Less than a year now

Well, it’s less than a year now until Canada legalizes Medical Assistance in Dying when Mental Illness is the Sole Underlying Medical Condition.

That is unless government chickens out at the last moment and delays M.A.i.D. MI-SUMC again out of fear of the religious right in this country.

M.A.i.D. where mental illness is the sole underlying condition was originally set to be legalized on March 17, 2023. At the last minute, it was delayed to March 17, 2024, and then again in February 2024, pushed further to March 17, 2027.

Both times M.A.i.D. MI-SUMC was delayed because those who think that everyone should live their lives as per the dictates of their holy teachings managed to push narratives about abuse of the system and loss of safeguards that don’t reflect how the law actually operates.

If your religion says that you shouldn’t obtain M.A.i.D., then don’t obtain M.A.i.D. It’s that plain and simple.

It’s the same thing when your religion says for you to not eat shellfish, don’t eat shellfish. And if your religion is against gay marriage, then don’t marry your spouse of the same gender.

What I choose to do with my life is my decision and my decision alone.

I am not here for your personal comfort.

I am not here for you to score brownie points with your religious daddy figure.

It is not my job to keep trying mental health treatment after mental health treatment designed to show me how to hide my mental trauma so that you can feel comfortable about yourself.

Y’all had your chance to help back in 1980.

But instead you let the Canadian Armed Forces, the Archdiocese of Edmonton and their respective disciplinary systems handle Captain Father Angus McRae while all of his victims, with the exception of his accomplice, were swept under the rug to suffer in silence.

We only get one chance at this life. There are no do-overs. There isn’t a second time around. There is no lake of fire to burn in for eternity. There are no heavenly clouds to float on playing harps.

Sticking around for another 15 to 20 years is of no benefit to me.

If I want to die, that’s a calamity.

If society says that it’s okay for me to die for the convenience of others, then that’s okay.

If I got run over by a drunk driver tomorrow, there would be no great outcry of anguish. Nobody would be calling for significant restrictions on car drivers while driving while intoxicated. It’s a “free society”.

If I die in a plane crash due to some middle manager saving pennies by cutting back on the lubrication schedule for jackscrews, I don’t get to start over.

Existing for another 15 to 20 years just allows me to continue suffering from untreated depression, anxiety, and the non-stop memories of the horrors of CFB Namao and the aftermath just don’t really appeal to me.