Euthanasia...

[TuRdz]

Do you think it should be a common medical practice?

I for one say yes, under the right circumstances. If a terminally ill patient wishes to "go"; yes.

I don't believe in euthanasia for suicidal people with no illnesses. Touchy subject. Opinions?

[RoseyCadaver]

I don't believe in euthanasia because I believe it's a VERY slippery slope.First it would be people who are sick and can't get "better".Then it'll be people who are mentally ill in some places.Then I'm sure it would be open to anyone who wanted it.That is just my opinion.

[Death]

When thinking about the ethics of euthanasia, I think we need to ponder the question: What is the general point of living in today's world?

[Magus]

Yes, let them die. It's their fucking wish man.

[Continuum]

Anyone who as the right to live has the right to take it by themselves, also. In layman's terms, they decide whatever the fuck they want to do with their life. Especially in terminal illnesses, where, for them, life becomes practically pointless.

[Zazu]

One should have full control over one's life where possible, including the choice of when to die.

I fully support euthanasia.

[FullyAlive]

It just seems that if Euthanasia were to become legal, as in any terminally ill person could request it then it could turn into to something a lot worse. Forced euthanasia. Also known as murder. Although I understand all the reasons one might have to make them wish for someone to help them die, the risks of allowing one thing and it been taken a step further seems to big of a one to make this legal.

[AllThatYouDreamed]

Yes legal, but with heavy regulations. Like Louise said, it needs to not turn into forced euthanasia because that's defeating the purpose of having the CHOICE to do it.

It also needs to have heavy control to prevent it from being used as simply suicide. Not because "people shouldn't have that choice over their life", but because depression and other disorders that would drive someone to suicide are treatable disorders and THAT is always the first call to action, morally.

[Fiction]

I think that if someone has has an illness that they can not recover from then they should have the right to die, but I think it needs to be heavily monitored to make sure that it's not forced, and that people that can recover, or at least have a high chance of recovery do not die.

[RoseyCadaver]

I do agree on the illness thing,just not if it's an elderly person the family doesn't wanna take care of.I do think though ,know that I read other's post,it is their right and they should be able to stop their life if they wish.

[Korashk]

It just seems that if Euthanasia were to become legal, as in any terminally ill person could request it then it could turn into to something a lot worse. Forced euthanasia.
How exactly?

[beag_amhain]

if a person wishes to end his/her life i think euthanasia should be an option for them, espically with the terminally ill, they should have the option to end their life in a pain free peacefull manner when they wish insted of waiting it out
as others have said heavy regulations would have to be implimented so as it is not used for suicide or on the mentaly ill, but for those who are of sound mind and under no distress/are not being pressured into it should have the option
its everyones own choice when they wish to leave, if they see no happy ending they will always find a way to

[Love.Hate]

I think that if someone has has an illness that they can not recover from then they should have the right to die, but I think it needs to be heavily monitored to make sure that it's not forced, and that people that can recover, or at least have a high chance of recovery do not die.

This.

Im not sure if i believe its right or not.. because it could result in people being forced. But i think people who are terminally ill should have the choice.

[FullyAlive]

How exactly?

Because it could start to become the first thing people turn too once terminally diagnosed. Patients could face being pressured into it, by doctors, family or friends. This may seem unlikely to some people but it could happen, I don't think people should request this because they're made to feel like a burden. So until there is some way of getting rid of this possibilty I don't think it should be legalized.

[Korashk]

Because it could start to become the first thing people turn too once terminally diagnosed.
So? Let them kill themselves.

Patients could face being pressured into it, by doctors, family or friends.
Doctors don't have any incentive to pressure euthanization, and ultimately the family and friends aspect is no reason for it to remain illegal. It's not like they'd have any real power over the decision except in rare cases where euthanasia is probably the best option anyways.

I don't think people should request this because they're made to feel like a burden.
You may not think it should happen, but ultimately your personal reasons for being against it shouldn't have any bearing on the issue.

So until there is some way of getting rid of this possibilty I don't think it should be legalized.
You can't get rid of possibilities like these. It's impossible without mind control. Ultimately, my right to decide to die should trump your qualms about the issue.

[Genghis Khan]

Because it could start to become the first thing people turn too once terminally diagnosed.

When there is nowhere else to turn to when you're in extreme pain due to a serious illness then it is the right of the person to choose the last resort.

Patients could face being pressured into it, by doctors, family or friends. This may seem unlikely to some people but it could happen, I don't think people should request this because they're made to feel like a burden. So until there is some way of getting rid of this possibilty I don't think it should be legalized.

Why would your family, friend or loved one convince you to die? Surely the case is they want you alive? Unless they can really put themselves into that person's shoes and be convinced that their life is shit and it's not worth having them alive. Usually the case is a loved one telling you to hang on, or... everything will be okay.

Euthanasia isn't the same as suicide. It's not the same as the 'shock' people get from finding out their son/daughter/loved one was having a bad time at work/school and hung themselves one day. It is the understanding that there is no other way out of this messy situation and one can't simply 'pray' and hope it goes away. Therefore it isn't necessarily even going to have a negative effect on the people the affected person knows/loves.

[aussiebunnie]

I wonder if euthanasia puts the people caring for a person out of their grief more than the person suffering it.

I had an aunt who was terminally ill and she could not walk and basically was wheelchair bound. Every day when we visited her she said "please someone put me out of my misery". She kept hoping she would die. She even talked to my mother once about ending her life.

She lived a further 3 years and it was one of the best relationships I had with anyone. When she managed to deal with her pain and got over the "please kill me" phase, she actually had some enjoyment of life.

[FullyAlive]

It's not like they'd have any real power over the decision except in rare cases where euthanasia is probably the best option anyways.

Are you saying that in rare cases the doctor may make the decision for the patient? If you are then aren't you agreeing that sometimes it may not be the patients own decision?


You may not think it should happen, but ultimately your personal reasons for being against it shouldn't have any bearing on the issue.

Everyone posting has given an opinion on the issue, my reasons form my opinion so obviously I consider them when being against it. My concerns are not personal, people, older people in particular might genuinely feel they are a burden upon there family leading them to agreeing to something they don't necessarily want.


You can't get rid of possibilities like these. It's impossible without mind control. Ultimately, my right to decide to die should trump your qualms about the issue.

Not if you are incapable of carrying out the action yourself. If someone wants to commit suicide that's an entirely different matter, this is assisted suicide. In which case anyone's right to die is not necessarily more important than the moral and ethical problems with one person killing another person, no matter the name given to it.


When there is nowhere else to turn to when you're in extreme pain due to a serious illness then it is the right of the person to choose the last resort.

Yes, but not if it involves someone else actually killing them, in that case there are a lot more factors to consider than just someones right to die. And not everyone who might request euthanasia is in extreme pain, they might have a terminal illness which doesn't actually cause them extreme pain or can be controlled my medication. Do they still have a right to the last resort then?


Why would your family, friend or loved one convince you to die? Surely the case is they want you alive? Unless they can really put themselves into that person's shoes and be convinced that their life is shit and it's not worth having them alive. Usually the case is a loved one telling you to hang on, or... everything will be okay.

And this may be true for most families, however there are many different types of family, with many different characters involved. And it is more than likely that children or siblings or even spouses of a person, may try to convince them euthanasia is the only way. Maybe for selfish reasons, such as care is expensive. Or maybe for selfless reasons like they hate to know how much suffering their loved one might be going through, and feel like they need to give the person their permission to request euthanasia. However the person could take that the wrong way and be under the impression that they are wanted to request euthanasia. Either way this isn't morally right, no one should want to die based on the fact they think they aren't wanted.

Euthanasia isn't the same as suicide. Therefore it isn't necessarily even going to have a negative effect on the people the affected person knows/loves.

Any death even one that the family have already come to terms with is going to have a negative effect. The family will always be hurt and just as much with euthanasia as in suicide the family and friends are going to be left wondering, could they have done something just one thing that might have meant the person felt that there was something worth living that little bit longer for.

[Genghis Khan]

Yes, but not if it involves someone else actually killing them, in that case there are a lot more factors to consider than just someones right to die. And not everyone who might request euthanasia is in extreme pain, they might have a terminal illness which doesn't actually cause them extreme pain or can be controlled my medication. Do they still have a right to the last resort then?

Yes.


And this may be true for most families, however there are many different types of family, with many different characters involved. And it is more than likely that children or siblings or even spouses of a person, may try to convince them euthanasia is the only way. Maybe for selfish reasons, such as care is expensive. Or maybe for selfless reasons like they hate to know how much suffering their loved one might be going through, and feel like they need to give the person their permission to request euthanasia. However the person could take that the wrong way and be under the impression that they are wanted to request euthanasia. Either way this isn't morally right, no one should want to die based on the fact they think they aren't wanted.

Fair enough, I do understand your point that there is no real way to tell sometimes but in the case of illnesses or losing your arms or something along those lines, it is fairly obvious if the person is suffering or not. When it comes to terminal illnesses it is the doctor's responsibility to let the family know if she's in a good or otherwise state. So, people don't necessarily die based on whether they think they aren't wanted, and if it really is the case that they aren't making much of a contribution and they do feel like it is a burden. It. Is. Their. Right. It is their choice. The same argument could be, how can you take the right away from people who are actually/genuinely in pain just because your assumption or fear is they might be pressured by society?

Any death even one that the family have already come to terms with is going to have a negative effect. The family will always be hurt and just as much with euthanasia as in suicide the family and friends are going to be left wondering, could they have done something just one thing that might have meant the person felt that there was something worth living that little bit longer for.

So you think that finding your child/or any other loved one hanging/with a knife in their chest/splat on the ground after jumping is just as bad as letting your loved ones know you're in pain and the only other resort is to pull the plug? How am I not convinced?

However I do agree that it can still be traumatizing for the family depending on of course how dear the member is, but wouldn't it be to some degree more traumatizing knowing that that person is only hanging on because they don't want to upset their family by mentioning Euthanasia? Their life has turned into a painful, joyless waste because of their -whatever issue- and they are pressurized into not resorting to death in fear of upsetting their family?

[FullyAlive]

It. Is. Their. Right. It is their choice.

It might be their right to chose death, however as I said once it isn't suicide, and it is Euthanasia. That brings a whole lot more issues into it. If someone is incapable of killing themselves then it stands to reason someone has to help, onviously hence the term assisted suicide. But if someone is helping, then really they are in fact commuting murder. Sure it may be wanted by the victim but none the less it is murder. And that is when the choice to die is no longer someones right, if they have to bring someone else into it.

The same argument could be, how can you take the right away from people who are actually/genuinely in pain just because your assumption or fear is they might be pressured by society?

I can justify it, because in taking the right away from some, it is protecting those who fall into the category of "Forced Euthanasia" those who are pressured into making a decision they don't necessarily believe in. If to save them, we have to take the right away from others then I see this as a necessary measure.

So you think that finding your child/or any other loved one hanging/with a knife in their chest/splat on the ground after jumping is just as bad as letting your loved ones know you're in pain and the only other resort is to pull the plug? How am I not convinced?

Yes, I think that the way in which a loved one dies has absoloutely no relation to the amount they are missed or grieved over. Also euthanasia doesn't necessarily happen by just switching off a machine. Switching of a machine or "pulling the plug" is actually legal, it's passive euthanasia I assume the euthanasia we are talking about legalizing here is active euthanasia. In which case it is done with lethal injections, or tablets. And again the person is not necessarily in any extreme amount of pain, that cannot be controlled with drugs.

However I do agree that it can still be traumatizing for the family depending on of course how dear the member is, but wouldn't it be to some degree more traumatizing knowing that that person is only hanging on because they don't want to upset their family by mentioning Euthanasia? Their life has turned into a painful, joyless waste because of their -whatever issue- and they are pressurized into not resorting to death in fear of upsetting their family?

Here you have assumed that just because they are ill they are in pain which as I've already said could not be true, from there you've also assumed there life would be joyless. In many cases this couldnt be further from the truth, many terminay ill people live full lives until the end, or at least as full as is compatible with their illness. As is shared by, Michelle.


She lived a further 3 years and it was one of the best relationships I had with anyone. When she managed to deal with her pain and got over the "please kill me" phase, she actually had some enjoyment of life.

[Genghis Khan]

It might be their right to chose death, however as I said once it isn't suicide, and it is Euthanasia. That brings a whole lot more issues into it. If someone is incapable of killing themselves then it stands to reason someone has to help, onviously hence the term assisted suicide. But if someone is helping, then really they are in fact commuting murder. Sure it may be wanted by the victim but none the less it is murder. And that is when the choice to die is no longer someones right, if they have to bring someone else into it.

I disagree that ending another person's life when they ask you to as a last resort is immoral. If you just label it as murder and not look at it into context and say 'it's still murder, it's wrong' then obviously you'll think it's bad.


I can justify it, because in taking the right away from some, it is protecting those who fall into the category of "Forced Euthanasia" those who are pressured into making a decision they don't necessarily believe in. If to save them, we have to take the right away from others then I see this as a necessary measure.

Why should people have to unnecessarily suffer because of this fear that people may be forced into killing themselves?

Yes, I think that the way in which a loved one dies has absoloutely no relation to the amount they are missed or grieved over.

Cool. I have no idea how I can possibly convince you otherwise now.

Also euthanasia doesn't necessarily happen by just switching off a machine. Switching of a machine or "pulling the plug" is actually legal, it's passive euthanasia I assume the euthanasia we are talking about legalizing here is active euthanasia. In which case it is done with lethal injections, or tablets. And again the person is not necessarily in any extreme amount of pain, that cannot be controlled with drugs.

I was using that as a metaphor for 'mercy killing'. I am not implying that he/she will definitely be in a serious amount of pain, I agree they can and they cannot but if they are then they have the right to make that decision for themselves.

Here you have assumed that just because they are ill they are in pain which as I've already said could not be true, from there you've also assumed there life would be joyless. In many cases this couldnt be further from the truth, many terminay ill people live full lives until the end, or at least as full as is compatible with their illness. As is shared by, Michelle.

If they were ill and not in pain or suffering from it then why would I even bring up Euthanasia, I am assuming if they are in pain and there is genuinely NO WAY OUT then it's that person's right to take their life away, and if they can't, then they can decide and should be allowed to have another person do it for them. Murder doesn't always have to be blindly defined as wrong, the only reason it is, is because you're not looking at it in context. Is killing someone in self defence a crime? No. If it is proven that the person was doing it to defend himself from being killed then he is not doing something morally incorrect. Similarly, if the person is in pain and incapable of killing him/herself then there is no reason to let them suffer on and on.

[bornthisway]

If the person is brain-dead and cannot function, and there is a 0% chance of recovery, then yes, I feel it's okay.
If the person is on the verge of death (from something like cancer or another illness), let the disease run its course.
If the person is suicidal, then put them in a mental hospital. No need to do that to them.

[Death]

If the person is brain-dead and cannot function, and there is a 0% chance of recovery, then yes, I feel it's okay.

You don't say.

If the person is on the verge of death (from something like cancer or another illness), let the disease run its course.

Or you could quit being cruel and just get it over with and prevent prolonging their suffering.

If the person is suicidal, then put them in a mental hospital. No need to do that to them.

It's probably crap like this which drive some people to suicide.

[Genghis Khan]

If the person is on the verge of death (from something like cancer or another illness), let the disease run its course.

Just a tad bit cruel.

[GRGRGR]

I think it should be if the person is very sick and wants to go.