More from the “I don’t want to do it, so I’ll ruin it for those that do” camp.
… When their aquamation legalization bill came to the floor of the state House of Representatives, however, it was derailed by a gruesome speech by a lawmaker who also happened to be a casket-maker.
Representative Dick Hamm’s speech made national news that day, and not only because of his business interest in keeping human aquamation illegal in Indiana. “We’re going to put [dead bodies] in acid and just let them dissolve away and then we’re going to let them run down the drain out into the sewers and whatever,” Hamm said, comparing the process to “flushing” a loved one. This wasn’t accurate. Aquamation uses lye, not acid, and similar fluids are flushed down the drain during the embalming process. But Hamm’s hyperbole was effective. Though he was the only lawmaker to speak against the bill, it failed in a 34-59 vote.
I move between bouts of anger and resignation on topics like this.
Why do the wishes of one group, which have no true bearing on the lives of others, get cut down for no reason other than religion, emotion or greed? It’s just… ridiculous. Hamm’s conflict of interest could not be more clear, and yet the cycle continues.
Ugh.