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Comment by sacrosancty | Hacker News Reader

Do you know how arrogant that is? Alcoholics aren't people who deserve to die because of some kind of moral failing. Very often they're alcoholic because of other mental health problems or abuse. Would you want to deny a clininically depressed person your liver because they might commit suicide?

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Im a recovering alcoholic myself, don't lecture me. I didn't say they deserve to die. But if they can't stay sober they don't deserve a liver over someone else who may need it more.

You don't represent alcoholics. Personal experience gives you a bias, not a justification for being condescending. Medical decisions are not and should not be based on moral judgements of the patient's behavior.

You're now changing your idea to add "over someone who may need it more", which is different, and I'm not disagreeing with that. It's the same as favoring young or healthy people because they're likely to gain more life extension from a transplant when the rest of their body is working OK.

I assumed that was implicit given the context of the conversation (a comment up the chain discussing their uncle who got higher priority because he continued to make poor lifestyle choices). Obviously I'd still rather my liver go to the aforementioned alcoholic than into the ground, but they wouldn't be my first choice.

There was and is no condescension present. I don't look down on them just like I wouldn't look down on a 90 year old man whose liver is failing from natural causes. Neither would be my first choice for recipients of my liver.

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