Big Death

Funeral Planning in the Age of Corporate Deathcare

Doug Smith

Over the last twenty years the corporate death “care” industry, has taken over Canada’s funerals and funeral planning, in preparation for the Golden Age of Death in North America, which will commence in 2016, when the first baby boomer turns seventy.

In Big Death, Winnipeg writer Doug Smith shows how “Big Death” has bought up countless funeral homes, jacked up prices and maintained the facade of local ownership by not changing the name over the door.

The book also profiles independent funeral homes that have remained committed to providing service rather than selling product, advocates who work to educate funeral consumers and innovators who are creating new, more humane and environmentally friendly funeral traditions. Finally, the book concludes with a guide for funeral planning in the age of Big Death.

Contents

About the Author

DOUG SMITH is a Winnipeg writer and author of numerous books on political and social issues including Stickin’ to the Union: Local 2224 versus John Buhler, As Many Liars: The Story of the 1995 Manitoba Vote-Splitting Scandal, and Joe Zuken: Citizen and Socialist. He has written for This Magazine, Maclean’s and the Winnipeg Sun and produced many CBC radio documentaries.

Doug Smith has written extensively on Manitoba labour and political history and is the author of Consulted To Death: How Canada’s Workplace Health and Safety System Fails Workers and As Many Liars: The Story of the 1995 Manitoba Vote-Rigging Scandal. He has also produced documentaries for the CBC Radio program, Ideas, and worked as an editorial consultant on a number of public inquiries in Manitoba

Excerpt

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