We have now heard that at least one person who received the Zogby phone poll telephone call refused to answer any questions. That means one person who opposes assisted suicide failed to be counted. Please, if you get the call, take the survey. Just refuse to give your religion or answer the question about how many times you attend services each week.
There are two deceptively worded questions.
One question asks whether a person should be able to take medication to end his or her suffering. Please answer NO. Though this question could be construed to refer to palliative medications, it actually asks whether a person should be able to get a lethal dose of barbiturates from his or her doctor. A yes answer will be considered a yes to assisted suicide.
The other question is both deceptive and inflammatory. It asks whether a church or state should be able to tell a person what to do at the end of life. Answer NO. In the first place the legislation that would legalize assisted suicide in Vermont makes the patient jump through all sorts of legal hoops designed to protect physicians, not patients. In the second place, claiming that the opposition to PAS is solely a project of religious people trying to force their views on others; this question is designed to make people believe that falsehood and to get angry about it. Do not fall for it.