from the only proponent of euthanasia. In the U.S., “10 states have legalized euthanasia in one form or another.” Some states, such as Oregon and Vermont, have actually “opened up their euthanasia programs to not just their state residents, but to nonresidents,” McGeehan explained. This, he added, has led to a “sort of euthanasia tourism,” which has “essentially grown into a whole marketplace for nonresidents coming in to kill themselves.” Some states have gone as far as to offer lodging such as hotels and Airbnb rentals for people coming into the area to die. As McGeehan put it, “Really, they’re death hotels [and] death Airbnbs.” The euthanasia process has become so streamlined, he added, that it’s “just like [receiving] any other medication.” He explained, “They give you a cocktail of poisons,” and then “you go back by yourself into one of these hotels [and] swallow the cocktail poison. It destroys your organs,” and then “social workers actually come by the next day [to] collect all the bodies in these hotels and burn them.” McGeehan shook his head. “We’ve got to push back against this. This is just part of a broader trend of nihilism that’s sweeping our country with the progressive liberal order. And I’m sick of it.” As guest host and former Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., asked, “[W]hat do you say to those who argue that your state, West Virginia, already has a code that prevents medically assisted suicide?” McGeehan replied that “most people don’t even know [if] it’s illegal or legal.” This, he emphasized, is part of why it’s important to have it firmly stated in the constitution. And as he pointed out, “[Y]ou never know who’s going to be in office next.” It could be that in years to come, “It might not be guys that are pro-life on the Republican side.” And so, to allow government officials to decide “which suicides are good and which are bad” gives them “enormous power.” Additionally, “It … leads to arbitrary decisions on where you draw the line, and that just has devastating consequences for individuals in our society,” McGeehan contended. “[T]he progressive liberal order likes to reduce morality to just consent, and every relationship somehow has a sort of egalitarian, equal notion to it.” And since “doctors have an enormous power of authority in our society,” it becomes clear the “doctor-patient power relationship is extremely, extremely imbalanced.” McGeehan further argued that if assisted suicide is boiled down to consent and consent only, then all it takes is for a doctor to suggest euthanasia to “vulnerable patients” to blur the lines between choices made voluntarily and those made through persuasion. Hice agreed, adding that “the argument of so-called ‘death with dignity’” has a “sort of appeal for compassion.” How should believers respond, the former congressman wanted to know. McGeehan emphasized that it’s important to understand that this is “twisting the right order definition of compassion, and it preys on a lot of the pro-life movement within our own sort of ranks.” For instance, this same concept of dying with “dignity” has been applied to “the unborn child,” with people such as actress Anne Hathaway who said, “abortion can be another word for mercy.” McGeehan made it clear that this is simply those in opposition “preying on that compassion that [pro-lifers] already hold” by “trying to twist it and pervert it.” McGeehan closed by insisting that “this can be an argument that people need to take into consideration if they’re secular or if they’re atheists or nonbelievers,” because it can have enormous societal impacts. Beyond the biblical reality that each human being is made in the image of God, saying that euthanasia is an act of “dignity” or “mercy” could lead to “insurance companies [denying] coverage for expensive treatments like cancer care, just to cover suicide.” And the reality is, he concluded, “[T]his is already happening,” but it’s not too late to fight against it. Originally published at The Washington Stand The post W.Va. Lawmaker Aims to Ban Euthanasia in State Constitution: ‘We Want to Send a Message’ appeared first on The Daily Signal.

At college campuses nationwide, the newest students are starting class, but I’m not among them. Many medical schools rejected my application, and when I asked why, several told me that my service in our nation’s armed forces didn’t matter, and that I should have spent more time proving my commitment to “diversity” and “equity.” I served in the United States Army from 2012 to 2017. During my service, I intended to apply to the F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine, the military’s medical school, but health-related issues and a service-related disability cut my career short. After being honorably discharged, I set my sights on attending a civilian medical school to become a pathologist. I never assumed I would be a shoo-in, nor do I believe veterans like me have some “right” to acceptance. Still, I thought my chances were strong because of my degrees in different fields, years of work history as a medical technologist in numerous hospitals, and other experiences. Plus, I thought my veteran status could help, given medical schools’ universal preference for diversity. In the 2022-2023 school year, only 154 matriculants were military veterans out of 22,712 in total. If varied experiences and backgrounds are what medical schools want, I figured I had a lot to offer. Turns out, the medical schools don’t agree. Take my experience with the Morehouse School of Medicine, a historically black college in Atlanta. I’m white, but it has a good reputation and is the closest medical school to my home. After my application was rejected, I requested reapplicant counseling, which helps you learn how to improve your chances in subsequent applications. In May, an admissions counselor told me that my MCAT score wasn’t high enough, even though I scored in line with the average Morehouse matriculant. I couldn’t get an answer as to why that wasn’t good enough. The counselor did tell me that I made a mistake by not discussing “equity” in my essay. Apparently, as a white man, I needed to show a special dedication to serving non-white patients. The counselor also told me that my military service didn’t qualify as volunteering, even though we have an all-volunteer military. An associate dean of admissions at Georgia’s Mercer University School of Medicine said the same thing, disrespectfully equating my military service to a cashier’s job. I found myself wondering: What kind of volunteering do medical schools want? I found the answer in my reapplicant counseling session for the University of Alabama’s Heersink School of Medicine. Once again, the admissions counselor dismissed the idea that military service constitutes volunteering. Instead, she said, I needed to volunteer at a “free clinic in a barrio” or an “inner-city soup kitchen.” When I asked why those kinds of volunteering were better, the counselor told me I needed to prove my “cultural competence.” I can’t imagine a member of another race being told they have to demonstrate cultural competence. In addition, it’s insulting to assume that volunteering is the best way to gain such competence. I served alongside a highly diverse group of soldiers, learning valuable lessons about different races, religions, and traditions. I’m also married to a Kenyan woman, have three biracial kids, and have traveled to East Africa many times. What makes volunteering in a barrio or the inner city somehow superior to my numerous personal experiences? The answer is the same reason the Morehouse counselor wanted me to mention “equity.” It proves your devotion to the diversity-industrial complex. It’s possible I was beaten out by more qualified applicants at these and other schools. There’s always someone better than you in life. However, after what I encountered at many medical schools, I’m not confident that the quality of my application was the deciding factor. If I had overtly capitulated to the DEI worldview, I bet I’d be starting medical school this fall. (Ditto, if I was non-white.) The Supreme Court may have banned affirmative action, but the medical advocacy group Do No Harm has shown that medical schools are finding numerous ways to make admissions decisions based on race. Since medical schools are openly disrespectful to the sacrifices of disabled veterans like me, what makes anyone think they won’t continue to unfairly and illegally elevate race? I plan to apply to more medical schools this year, but I’m not optimistic about my chances. My ability to use the education benefits I earned through service to my country is controlled by race-obsessed administrators. In today’s politicized world of “diversity” and “equity,” I fear there’s no room for a disabled white male who joined the Army to defend his country instead of padding his resume by going to the barrio or the inner city and then boasting about it. This article was originally published by RealClearPolitics and made available via RealClearWire We publish a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Daily Signal. The post ‘Diversity’ Doesn’t Include Disabled Veterans Like Me appeared first on The Daily Signal.