[iDC] blogs on death and dying for agnostics and atheists

[Ted Coopman]

All,

My father-in-law was diagnosed 6 months ago with Stage III esophageal cancer.
After one round of radiation and chemotherapy and unsuccessful surgery, he
recently decided to enter hospice. He's a retired psychology professor and
he's trying to gather as much information as possible about the process of
dying from the personal perspective of an agnostic or atheist. He's most
interested in finding agnostics and atheists facing death who are blogging
(or have blogged) about their experiences. I haven't had much luck
identifying blogs that fit this somewhat narrow parameter.

Most blogs seem to approach the process from the point of family or
medical/hospice professionals - the voice of the one actually doing the
dying is conspicuously absent. Moreover, there is a overwhelming focus on
religion and spiritually in these blogs that does not fit well with a
humanistic perspective. While Bob jokes " ... even atheists pray, but only
in emergencies" his quest for other voices such as his own is very important
(as I am sure you all can understand).

He has set up a blog
http://agnosticsfacingdeath.blogspot.com/
in the hopes he can start a conversation with others in similar
circumstances.

If you have any suggestions for specific websites, blogs, search terms,
etc., please email me off list.

-TED

-- 
Ted M. Coopman Ph.D.
Lecturer
Communication Studies
Television, Radio, Film & Theatre
San Jose State University
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