Early this morning, Dr. Jack Kevorkian was released from prison after an 8 year term.  I am pretty sure we all remember just who Dr. Kevorkian was, so I’ll spare the background information for now.  Kevorkian was charged with 2nd degree murder in after he helped numerous terminally ill patients to commit suicide.  Given the moniker “Dr. Death”, most Americans thought his crimes were terrible at the time he was sentenced.  Since then, we have seen a great deal of cases that are beginning to swing public opinion in the other direction.  With events like the Terri Schiavo fiasco and the legalization of doctor assisted suicides in Death With Dignity act that was passed in Oregon, our public is more willing than ever to accept assisted suicide out of mercy and with the patient’s permission. 

The interesting thing about Kevorkians release is that people still look down upon him.  While I don’t necessarily agree with Kevorkian’s actions, or the full premise of assisted suicide, I think that Americans are being too harsh on him.  Even this morning, I saw several papers refer to him as Dr. Death (my title is further this point).  It is as though we have branded this man as being the devil incarnate, even as most Americans now agree with what he was doing back then.  It seems to me as though this man is the victim of a great deal of hypocritical malice, mostly generated by the media.  Doctors are now practicing his exact methods in Oregon, yet we don’t recognize him as an important pioneer.  I don’t even fully agree with assisted suicide, but I do regard him as the person who brought this important issue to the forefront of political, social, and ethical discussion.

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