Jack Kevorkian
physician, composer, painter, jazz musician, pathologist, politician, anatomical pathologist, polyglot
Read on Wikipedia1928 – 2011
All Quotes by Jack Kevorkian
“Freedom has a price. Most people aren't willing to pay it.”
“The patient's autonomy always, always should be respected, even if it is absolutely contrary - the decision is contrary to best medical advice and what the physician wants.”
“I'm trying to knock the medical profession into accepting its responsibilities, and those responsibilities include assisting their patients with death.”
“The patient's autonomy always, always should be respected, even if it is absolutely contrary - the decision is contrary to best medical advice and what the physician wants.”
“The patient decides when it's best to go.”
“I'm for absolute autonomy of the individual, and an adult, competent woman has absolute autonomy. It's her choice.”
“You're going to watch a person suffer in agony while somebody's debating?”
“This is a medical service. It always was.”
“This is not a trial. This is a lynching. There is no law.”
“As a medical doctor, it is my duty to evaluate the situation with as much data as I can gather and as much expertise as I have and as much experience as I have to determine whether or not the wish of the patient is medically justified.”
“As a medical doctor, it is my duty to evaluate the situation with as much data as I can gather and as much expertise as I have and as much experience as I have to determine whether or not the wish of the patient is medically justified.”
“The Supreme Court of the United States... has validated the Nazi method of execution in... concentration camps, starving them to death!”
“I will admit, like Socrates and Aristotle and Plato and some other philosophers, that there are instances where the death penalty would seem appropriate.”
“My religion centers in different areas than what's considered conventional religion.”
“You're basing your laws and your whole outlook on natural life on mythology. It won't work. That's why you have all these problems in the world. Name them: India, Pakistan, Ireland. Name them-all these problems. They're all religious problems.”
“When your conscience says law is immoral, don't follow it.”
“I gambled and I lost. I failed in securing my options for this choice for myself, but I succeeded in verifying the Dark Age is still with us.”
“All the big powers...they've silenced me. So much for free speech and choice on this fundamental human right.”
“It's the boredom that kills you. You read until you're tired of that. You do crossword puzzles until you're tired of that. This is torture. This is mental torture.”
“The American people are sheep. They're comfortable, rich, working. It's like the Romans, they're happy with bread and their spectator sports. The Super Bowl means more to them than any right.”
“There is nothing anyone can do anyway. The public has no power. The government knows I'm not a criminal. The parole board knows I'm not a criminal. The judge knows I'm not a criminal.”
“When history looks back, it will prove what I'll die knowing.”
“This could never be a crime in any society which deems itself enlightened.”
“My ultimate aim is to make euthanasia a positive experience.”
“Am I a criminal? The world knows I'm not a criminal. What are they trying to put me in jail for? You've lost common sense in this society because of religious fanaticism and dogma.”
“We need some honesty and sincerity instead of corrupt government in Washington.”
“She made the decision that her existence had lost its meaning. And you cannot judge that.”
“I'm for absolute autonomy of the individual, and an adult, competent woman has absolute autonomy. It's her choice.”