October 4th 2009

-o-

October 2nd 2009

DIGNITY IN DYING

Folks,

I expect that most of you know that I am determined to die peacefully in my own garden before my Alzheimer's has reached its most unpleasant stage, which might still be quite some time away.  That is why I am now a patron of Dignity in Dying and my new friends there have asked me to pass on this link to a petition to properly legalise well regulated assisted dying in the UK.
It has been put together by people who know their stuff and have some political awareness; if it had been written by me the paper would have burst into flames because I believe the religious right, having lost the original suicide debate in the 60s/70s and the abortion debate in the 60s are really getting behind this one and are portraying what could be a carefully and sympathetically delivered service to people with serious, debilitating and untreatable diseases as if it's an open door to a nationwide cull of old people.  Their arguments are frequently pernicious and highly objectionable and must be combated.

Click HERE to sign the petition.

Many thanks.

-o-

October 1st 2009

Folks,

I had a lovely letter the other day from very religious lady concerned about my health.  She said that I should consider my Alzheimer's a gift from God.  Frankly, I would have preferred a sweater...

Coming back from the North American Discworld Convention has hardly been a rest and so my own personal con report and additional thanks has had to be delayed.  More on that later.

On the up side, the progress on I Shall Wear Midnight is rapid, thanks to Dragon Dictate and rather more to the guys at TalkingPoint - the front end that makes it much easier to use - who made contact with me through this very page.  I'm so impressed by it, that if my typing ability came back overnight, I would continue to use it.  I have no hesitation in praising the product as I have already paid for two licenses and a year's maintenance. Anyway, we have to do this stuff otherwise what was the point of Star Trek?

The next few weeks are pretty well stuffed with things to do regarding Unseen Academicals and the celebration football match in Wincanton at which I shall break my life long vow of never watching a game of football. 

The next big public thing in our diary is the Irish Discworld convention, which takes in the Falls Hotel in Ennistymon Co. Clare from the 6th to 9th November. 

More later,