Talk:Jack Kevorkian

Kevorkian: Hero or villain??

should there be arguments for and criticizing the actions of Kevorkian, or should that be more centered on the assisted suicide page?(Transcona Slim 04:22, 5 June 2007 (UTC))

Much more fitting here. As far as I can tell, it also needs some info on what the state of the patients were, beyond that they just wanted to die. Were they terminally ill? Depressed? Other reasons? Are there statistics on this? --Safe-Keeper 15:46, 5 June 2007 (UTC)

Jack Kevorkian is a hero, not a villain. If someone want's too die, but is not physically capable, they should have the option of doctor assisted suicide. —Finny Kununsigned comment added by Finny kun (talk • contribs) 03:11, 28 January 2010 (UTC)

Nobody in encyclopaediae are heroes or villains. You should all at least pretend the Wikipedia is more than a propaganda organ for every moronic media darling to float along. You don't argue in an encyclopaedia, you state facts. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.13.47.4 (talk) 08:23, 8 April 2010 (UTC)

needs rewrite

Yeah.. this page needs to be completely rewritten. Someone with an agenda vanalized the hell out of it. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.252.255.188 (talk) 01:17, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

I agree that it needs a rewrite, mainly because it's annoying to see nearly the whole article have nothing but "citation needed" stamped on the whole thing as if someone desperately wants it to bawlete it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.195.230.26 (talk) 17:45, 3 May 2010 (UTC)

Abiguity in passage

The following passage I find ambiguous. Please edit... elpincha 13:48, 13 Mar 2005 (UTC)

(...) and in the end is not equipped to evaluate whether a prospective client is clinically depressed and therefore, according to accepted medical (and legal) thought, incapable of deciding to end his own life.

• The passage seems good to me, but if you dont't like it, why don't you go ahead and edit it yourself? Be Bold! --Blackcap | talk 17:23, September 8, 2005 (UTC)

I agree with him, it seems overly-wordy, though I understand it, it does take a bit of a pause to swallow :)

Bias - need for clarification.

I'd like to see some specifics on "including medical experimentation on patients".

The phrase has disturbing overtones which may not deserve to be there.

Clarification would help here: What are these experiments? Do some people find them disturbing? Who?

Anagrammarian 19:56, 17 January 2006 (UTC)

Let's try Jack Kevorkian's own words from his own book!

"If we are ever to penetrate the mystery of death — even superficially — it will have to be through obitiatry...Knowledge about the essence of human death will of necessity require insight into the nature of the unique awareness or consciousness that characterizes cognitive human life. That is possible only through obitiatric research on living human bodies, and most likely by concentrating on the central nervous system...to pinpoint the exact onset of extinction of an unknown cognitive mechanism that energizes life."

You know... you wouldn't be asking this if you bothered reading the references at the bottom of the article!

bluespider 1:20 19 January 2006

His support for what he calls obitiatry and it's experimentation value is quite interesting, I wonder if it could find it's way back into the article without losing NPOV? 70.20.177.78 (talk) 01:14, 20 May 2010 (UTC)

See also

Why is Henry Morgentaler linked to from this page? As far as I can tell from that article, he's merely an abortionist and not an euthanasia advocate- while some people surely believe that the two are one and the same, it's rather POV. -Seventh Holy Scripture 21:39, 9 July 2006 (UTC)

List of patients he's assisted and prior life

Does anyone have a list of patients he's assisted in ending their lives? Also, what was his occupation prior to becoming a public figure?

Before he became a public figure, Jack's intern was in pathology. His first year of residency was at the University of Michigan Medical Center, which he began after his release from active duty in the military.

Rsage 08:01, 30 December 2006 (UTC)

I'd rather not, citing Confidentiality, Notability (such a list is not needed), and the Right to Privacy. --Safe-Keeper 15:45, 5 June 2007 (UTC)

Paroled in June?

According to CNN, he is up for parole in June. I thought that somebody with more information could add something about this. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Ryanizzle (talk • contribs) 16:18, 14 December 2006 (UTC).

Discrepancy / Cultural references

Lead: "He was paroled early in December 2006"

Lower down: "on December 13, 2006 it was announced he would be paroled on June 1, 2007."

Having parole announced and actually being paroled are not the same thing!

Also, the "Cultural references" section is insane. We do NOT need a list of EVERY SINGLE TIME Kevorkian is mentioned in anything!! 81.159.62.16 13:08, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

I've removed the "Cultural references" section entirely. Trivia doesn't belong in most places on Wikipedia, and it certainly doesn't belong in a biography. If one of these trivia mentions is particularly iconic, to the point that it would itself pass WP:N, then it may make sense to weave it into the text. I doubt that, though. ··coelacan 20:49, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

Medicine and Law

In the 1980s, Kevorkian wrote a series of articles for the German journal Medicine and Law [...]

AFAIK Medicine and Law ist not a German journal, it is released by the World Association for Medical Law based in Haifa, Israel. --80.128.130.236 14:55, 21 May 2007 (UTC)

temporal arteritis.

I do not think that "hardening of the arteries" is a good description of temporal arteritis which is an autoimmune-associated inflammation of the temporal and nearby arteries. Could we just remove the description and link to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temporal_arteritis ?

---

Kurt Vonnegut's "God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian"

It may be important to note that Jack Kevorkian is an important character in Kurt Vonnegut's book "God Bless You Dr. Kevorkian", however I'm not sure where it could fit in with the current article. XHollywoodx 23:49, 1 June 2007 (UTC)

He is famous for his quotation, "dying is not a crime."

Gotta be a better way to put that. I mean, that's not what he's famous for.AustinDefense 04:04, 2 June 2007 (UTC)

Removed Statement

I removed this statement from the article: "(Later autopsies on several of the individuals Kevorkian assisted in killing revealed that there were no signs of any terminal illness, and that the individual's main motivation to die was due to depression.)" An autopsy cannot reveal whether or not an individual suffered from depression, nor can it reveal their motivations for dying. While depression is a valid reason to want to die, and while it may have been shown that many of Kevorkian's patients did enlist his services for that very reason, that would have to have been revealed by something other than an autopsy. Perhaps medical records, or statements by Kevorkian or people who knew the deceased. --Cryptic C62 · Talk 01:47, 6 June 2007 (UTC)

Thomas Youk - details please

There is no article on Thomas Youk, and I'm not sure there needs to be one. If somebody can dig up some details on Thomas Youk's condition and what led Jack Kevorkian to assist in his suicide, that'd be great. Right now, this article just touches on the subject and provides no detail specifically on Thomas Youk's case. --Zybez 17:17, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

no pictures?

?

Pop Culture References

The "Pop Culture References" section appears virtually unsourced, unverifiable, and basically trivial. I'm inclined to delete the whole thing. Are there any defenders of it? ·:· Will Beback ·:· 23:17, 7 September 2007 (UTC)

Such a section, while seemingly common in wikipedia, is discouraged per WP:TRIVIA. Arthurrh 06:18, 23 September 2007 (UTC)

I removed most of it. Left in the two non-trivial items --- second one could use a source. cab 04:30, 25 September 2007 (UTC)

Played violin with Acid Bath

He certainly did not play violin on the song "New death sensation" because there is no violin in that song. I would love to believe that, but I believe this part should be deleted.Harmonic Minor (talk) 02:20, 13 December 2007 (UTC)

Film

IMDB has a page for a film called Kevorkian Chronicles, a documentary scheduled for release in 2008. Should this be mentioned somewhere? Kitaro53085 (talk) 17:37, 11 January 2008 (UTC)

what a loser  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 167.128.60.221 (talk) 16:37, 18 April 2008 (UTC) 

Terminal Illness?

When Kevorkian was first paroled, news accounts (and the wikipedia article) generally stated that he was paroled in part because he was dying -- I think from pancreatic cancer. There is no mention of this in the article anymore. If that turned out to be a hoax, I think it would still be worth a brief mention (mainly because someone [like me] may be looking for more information on that). Does anybody have details and/or references? SkyDot (talk) 08:47, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

"you dont know jack" an new HBO film —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.232.145.120 (talk) 14:27, 24 September 2010 (UTC)

Kevorkian's Jazz Album

I'm surprised this isn't mentioned on this page at all, but Dr. Kevorkian has an album with the "Morpheus Quintet" in which they play his jazz compositions and Kevorkian plays flute (and organ on a hidden track). It was released in 1997, it's called "A Very Still Life". Should this be put on the page? Or should there be a "Discography" section at the end that links to it's own page? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.205.123.133 (talk) 20:56, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Oh please. "A Very Still Life"? Give me a break. Proxy User (talk) 08:40, 24 June 2008 (UTC)

Post-parole life???

Is there anything to report on what Dr. Jack Kevorkian (and I live in Michigan by the way folks) has been doing since his 2 year parole period expired? It's surprising there's nothing on him on his OWN PAGE after Feb. 5, '09, especially since at that point he would have been just about 1 1/2 to 5 months from completing the mandatory probation period. So has he gone back to practicing or is he barred from practicing or what? I find it odd, and even slightly disturbing that there is no info about any of this...98.209.67.70 (talk) 06:27, 19 July 2009 (UTC)

Nick names

Jack is usually a nickname for John. Is this the case here? If so then this should be mentioned in the lead. If not then maybe the last sentence of the lead should mention that Jack is his given name. Also, I think some mention of his nick name of "Dr. Death" be mentioned. One of the references uses that name in the title. Just questions for article improvement -- I don't think I'll be coming back to this page or the main article. WikiParker (talk) 21:39, 4 September 2009 (UTC)

I was wondering the same thing about Jack/John, but couldn't find any sources. As for "Dr. Death", I don't know, but there would seem to be something awkwardly hyperbolic about it here, considering the association of "Dr. Death" with Aribert Heim. Cosmic Latte (talk) 18:38, 7 December 2009 (UTC)

I've seen a number of apparently reliable sources that indicate that Kevorkian's first name is actually Murad (at least it was originally). Can somebody show that his legal name is now Jack? If not, let's put him down as Murad "Jack" Kevorkian. Methychroma (talk) 04:20, 29 April 2010 (UTC)

Use of the term 'killer' is neutral, not value-added

I believe Dr. Kevorkian should have 'killer' added to his main description. From dictionary, "a person or thing that kills." I am a supporter of Dr. Kevorkian and to deny that he killed people is to demonize killing. Killing is not wrong. Murder is wrong. And as soon as we educate people as to what the differences are, then the sooner the term becomes neutral, like it should.

Those who revert my edit under the umbrella term 'vandalism' need to look at how Wikipedia has been using language to suppress real discussion on any matter.

174.115.170.141 (talk) 01:39, 29 April 2010 (UTC)

The lead section of a BLP article is not an appropriate place to promote this distinction. Killer is a disambiguation page that does not explain the differences. Flatscan (talk) 04:26, 29 April 2010 (UTC)

How about adding "eater" to his main description cause we know he must eat. Seriously, we don't add "killer" to the description of soldiers or people who cause deadly accidents or those who indirectly contribute to someone's death. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.23.86.158 (talk) 20:26, 1 November 2010 (UTC)

I've deleted the TWO, countem TWO Trivia sections

They were as follows:

Media-- Al Pacino played Jack Kevorkian in a 2010 HBO movie entitled You Don't Know Jack. The film also stars Susan Sarandon and John Goodman.

Industrial band Kevorkian Death Cycle was formerly named Grid but changed their name due to political motivations. They also went on a two-month "Free Jack" tour of North America.

Ska punk band Suicide Machines was originally called "Jack Kevorkian and the Suicide Machines."

Ska/reggae band the Pilfers released a song entitled "Dr. Kevorkian" on their self titled debut album.

Rap group Public Enemy released a song entitled "Kevorkian."

Metal band Strapping Young Lad released a song entitled "Velvet Kevorkian" on their 1997 album City.

Metal band Pure Sweet Hell released a song entitled "Dr. Death" on their 2003 debut album, The Voyeurs of Utter Destruction as Beauty. It features Dr. Kevorkian defending himself in court.

Metal band Anvil released a song entitled "Doctor Kevorkian" on their 1997 release Plugged in Permanent.

Author Kurt Vonnegut published a series of fictional interviews titled, "God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian" in 1999.

Cultural references--

• The hard rock band L.A. Guns has a song on their 1997 album American Hardcore called "Kevorkian".

• The Law & Order season eight episode "Burden" and the season 18 episode "Called Home" are inspired by the Jack Kevorkian case.

• The story 'Quality of Mercy' in The Prosecution Rests is a fable exploring the facets of aging, Alzheimer's disease, and euthanasia.

• Stephen Lynch makes a reference to Kevorkian in his song Grandfather

• Rapper Eminem makes a reference to Kevorkian in his "It's Only Fair to Warn" freestyle.

• A Grey's Anatomy season one episode makes reference to him

• In season three of Criminal Minds a Kevorkian reference is made when describing the person who puts down animals at the local pound

• The Canadian Alternative band Artificial Joy Club mentions Kevorkian in their song "Sick & Beautiful"

• "Undertaker, Please Drive Slow," an essay by Jo Ann Beard in Tin House magazine #12, describes the Kevorkian-assisted death of a cancer-sufferer from the patient's perspective

• Musician K'naan makes a reference to Kevorkian in his song "Bang Bang"

• In an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Phillip has a heart attack and is treated by a Dr. Kevarkian. Upon introducing himself to the family, they emit a gasp of concern until he assures them that he's "Kevarkian, with an 'A.'"

• In episode 1.05 of That's My Bush Dr. Kevorkian is released from prison to euthanize the family cat.

• Rapper Wale references Kevorkian on the track "The Prescription" on his debut album, "Attention Deficit".

70.20.177.78 (talk) 01:23, 20 May 2010 (UTC)

Source

1997 interview on Larry King Live "Dr. Kevorkian and the Pending Supreme Court Decision On Physician-Assisted Suicide" January 14, 1997 http://www.cnn.com/US/9701/08/suicide.scotus/lkl.00.html --Lexein (talk) 13:32, 11 July 2010 (UTC)

Carbon monoxide

This claim about the use of carbon monoxide This became necessary because Kevorkian's medical license had been revoked after the first two deaths, and he no longer had legal access to the substances required for the "Thanatron". was contradicted by multiple sources. Citations which support this claim are welcome, but where CO was used, veins were merely incapable of supporting injection. --Lexein (talk) 12:38, 4 August 2010 (UTC)

March 2011

The statements being shown are from very biased sources. Please find more neutral citations because there are some serious or liable claims being made that need rock solid citations not hear-say. Check NPOV.«Golgofrinchian» ∞talk∞ 01:43, 3 March 2011 (UTC)

His name is not Murad!

This is an explanation for the edit that I am about to make.

Both the lede and the infobox as his name being Murad "Jack" Kevorkian, when this is not true at all.

From his biography, written by his BEST FRIENDS, it says:

"Satenig [the mother] wanted to name her son Murad, after a famous and courageous Armenian guerrilla fighter who fought valiantly to protect his people. She wanted her son to have the same courage as his namesake. Levon, however, wanted to call his young son Jacob. It was a solid, respectable name, one that would fit well in America. With that name, the boy would blend in at school and people would think of him as an American instead of as the son of immigrants. Satenig also wanted her son to have every advantage, so if her husband said that the right name made that possible, then she was willing to go along. At home, though, she continued to call her young son Murad. The world would know him as Jacob, the patriarch of the 12 tribes of Israel, but inside, her son would forever be Murad, a brave soldier who was willing to sacrifice his life for what was right. The doctor who signed the birth certificate wasn't at all that concerned with what the boy was named. Whether he had difficulty understanding the Kevorkians' accented pronunciation, or because he was too busy to care, he nevertheless illegibly scrawled a name on the birth certificate. That illegible name was later interpreted by a teacher as Jack. (My emphasis.)

This shows that his name was, in fact, Jacob Kevorkian. And because the teacher misinterpreted the name, it again shows that it was Jacob Kevorkian, because it is more likely that that is what was written on the certificate, rather than Murad. Think about it--which would look closer to Jack: Jacob or Murad?

I am now changing the name in both the lede and infobox. If anyone has any problem with this, by all means, come up with a better primary source to use for your information, and post a rebuttal.