A friend of mine asked “Would you be an organ donor? I’m asking only because I haven’t figured it out for myself.”

In general, it’s pretty easy to find arguments in favor of organ donation, and pretty difficult to find arguments against. I think in general, everyone agrees that savings lives is a “good” thing, and so the standard argument against donation tends to be about mistrust of doctors, and the standard argument in favor tends to be attempts at assuaging this mistrust.

This page lists the standard concerns someone who’s worried about donation might have, and reasons why you shouldn’t be concerned.

This article explains why the author chose not to check the “organ donor” checkbox. The short version is even if you don’t check the checkbox, your family can still authorize the doctor to transplant your organs after death, so rather than trusting the doctors, you should have a talk with your family and tell them under what circumstances you’re willing to have your organs donated, so as to maximize the chances that your wishes are followed.