denim

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The saddest part of this, IMO, is that he didn't have the option of opting out peacefully. Can't allow an old guy with a brain tumor to check out easily in this country, no. God-forbid, some people say.

So this guy had to do it in a more messy manner.

krwlz

What a way to go though. Pilots, especially fighter pilots, are very very pround of their flying. I can imagine that this is exactly how he wanted it.

Flying around in a vintage plane, watching the sky, then just... jumping.

User Name

He died in a selfish way. While he may have gotten what he wanted, the people whose patio he landed in will be horrified for a lifetime. If he wanted to kill himself bad enough, he should have just overdosed on pills.

lurkette

...or at least jumped over an uninhabited area.

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denim

That's the problem. He's not allowed to do it peacefully, and you can survive pills if someone finds you. SOMEONE is going to discover the body. Would you rather it be a family member, or some strangers you don't care about?

Bill O'Rights

Perhaps...yes, I should imagine that they will...my guess is that he other ideas about how he wanted to go.

This seriously illustrates the need to reevaluate our euthanasia laws.

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denim

I think that's the main point, yes.

I mean, if it were a planned thing, he could have aimed for a big bullseye on the ground, or an open coffin, or whatever, and the pilot and his family could have been prepared.

I expect this kind of reform will be happening, fairly soon, as the baby boomers finally figure out what's in store for them.

Redjake

<b>"I think that was Dad's idea, to go out in a flash of glory," said Robert Frost</b>

sounds like his dad took The Road Not Taken

one way ticket to hell please

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mr sticky

"Secondhand Lions!"

I hate the outcome, but I respect the deed!

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The sad thing is... as you get older you come to realize that you don't so much pilot your life, as you just try to hold on, in a screaming, defiant ball of white-knuckle anxious fury

tim2shady

death to us all, we have an expiration date, i think i'll go out jumping out of a plane and into the ocean from...say 2200 feet....couldn't handle the pain of concrete and no bystanders...unless i hit a boat...hmmm....

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feelgood

Well, it's better than dying on a bed. How would you like it if you were 90 years old and you knew you were dying of a tumor and just lying in a bed waiting for death to come and take you away?

Probably not a good feeling, might as well go to death instead of waiting for it to come to you...

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Looking out the window, that's an act of war. Staring at my shoes, that's an act of war. Committing an act of war? Oh you better believe that's an act of war

Superbelt

That's the way I want to go out if I have some terminal illness that is expected to debilitate/kill me in a matter of months.

Seriously I have designs of diving out of a plane one day to do that. It seems like such fun the whole way through. Conscious and happy the whole way to the sudden end. Unfortunate the location he splattered, but that's what happens when you treat people who want to go out peacefully like criminals.

I could see a pretty lucrative business for a private pilot letting people do a half gainer off his cessna over a designated area.

Averett

Well.... Jumping out of a plane over the ocean at 2200 feet and landing on the water is going to feel like you're hitting concrete... Just so you know!

I heard about this on the radio this morning. Poor man.

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water_boy1999

I admire his bravado in going out the way he did, but I don't admire the fact that others had to be exposed to the aftermath. I know I would be deeply scarred if I was sipping my coffee, kicking my feet up on the patio chair, and someone decided to drop in unexpectedly.

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Bill O'Rights

OK, for the sake of argument, let's say that we legalize euthanasia. Do we allow people to "exit" any way that they like? Like Superbelt's venture of charging people to swan dive off of a small plane onto a cordoned off area? Or, do we mandate that they must receive a lethal overdose injection? What? How? Where are the boundaries? This opens up a whole new debte. Just for the record, I am pro euthanasia. These are just questions that I hadn't thought of before.

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"I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires." - Susan B. Anthony

"Hedonism with rules isn't hedonism at all, it's the Republican party." - JumpinJesus

It is indisputable that true beauty lies within...but a nice rack sure doesn't hurt.

Fire

hell- if someone came slamming down onto my patio, I would at least have something to talk about at parties- hell, I 'd respect him- that had class, and took some guts- everyone complaines about scars and mental anguish- I feel that half the time you just need to buck up and get on with your life- now were it me, I would want to put aside some money for clean up, just out of courtesy.

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moonstrucksoul

exactly, i have no problem with people who are terminally ill and want to go out with style, but it should not intrude into other peoples lives.

and if his son knew about his plan, and rented him the plane, then he should be responsible for the damage done to the family whose patio the guy fell on.

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denim

The son bought the flight for a birthday present, according to the article. If he knew, I agree that he should compensate the people whose property he landed on.

Jesus Pimp

It's their choice not ours. I don't understand why we have to control how other people want to end their lives.

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irseg

At that speed water and concrete might as well be the same. Not that it matters; by the time any pain impulses are transmitted, I'm pretty sure your brain would be a pile of mush.

mingusfingers

People have to clean that stuff up, too. Still kind of cool.

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saut

Damn, I was hoping no one else caught the Robert Frost thing so that I could do that.

tisonlyi

If I should ever find i'm the good side of a very long and painful road to death, there'll be a pile of clothes left on a beach and a tisonlyi-shaped figure splashing out into sunset on some gorgeous beach.

There's nothing manly, glorious or admirable about suffering, soiling one's self or babbling like a loonatic in a long forgotten corner somewhere.

Yes, A close relative of mine did go that way. It was incredibly painful to watch for all concerned.

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skier

I think drowning would not be an enjoyable way to go, what with your lungs burning with pain and then filling with water and coughing does no good as you sink below the waves.

I would do something similar to this old man, jump off a tall building or out of a plane and throw away my chute. I don't want to live for 5 years babbling incoherently like my grandfather is.

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Fearless_Hyena

No way to be sure but I think the son's sentiment of a "flash of glory" was made after the fact
What a wierd thing to say, too....

Fremen

If you want to opt out with style, join the CIA as a kamikaze operative.
Do some good on the way out.

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skysooner

I'm glad he went out the way he did. Seems like he suffered less and felt no pain at the end.

skier

legions of CIA suicide bomber geezers begin assault on terrorist organizations.... oh the irony!

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"Asking a bomb squad if an old bomb is still "real" is not the best thing to do if you want to save it." - denim

hu-man

Geronimoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooosplat

Sleepyjack

heh, this reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where the mental patience escapes from the hospital and lands on George's car, parked in the great spot

I wonder if it's instant death? or maybe a few seconds of excruciating pain, or unconsciousness. I don't think you'd want to be concious for too long after....

DEI37

It's instant. You're dead before your body stops moving.

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Generally speaking, if you were to get what you really deserve, you might be unpleasantly surprised.

Paq

actually, they have shown that most people die of heart attack on the way down....

and yeah, i've thought that i'd like to go that way if i were diagnosed with something i couldnt' kick. Believe me, though, I'd wait until i was absolutely certain i couldn't kick it....

Still, i wouldn't do it over the ocean. I have heard that the impact is actually greater bc you have 2 moving objects instead of one. water doesn't exactly give way very fast when you're moving at those speeds..

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raist

If someone was in the apartment as it happened they must of struck there heads on the ceiling from the jump hearing that slam on the patio that must of gave.

woOt?

"look man, I'm flying!"

greytone

It is a good thing he did not kill anyone on the patio.

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NoLa

What a way to go.

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Holo

This man is my new hero. He truly took the reins of his life and ended it in a wonderful, exhilarating way. His timing coulda been better tho.

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Kryptik

No kidding, what a selfish prick. If you're going to kill yourself, you better make damn sure you only kill yourself.

Chingal0

To the people that think this was selfish - I agree. I would seriously be pissed if I were enjoying a nice summer day with my bonnet and lemonaid when some stupid old fuck comes falling out of the sky to destroy himself and my patio just because he was tired of life and didn't want to die civily. Fuck that shit.

To the people that think it was an excellent way to die - Meh, granted the bed of your house or hospital would be and is a colorless way to pass, it is definetly the safest heh. Not many people can be injured in your passing in a bed, unless you fall on them and they sprain an ankle.

How morbid. Hah.

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denim

Dying isn't safe.