Jim said, "No matter what happens, death is inevitable. The means is irrelevant."

Sorry, Jim, I think the means if very relevant, from a legal and spiritual standpoint. I'd much rather go to sleep, in old age and not wake up, than have my brains beat out of me in a public stadium. Legally, means can be the difference between a murder or natural death; between a murderer walking away or being caught.

Spiritually, IMO, a peaceful means of death is much more preferable for the soul's journey than the shock of a car wreck, etc.

Some even believe we should have the liberty and ability to meet death on our own terms, with the legal ability to take our own lives in the event our dignity and quality of life are losing to terminal illness.

In some cultures, it was and is a good death when there is time to prepare and greet it, with proper singing, praying, meditating, ritualising.

Amos, I luvya, and I don't mean any disrespect, but I am not sure most men will ever understand what it takes for a woman to be able to say "NO." It was only 25-30 years ago, in our society when it was still considered a "yes" and women died for saying no, or suffered economically and emotionally from withholding sex. This still goes on, I hope to a lesser degree, now. To suggest that the women in Afghanistan have the wherewithal to start such a campaign and to back it up is just naive, imo. They have been severly oppressed for many years, living in a near starvation, cave-age manner for so long. Can you imagine how demoralising that must be; how difficult it must be to have a coherent thought, let alone a plan, beyond how to feed the children their next meal? I am sure, because of the reports I've read and received by email, that most women have no strength to refuse, let alone the courage to go against such an extreme as the Taliban and their men who follow. It is a wonderful idea dn I'd love to see it happen, but I think the path of least resistance is probably about all they can muster at the moment, and that, my friend, would be the lie back and endure so that it is over quickly. The other thing is, too, it is not just the woman who would suffer, should she refuse. Her children, exp. her daughters would likely be beaten and/or raped, etc.

Sorry, just say no didn't work for drugs; I don't think it will work in this instance, either.

luvyakat