Stealing Kidneys for the rich - this is disgraceful

[malaise]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/30/world/asia/30kidney.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
<snip>
Mr. Mohammed was the last of about 500 Indians whose kidneys were removed by a team of doctors running an illegal transplant operation, supplying kidneys to rich Indians and foreigners, police officials said. A few hours after his operation last Thursday, the police raided the clinic and moved him to a government hospital.

Many of the donors were day laborers, like Mr. Mohammed, picked up from the streets with the offer of work, driven to a well-equipped private clinic, and duped or forced at gunpoint to undergo operations. Others were bicycle rickshaw drivers and impoverished farmers who were persuaded to sell their organs, which is illegal in India.

Although several kidney rings have been exposed in India in recent years, the police said the scale of this one was unprecedented. Four doctors, five nurses, 20 paramedics, three private hospitals, 10 pathology clinics and five diagnostic centers were involved, Mohinder Lal, the police officer in charge of the investigation, said.

[TahitiNut]

1. Nice vegetarian kidneys. A premium variety for the wealthy.

:puke:

Just another good reason to outlaw smoking, transfats, beef, alcohol, and anything else that'd keep your organs from being useful to the wealthy.

[malaise]

2. Good point

Do not eat drink or be merry for tomorrow you lose a kidney :puke:

[rasputin1952]

3. I had read this in the Omaha World-Herald today...

appalling article that just shows how cheap human life is when there is money to be made...:(

[Horse with no Name]

4. Simply disgraceful

This illegal organ procurement has the potential of harming organ donation everywhere by playing on the fears outlined in Robin Cook's books.
However, in a capitalistic society, everything is for sale. Even people. Even organs. What can't be bought will be stolen.

[blues90]

5. Talk about predatory theft , not even lending .

[flashl]

6. There is an active global organ transplant black market

it is so ordinary that they have transplant tourism.

The UK and US are working to implement 'presume consent' to extract organs.

[malaise]

7. This is what you call the quintessence of

exploitation. They pay people below subsistence wages, the destroy unions, they lay off workers at will, they violate the common good and then they even want your fugging organs.

[flashl]

8. Yes, and 'we' repeatedly ask where are they going with this? nt