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The Right to Death
Collection StructureFiring Line broadcast records > Episode guide > The Right to Death
Item Title The Right to Death
Guest Humphry, Derek (1930-)
Host Buckley, William F., Jr. (1925-2008)
Moderator Kinsley, Michael E.
Date CreatedSeptember 17, 1991
Description

Mr. Humphry's how-to book on committing suicide had shot to number one on the New York Times best-seller list, to a mixture of adulation and accusation. On this absorbing show, Mr. Buckley does not argue with his guest but rather draws him along, teasing out his arguments and leaving the viewer with a great deal to think about. DH: "The Hippocratic oath is the nonsense of the medical world, devised two and a half thousand years ago by a group of Greeks.... In this age it has no application." ... "I broke the law on two occasions: when I helped my wife to die; when I helped my father-in-law to die. I regretted doing that very much, the actual breaking of the law. I was glad to help them. I thought it was the decent and honorable and loving thing to do." ... "I don't want to encourage [assisted suicide]. I want to legitimize it.... This sort of thing is a very serious matter and it's wrong for it to be done covertly."

Language(s)
Country of Origin
Place RecordedNew York City, New York, United States
DimensionsDuration: 30 minutes
FormatText
Medium television programs
Aspect Ratio
4:3
Color
color
Soundtrack
sound
Hoover IDProgram S0909
Record Number80040.1163
NotesVideo not currently available for purchase.
RightsCopyright held by Stanford University. This copy is provided for educational and research purposes only. No publication, further reproduction, or reuse of copies, beyond fair use, may be made without the express written permission of the Hoover Institution Library & Archives on behalf of Stanford University.
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