Whoa. Is earth so bad? I bought a book by Bruce Grayson about Near Death Experiences, but have yet to get to it. Do you know the book?
The answer to your first question is 'yes' I havent heard of him but NDEs are one of my favourite topics. The 2 groups I find fascinating is when it happens to atheists and people who have been blind from birth. And hearing the differences about the experience from people of different religions is just incredible.