Jabberwocky
Frumious Bandersnatch
- Joined
- Nov 3, 1999
- Messages
- 84,998
Hello Friends,
As some of you may already know, Dr. Alexander (Sasha) Shulgin, the "Godfather of Ecstasy," and his wife Ann have fallen on very difficult times.
Sasha has suffered from cardiovascular disease for some time now, and recently survived a stroke in 2010. He continues to struggle with various other serious health issues, including a non-healing wound which may ultimately result in the amputation of his leg. Fortunately, Sasha has done well considering the gravity of his condition, however, the family has been overwhelmed by the countless medical bills that have piled up over the years.
Unbeknownst to many, Ann and Sasha are far from wealthy. Despite book sales, having a documentary produced on Sasha's life (for which he received no payment), living simply and his "celebrity" status in the psychedelic subculture, Anne and Sasha have exhausted their savings and are presently in dire straights. Please see Sasha's Carebridge site here and read Ann's own account of their situation:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/shura
Considering Bluelight's intrinsic link to Dr. Shulgin and his life's work, I would like to propose that each of us do what we can to assist Anne and Sasha in their time of need. A Paypal donation site is set up, and our friends at Erowid have also enabled a tax-free pass through via their 501(c)(3) status. You may make a Paypal donation to Anne and Sasha here:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=34HNMNU387EXA
I understand that many of you have have questions regarding Ann and Sasha's need, and that is understandable. In order to shed light on their situation, I thought the following Q & A provided by Ann would be useful to some:
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Q: Doesn’t Medicare cover Sasha’s medical bills?
A: Medicare covers 80%, which is wonderful, but many of the procedures Sasha has had to undergo have been very expensive and we have to pay the remaining 20% of the bill. Also, at this time, Sasha needs round-the-clock care, which Medicare does not cover.
Q: Didn’t Sasha work for Big Pharma and get a pension from them?
A: No. Sasha worked for Dow Chemical Company at the beginning of his career, but only for a few years – not long enough to earn a pension. He set up his own private lab after leaving Dow, and worked independently from then on, as a consultant and lecturer in chemistry.
Q: Didn’t Sasha work for the US government at one time?
A: No, never. He was a consultant to the DEA, among other institutions, but never employed by them.
More info from Ann:
Oh, yes. I should write a brief note about some questions people have asked, over the months.
1. My children can't help with funds because they have no extra money, themselves. In fact, I often send a bit of extra to one or two of them who happen to be having trouble. None of my children have ever asked me for money, and they all work very hard at their jobs. They are all four exceptional human beings, compassionate, bright, creative and wonderful parents to my eight grandchildren. I'm immensely proud of them all. No, they can't possibly manage $480 per 24 hours -- plus.
2. Yes, my husband and I have had a documentary film made about us -- and several other people we know. It will be out on DVD soon. This year, anyway. And -- PLEASE KEEP IN MIND: People who are subjects of documentaries do not get paid. THEY DO NOT GET PAID ANYTHING AT ALL. When Sasha and I were asked to go to the various film festivals at which "our" film was shown (The title is "Dirty Pictures"), we had to pay our own way by air. We did get some help from a nice admirer to stay in a very gorgeous apartment in Telluride, Colorado. The maker of the film, Etienne Sauret, has become a beloved friend, but he can't afford to pay us anything at all, since documentaries don't make much money even when they are award-winners, while the cost of making them is huge. We could only afford to go to a few festivals, and that was quite an experience, but such trips are now impossible. Sasha can't travel without caregivers, of course, so we enjoy the memories of the adventures we did have, and let it go at that.
3. Could we sell some of our land? Yes, we're trying. We had a beautiful parcel on the market a year ago, and nobody looked at it. The economy had tanked. Recently, a good broker in town said, "Try next year. There's no point in putting it out there right now. Wait a year or so." I think he's right.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I know that my life has been deeply enriched by Dr. Shulgin's many contributions to the world, and I believe most Bluelighters would agree. I hope that you will reflect on the impact Dr. Shulgin has had on your own life, and join me in helping our community give back to someone who has already given us so much.
Thank you,
SG
As some of you may already know, Dr. Alexander (Sasha) Shulgin, the "Godfather of Ecstasy," and his wife Ann have fallen on very difficult times.
Sasha has suffered from cardiovascular disease for some time now, and recently survived a stroke in 2010. He continues to struggle with various other serious health issues, including a non-healing wound which may ultimately result in the amputation of his leg. Fortunately, Sasha has done well considering the gravity of his condition, however, the family has been overwhelmed by the countless medical bills that have piled up over the years.
Unbeknownst to many, Ann and Sasha are far from wealthy. Despite book sales, having a documentary produced on Sasha's life (for which he received no payment), living simply and his "celebrity" status in the psychedelic subculture, Anne and Sasha have exhausted their savings and are presently in dire straights. Please see Sasha's Carebridge site here and read Ann's own account of their situation:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/shura
Considering Bluelight's intrinsic link to Dr. Shulgin and his life's work, I would like to propose that each of us do what we can to assist Anne and Sasha in their time of need. A Paypal donation site is set up, and our friends at Erowid have also enabled a tax-free pass through via their 501(c)(3) status. You may make a Paypal donation to Anne and Sasha here:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=34HNMNU387EXA
I understand that many of you have have questions regarding Ann and Sasha's need, and that is understandable. In order to shed light on their situation, I thought the following Q & A provided by Ann would be useful to some:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q: Doesn’t Medicare cover Sasha’s medical bills?
A: Medicare covers 80%, which is wonderful, but many of the procedures Sasha has had to undergo have been very expensive and we have to pay the remaining 20% of the bill. Also, at this time, Sasha needs round-the-clock care, which Medicare does not cover.
Q: Didn’t Sasha work for Big Pharma and get a pension from them?
A: No. Sasha worked for Dow Chemical Company at the beginning of his career, but only for a few years – not long enough to earn a pension. He set up his own private lab after leaving Dow, and worked independently from then on, as a consultant and lecturer in chemistry.
Q: Didn’t Sasha work for the US government at one time?
A: No, never. He was a consultant to the DEA, among other institutions, but never employed by them.
More info from Ann:
Oh, yes. I should write a brief note about some questions people have asked, over the months.
1. My children can't help with funds because they have no extra money, themselves. In fact, I often send a bit of extra to one or two of them who happen to be having trouble. None of my children have ever asked me for money, and they all work very hard at their jobs. They are all four exceptional human beings, compassionate, bright, creative and wonderful parents to my eight grandchildren. I'm immensely proud of them all. No, they can't possibly manage $480 per 24 hours -- plus.
2. Yes, my husband and I have had a documentary film made about us -- and several other people we know. It will be out on DVD soon. This year, anyway. And -- PLEASE KEEP IN MIND: People who are subjects of documentaries do not get paid. THEY DO NOT GET PAID ANYTHING AT ALL. When Sasha and I were asked to go to the various film festivals at which "our" film was shown (The title is "Dirty Pictures"), we had to pay our own way by air. We did get some help from a nice admirer to stay in a very gorgeous apartment in Telluride, Colorado. The maker of the film, Etienne Sauret, has become a beloved friend, but he can't afford to pay us anything at all, since documentaries don't make much money even when they are award-winners, while the cost of making them is huge. We could only afford to go to a few festivals, and that was quite an experience, but such trips are now impossible. Sasha can't travel without caregivers, of course, so we enjoy the memories of the adventures we did have, and let it go at that.
3. Could we sell some of our land? Yes, we're trying. We had a beautiful parcel on the market a year ago, and nobody looked at it. The economy had tanked. Recently, a good broker in town said, "Try next year. There's no point in putting it out there right now. Wait a year or so." I think he's right.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I know that my life has been deeply enriched by Dr. Shulgin's many contributions to the world, and I believe most Bluelighters would agree. I hope that you will reflect on the impact Dr. Shulgin has had on your own life, and join me in helping our community give back to someone who has already given us so much.
Thank you,
SG
![:\](https://bluelight.org/xf/BL_Images/Orig_Emoji/wrygrin.gif "wry grin :\")
