Euthanasia - A discussion

[TailstheHedgehog]

Euthanasia - it's 'assisted suicide' meant to end the suffering of a terminally ill person. Currently outlawed completely in Australia since 1997, and according to wikipedia it is legal in three US states, and is not punishable in Switzerland, among some other European countries.
My first though is: If I was suffering and dying a slow, painful death with no hope, I would want it over, to go out as gracefully as possible.
My second thought is 'I probably wouldn't be thinking clearly'.
The film 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly', though not on the topic of euthanasia, did get me thinking on what you could do, what you would do, if everything human you could express was taken away.
To make things clear - I'm not pro or against on the whole affair, (though personally I think that freedom of choice is crucial for anybody) and only want to see if there really is an overall majority on this topic. It must be outlawed in most regions for a reason, afterall.
Your thoughts and opinons.
(My apologies if this thread feels familiar - it's just not to me).

 

[Frequen-Z]

If a loved one was in pain and explicitly wanted to die, I'd help them. The law is wrong, you can not justify keeping someone alive if they are in constant agony and wish for it to end.

 

[tomtom94]

People should have the choice for voluntary euthanasia, in certain situations, such as having a terminal disease.

 

[Haukur Isleifsson]

Well even if you "ain't thinking clearly" it's not like your are going to "get over" your terminal illness.

 

[Sephychu]

Life belongs to the living, and the individual only. Your life does not belong to the state. If a loved one expressed a deep willing to die to end their suffering which seemed as though it had no end, I'd be very irritated if the government ruled that they had to continue their torture.

 

[Dags90]

I can think of several rational reasons that would make me want to end my life painlessly. One of my grandmothers friends was ill with opportunistic pneumonia and it was clear she was heading for a long hospital stay in her late 70's, and was losing her health. Lack of euthanasia laws and her own personal convictions about suicide meant that she ultimately chose to deny treatment. Her lungs slowly filled with fluid, after a period of two weeks of this she died.

Alzheimer's also runs in my family. After my grandfather's terrible experience, I'm pretty sure most of my family on that side agrees with or sympathizes with euthanasia. My father has said that he would not want to live in such a condition, and he'd likely commit suicide.

I think the laws in the U.S. are insufficient, most particularly when it comes to actively traveling to jurisdictions where euthanasia is legal.

 

[Latinidiot]

I think it should be legal. But there are very real concerns with euthanasia: some fear Euthanasia will be used more easily on old folk, and not for the right reasons, but for, say, financial reasons. I'm no expert on this, but If someone I loved was dying, wanted to die, and the government forbid me to do so, I would still help, despite the consequenses.

 

[MikailCaboose]

Same as many have said. If you're suffering that much, it's far more cruel to keep you alive than to let you die. Just like Alzheimer's, that's not living. It's just...existing.
It's really just sad if you've ever been inside of one of the lock-down sections in an assisted living building (lock-down is for the Alzheimer's patients).

 

[Layz92]

I think it should be legal provided both parties involved in the act are of sound and clear minds and the person dieing has communicated their wishes in an environment that does not have the "euthenaser" in it, to some sought of lawyer or some such that can deal with legalities. That prevents impulsive "I want to die" situations and someone bumping off rellys for life insurance.

 

[Gralian]

My Grandfather died not long ago. He was tired of living and he kept saying "I want a ticket to heaven". Because he couldn't die with dignity, he literally starved himself to death in the retirement home. He was literally skin and bone right when he passed away. This was someone who had beat back cancer and fought in World War 2. He should've had the right to die.

So you try to guess my opinion on euthanasia.

 

[thethingthatlurks]

What right does anybody have to tell me how I should live (and end) my own life? There may be problems that have to be worked out, but if I were to make a living will right now that specifically states that I a) don't wish to be kept alive if I were ever to become comatose, b)don't wish to be kept alive if I were to any lose brain functions, c) don't wish to be kept alive if I were to contract any terminal disease, what argument could possibly exist against that? I made these choices in full possession of my mental abilities, under the full knowledge that death is the end of my existence, so please try to argue against it. Really, I'd love to hear counter arguments (no religious bullshit, obviously).

 

[Scobie]

DELETED

 

[Lawyer105]

I think it should be the person's choice. The state shouldn't get involved.

The only concern I have is the possibility that people who aren't really ready could get forced/coerced into it. And I don't see a solution to the issue.

But if it's not permitted, then:
1) people who really want to die aren't allowed to (or risk having their friends/family prosecuted for helping); and
2) they may choose to die earlier than they'd like, so that they're strong enough to do it alone.

Possibly you could make it conditional based upon a psychological assessment or something, to make sure it's what you want and that nobody's pushing you into it.

 

[ThePerfectionist]

Like all matters concerning life and death (especially the ones the church tries to stick its nose into), euthanasia can seem cut-and-dried (like some people above me have tried to suggest), but it's really more sticky than that (boy do I love parenthetical statements).

Okay, enough of that. The fact is that assisted suicide is a messy argument. Should people have the right to choose when they want their own life to end? Yeah, probably. Are the sort of people that are in that position in their right mind? Not always. Rights and freedoms have been a big issue in the courts for the last, oh I don't know, couple of decades now. People are quick to take up arms when they feel that they've been 'violated'. Are there people out there who have suffered unnecessarily before death? Most definitely. But for every one of those, there are two other people that would have had a relative suing the hospital or the state or somebody for 'murdering' them.

You can dress it up in fancy language all you want, euthanasia is still killing someone, and there aren't many people out there who want that on their hands - and I hope to God the people that would aren't working in hospitals. Yes, you should have a right to decide your own life, but that doesn't mean you have the right to make someone else kill you.

In a perfect system, it would be easy. Find a doctor willing to do it, find a patient in their right mind that wants it, and there you go. But this isn't a perfect system, and the people that resist it are often more concerned with the consequences of action (or inaction). Who can blame them? They're just trying to keep control of their own life, and isn't that the right pro-euthanasia people keep fighting for?

Incidentally, I'm actually all for assisted suicide, but I like playing Devil's Advocate, and since no one seemed to be standing up for being against it, I felt it needed to be said that this isn't just an obvious choice.

 

[DSK-]

My parents and I have have an agreement regarding this. If there is a situation where either of my parents has a terminal illness, either me of the parent not ill will euthanise.

Letting someone die slowly and painfully is like some sort of sick joke. The end of my adoptive grandmother's life was not a pleasant one. I think she took around 10 different medications daily, and it was clear to all how pained she was. I do not wish that upon anyone.

 

[maxben]

As the executor of my mom's will, I also get control over her healthcare in the case where she cannot express her wishes. In her will it says that I am to take her off lifesupport if it appears like there is no way for her to return to a semblance of proper life.

So yeah, I've already went through this is my head a few times and I completely agree with her choice. However, I don't know what I would do if it actually comes down to it. These things are so much easier when we are talking logically/academically, but to actually do it... I have doubts about my own strength.

 

[Mr.Mattress]

Like Incest, I think it's morally wrong, but if your in so much pain that you want to get out of it yet your too much of a chicken to kill yourself, then yes, get killed by someone else. However, I would never kill someone else myself, with or without them needing it. The state should be responsible for putting people to sleep.

 

[Jumplion]

A person's life is their life, not yours not the states not anyone else's. If someone wants to be euthanized, then with their consent, I would pull the plug. But I would want to make sure that they are absolutely, certainly, not going to get out of it in a result that wouldn't involve death.

Personally, I probably wouldn't want to get euthanized. I'm a stubborn ass and I want to experience every second of my life as much as I can, even if it is in agony. But hey, maybe my brain will be too mushy anyway, so who knows.

 

[Marter]

I think everyone be able to pick their own way to die. If they'd rather be put out quickly, then they should be allowed to choose that.

 

[Airsoftslayer93]

i like the idea of euthanasia, helping a loved one, but i think it is a system that is to open for abuse, if it becomes a popular thing then we have pretty much lost the sanctity of life. i think if it is implimented more widely then there needs to be far greater amounts of controls on it.