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I know of one person (my friend's mom) who literally got this procedure done: she needed a new kidney, and they waited till a death row convict came along who w

I know of one person (my friend's mom) who literally got this procedure done: she needed a new kidney, and they waited till a death row convict came along who was a match. When she was matched, she got a phone call to come over to that particular city quickly, and she went there, and came back a few days later with a brand new pair of kidneys. It was almost like when you give your car in for repair, and when it's ready they call you. Her justification: this guy was going to die anyways, why not save someone's life in the process? Rumor is also that SF Chinatown politician Rose Pak[1] got such a procedure done as a favor from the CCP government. She was extremely powerful, and CCP wanted to curry favor with her. When she got back from her "treatment", the entire who's who of SF ruling class showed up at the airport to receive her [2]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Pak https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Pak [2] https://www.sfexaminer.com/photo-galleries/chinatown-community-leader-rose-pak-arrives-in-san-francisco/nggallery/image/9-14/ https://www.sfexaminer.com/photo-galleries/chinatown-communi...

hbarka 5y ago
I don’t know anything about Rose Pak but your rumor post feels so vile like political propaganda. Your links have no substantiation whatsoever and you’re comfortable with that?
- eganist 5y ago
  Also very much out of left field. If this is as common as claimed, only one example would've been needed (and more examples could've been sourced with less controversial contexts). The second example: 1. isn't verified ("rumor"), and 2. mentions many points entirely incidental to the operation itself and doesn't materially contribute to the topic of organ harvesting from inmates.
- late2part 5y ago
  Pot, Kettle, Black.
- clarkmoody 5y ago
  That's the trick: do something so horrendous that the natural response of normal people is to think, "There's no way it's actually that bad." So then nobody asks questions.
- belter 5y ago
  How do you travel to another country, and come back with new kidneys specially when you are already of old age and so not so high on a donation waiting list?
  - bigbillheck 5y ago
    Steve Jobs travelled to Tennessee and came back with a new liver.
  - beeboop 5y ago
    Is there something about being old that prevents you from traveling on planes or receiving organ transplants?
    - jhgb 5y ago
      I assume it's usually the younger, higher scored potential organ recipients, even in your own country.
      - beeboop 5y ago
        China has one of the largest organ transplant programs in the world and there's a very well documented practice of well connected CCP members getting preference.
    - belter 5y ago
      No. But China had very recently only 31 ( yes 31 ) persons officially registered as organ donor. So how do you travel to another country, and come back with new organs that fast? How do you jump the queue? In the West you are even refused a heart transplant if you are not vaccinated for Covid...
    - sizzle 5y ago
      Life threatening blood clots for one. Deep vein thrombosis is a very real killer in long haul flights.
  - sdoering 5y ago
- yeetsfromhellL2 5y ago
  What's more telling to me is that I wouldn't be surprised if this turned out to be true.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- beeboop 5y ago
  Literally the first result on google from a reputable source says she went to China to get a transplant: https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-rose-pak-20160919-snap-story.html https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-rose-pak-20160919-... And China has an extremely well documented practice of doing exactly what OP said: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organ_harvesting_from_Falun_Gong_practitioners_in_China https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organ_harvesting_from_Falun_Go...
  - kjeetgill 5y ago
    I'm not disputing anything said, but just a heads up since I also heard about the Fulan Gong organ harvesting thing years before I heard any thing else about what Fulan Gong even is: read up on it. It has its own weird nest of conspiracy around it. Not authoritative, but I thought this was interesting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JaPzJKycxc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JaPzJKycxc
    - ComradePhil 5y ago
      The most interesting thing about Falun Gong is that their leaders believe that Trump was sent by heaven to destroy the communist party, as reported by the LA Times. https://web.archive.org/web/20200526081806/https://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/shen-yun-trump/ https://web.archive.org/web/20200526081806/https://www.lamag...
    - bckr 5y ago
      Fascinating video, thanks
    - tablespoon 5y ago
      > I'm not disputing anything said, but just a heads up since I also heard about the Fulan Gong organ harvesting thing years before I heard any thing else about what Fulan Gong even is: read up on it. It has its own weird nest of conspiracy around it. Honestly, who cares? IMHO, Fulan Gong is only notable as an example of the kind of insane persecution the Chinese government can conduct against a group. They probably weren't the most sensible to begin with (which is no excuse for their persecution), and the level of persecution they've received it probably enough to make anyone an nut (e.g. going all in for Trump). Focusing too much on that mainly has the effect of distracting from the persecution. And I do believe they're persecuted. Besides all the documented stuff, the (Chinese) mother of one of my friends can't travel outside her hometown because she was (mistakenly) put on some list of Fulan Gong people.
- 1024core 5y ago
  "vile propaganda"... project much? It clearly says she had gone to China for a kidney transplant: https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Rose-Pak-SF-political-powerhouse-dies-9230594.php https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Rose-Pak-SF-political-po...
  - freyr 5y ago
    Her connections to mainland China are well documented. From Wikipedia: “Pak was an overseas executive director of the China Overseas Exchange Association (COEA), an organization overseen by the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAO) of the State Council of the People's Republic of China.” “At various times she spoke out in favor of the Chinese government's views, e.g. in 2012 calling all "overseas Chinese" to "defend the homeland” in the conflict about the Diaoyu Islands, and in 2008 opposing a resolution of the SF Board of Supervisors that criticized China for the Tiananmen Square massacre and other repression measures, passed on occasion of the Beijing Summer Olympics torch relay reaching San Francisco.” “As revealed in a 2018 Politico report after Pak's death, among U.S. intelligence officials "there were widespread concerns that Pak had been co-opted by Chinese intelligence". These also extended to her work in organizing many "junket" trips to China for leading Bay Area politicians.” Regardless of that, or the source of her kidneys, Pak is a textbook case of political cronyism, and how one person who never held elected office can use financial connections, backroom dealmaking, and sheer force of will to shape elections and policy for decades and steer the direction of a major city.
- unityByFreedom 5y ago
  They said it's a rumor. One way to stop such a rumor would be to stop the practice of taking organs from condemned prisoners.
SideburnsOfDoom 5y ago
> this guy was going to die anyways, why not save someone's life in the process? because, like private "for profit" prisons, it incentivises bad things. Sci-fi short story on this topic, 1967: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jigsaw_Man https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jigsaw_Man
- 1024core 5y ago
  I'm not justifying it; this is what the mom said. I know it incentivizes wrong behavior, hence the discussion.
- Pxtl 5y ago
  Not just a short, Niven wrote numerous books on the subject. For example, "A Gift From Earth" was about a bloody revolution on a colony planet where the ruling class oppressed the working class via executions through organ harvesting.
  - SideburnsOfDoom 5y ago
    True. I have a copy of "A Gift From Earth" here, in the same volume as the "Tales of Known Space" short stories which includes the one mentioned above, and "World of Ptavvs".
- throw0101a 5y ago
  > because, like private "for profit" prisons, it incentivises bad things. See also the movie Repo Men based on The Repossession Mambo by Eric Garcia: > In 2025, advancements in medical technology have perfected bio-mechanical organs. A corporation known as The Union sells these expensive "artiforgs" on credit, and when customers are unable or unwilling to pay for their artiforgs The Union sends "repo men" to locate and forcibly repossess the organ - invariably resulting in the death of the owner. […] * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repo_Men https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repo_Men
conradev 5y ago
If you read the linked Al Jazeera article, it has more information: > The 71 cases in question all occurred between 1980 and 2015, an important cut-off date as it was also the year China officially banned organ harvesting from condemned prisoners. Before then, most organ transplants in China were believed to have come from executed convicts because voluntary organ donation was extremely limited.

hbarka 5y ago

I don’t know anything about Rose Pak but your rumor post feels so vile like political propaganda. Your links have no substantiation whatsoever and you’re comfortable with that?

eganist 5y ago
Also very much out of left field. If this is as common as claimed, only one example would've been needed (and more examples could've been sourced with less controversial contexts). The second example: 1. isn't verified ("rumor"), and 2. mentions many points entirely incidental to the operation itself and doesn't materially contribute to the topic of organ harvesting from inmates.
late2part 5y ago
Pot, Kettle, Black.
clarkmoody 5y ago
That's the trick: do something so horrendous that the natural response of normal people is to think, "There's no way it's actually that bad." So then nobody asks questions.
belter 5y ago
How do you travel to another country, and come back with new kidneys specially when you are already of old age and so not so high on a donation waiting list?
- bigbillheck 5y ago
  Steve Jobs travelled to Tennessee and came back with a new liver.
- beeboop 5y ago
  Is there something about being old that prevents you from traveling on planes or receiving organ transplants?
  - jhgb 5y ago
    I assume it's usually the younger, higher scored potential organ recipients, even in your own country.
    - beeboop 5y ago
      China has one of the largest organ transplant programs in the world and there's a very well documented practice of well connected CCP members getting preference.
  - belter 5y ago
    No. But China had very recently only 31 ( yes 31 ) persons officially registered as organ donor. So how do you travel to another country, and come back with new organs that fast? How do you jump the queue? In the West you are even refused a heart transplant if you are not vaccinated for Covid...
  - sizzle 5y ago
    Life threatening blood clots for one. Deep vein thrombosis is a very real killer in long haul flights.
- sdoering 5y ago
yeetsfromhellL2 5y ago
What's more telling to me is that I wouldn't be surprised if this turned out to be true.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
beeboop 5y ago
Literally the first result on google from a reputable source says she went to China to get a transplant: https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-rose-pak-20160919-snap-story.html https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-rose-pak-20160919-... And China has an extremely well documented practice of doing exactly what OP said: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organ_harvesting_from_Falun_Gong_practitioners_in_China https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organ_harvesting_from_Falun_Go...
- kjeetgill 5y ago
  I'm not disputing anything said, but just a heads up since I also heard about the Fulan Gong organ harvesting thing years before I heard any thing else about what Fulan Gong even is: read up on it. It has its own weird nest of conspiracy around it. Not authoritative, but I thought this was interesting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JaPzJKycxc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JaPzJKycxc
  - ComradePhil 5y ago
    The most interesting thing about Falun Gong is that their leaders believe that Trump was sent by heaven to destroy the communist party, as reported by the LA Times. https://web.archive.org/web/20200526081806/https://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/shen-yun-trump/ https://web.archive.org/web/20200526081806/https://www.lamag...
  - bckr 5y ago
    Fascinating video, thanks
  - tablespoon 5y ago
    > I'm not disputing anything said, but just a heads up since I also heard about the Fulan Gong organ harvesting thing years before I heard any thing else about what Fulan Gong even is: read up on it. It has its own weird nest of conspiracy around it. Honestly, who cares? IMHO, Fulan Gong is only notable as an example of the kind of insane persecution the Chinese government can conduct against a group. They probably weren't the most sensible to begin with (which is no excuse for their persecution), and the level of persecution they've received it probably enough to make anyone an nut (e.g. going all in for Trump). Focusing too much on that mainly has the effect of distracting from the persecution. And I do believe they're persecuted. Besides all the documented stuff, the (Chinese) mother of one of my friends can't travel outside her hometown because she was (mistakenly) put on some list of Fulan Gong people.
1024core 5y ago
"vile propaganda"... project much? It clearly says she had gone to China for a kidney transplant: https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Rose-Pak-SF-political-powerhouse-dies-9230594.php https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Rose-Pak-SF-political-po...
- freyr 5y ago
  Her connections to mainland China are well documented. From Wikipedia: “Pak was an overseas executive director of the China Overseas Exchange Association (COEA), an organization overseen by the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAO) of the State Council of the People's Republic of China.” “At various times she spoke out in favor of the Chinese government's views, e.g. in 2012 calling all "overseas Chinese" to "defend the homeland” in the conflict about the Diaoyu Islands, and in 2008 opposing a resolution of the SF Board of Supervisors that criticized China for the Tiananmen Square massacre and other repression measures, passed on occasion of the Beijing Summer Olympics torch relay reaching San Francisco.” “As revealed in a 2018 Politico report after Pak's death, among U.S. intelligence officials "there were widespread concerns that Pak had been co-opted by Chinese intelligence". These also extended to her work in organizing many "junket" trips to China for leading Bay Area politicians.” Regardless of that, or the source of her kidneys, Pak is a textbook case of political cronyism, and how one person who never held elected office can use financial connections, backroom dealmaking, and sheer force of will to shape elections and policy for decades and steer the direction of a major city.
unityByFreedom 5y ago
They said it's a rumor. One way to stop such a rumor would be to stop the practice of taking organs from condemned prisoners.

SideburnsOfDoom 5y ago

> this guy was going to die anyways, why not save someone's life in the process? because, like private "for profit" prisons, it incentivises bad things. Sci-fi short story on this topic, 1967: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jigsaw_Man https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jigsaw_Man

1024core 5y ago
I'm not justifying it; this is what the mom said. I know it incentivizes wrong behavior, hence the discussion.
Pxtl 5y ago
Not just a short, Niven wrote numerous books on the subject. For example, "A Gift From Earth" was about a bloody revolution on a colony planet where the ruling class oppressed the working class via executions through organ harvesting.
- SideburnsOfDoom 5y ago
  True. I have a copy of "A Gift From Earth" here, in the same volume as the "Tales of Known Space" short stories which includes the one mentioned above, and "World of Ptavvs".
throw0101a 5y ago
> because, like private "for profit" prisons, it incentivises bad things. See also the movie Repo Men based on The Repossession Mambo by Eric Garcia: > In 2025, advancements in medical technology have perfected bio-mechanical organs. A corporation known as The Union sells these expensive "artiforgs" on credit, and when customers are unable or unwilling to pay for their artiforgs The Union sends "repo men" to locate and forcibly repossess the organ - invariably resulting in the death of the owner. […] * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repo_Men https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repo_Men

conradev 5y ago

If you read the linked Al Jazeera article, it has more information: > The 71 cases in question all occurred between 1980 and 2015, an important cut-off date as it was also the year China officially banned organ harvesting from condemned prisoners. Before then, most organ transplants in China were believed to have come from executed convicts because voluntary organ donation was extremely limited.