NationStates Jolt Archive

I've been noticing that many people are arguing over the "right to life." Specifically, I mean abortion. But what about a fully grown person's right to life? I know that in the US, the right to kill someone is denied unless that person has taken the choice of life from someone else. And what about a person's right to death? WHY is suicide bad? I know the religious reasons (i.e., God/the Vatican says it's bad so you can't do it, nyah nyah) and some of the moral reasons (what about your family, you confused wretch?) I myself have no interest in suicide, but I have been present when someone asserted their right to death. My grandfather suffered a stroke which would kill him unless he was taken to a hospital immediately. We live down the street from a hospital; but he said that he was ready for death. We respected his choice and stayed with him for 2 hours until he died. According to US law, what we did was not only illegal but amounted to murder.
Why shouldn't someone be allowed to die? Pro-lifers are often the people who protest people taking their own life. Why this hypocrisy?

I believe that the right to death is essential in a society. Can anyone tell me why a person should be held, essentially strapped, down this way? The only reason I can think is for someone else's comfort, and that is the one of the most evil selfish things I can imagine.

And please, don't just spew crap. Every argument is fallible; the Bible was written by men and stripped by the First Vatican Council; scientists have their own human agendas alongside the lust for knowledge. Actual reasons, is what I'm getting at.

I believe euthanasia should be completely legal. If your life is horrible and you dont want to go on any longer then by all means you should have the right to end your life...regardless of what the state says

Actually, in the US, we have much more murderers in jail than we kill off....MUCH more.

Euthanasia: - Pros: It can help end a life full of pain and suffering.
It cuts the cost of medical care for terminally ill patients.

Cons: It can be abused to cut the cost of medical care for terminally ill patients
It is murder in the eyes of the law.

Everyone has a point of view on subjects like this and everyone has a slightly different moral stance on it.
I am one of the fence sitters, I can understand, [almost], how a wife or husband can do the deed at the pleading of their spouse. Call it an act of love if you like, but I am sure this scenario has been played out many times in the past and will be many times in the future.

Carers of the very ill are under enormous strain and euthanasia is one way out for both of them. Perhaps if the health service was better funded the stress of caring for the terminally ill could be eased, a place available for everyone who needs it in a hospice, or more help in the home from trained staff.

What I cannot condone is a professional person, like a doctor, deciding that ending a life in their care is okay.


Others will cite the fact that animals are “put to sleep” with monotonous regularity. What is good for them must surely be good for us? Again I don’t buy this idea, animals can’t reason or decide for themselves on this issue, we decide for them simply because there is not the resources to prolong the life of Fido, it costs a fortune to care for humans, animals are put down because it is the cheapest option, now do we really want to go down that road with our loved ones?

Assisted suicide: However daft it may seem, suicide is against the law,(at least it is in Britain I believe) if someone is very ill and wishes to end their life, but is physically unable to do it for themselves, you will be breaking the law if you help them. However “right” it may seem, and whatever moral standpoint you look at it from, it still boils down to the fact that it is very wrong.

Maybe if I were terminally ill, and in a lot of pain, I would want someone to end it for me. Equally I may want to cling on to and savour every last second of my life, despite the pain, just to be with my loved ones until the bitter end. Life is precious and at the end of the day it is all we really have, let’s just think carefully before discarding it prematurely.

I've been noticing that many people are arguing over the "right to life." Specifically, I mean abortion. But what about a fully grown person's right to life? I know that in the US, the right to kill someone is denied unless that person has taken the choice of life from someone else. And what about a person's right to death? WHY is suicide bad? I know the religious reasons (i.e., God/the Vatican says it's bad so you can't do it, nyah nyah) and some of the moral reasons (what about your family, you confused wretch?) I myself have no interest in suicide, but I have been present when someone asserted their right to death. My grandfather suffered a stroke which would kill him unless he was taken to a hospital immediately. We live down the street from a hospital; but he said that he was ready for death. We respected his choice and stayed with him for 2 hours until he died. According to US law, what we did was not only illegal but amounted to murder.
Why shouldn't someone be allowed to die? Pro-lifers are often the people who protest people taking their own life. Why this hypocrisy?

I believe that the right to death is essential in a society. Can anyone tell me why a person should be held, essentially strapped, down this way? The only reason I can think is for someone else's comfort, and that is the one of the most evil selfish things I can imagine.

And please, don't just spew crap. Every argument is fallible; the Bible was written by men and stripped by the First Vatican Council; scientists have their own human agendas alongside the lust for knowledge. Actual reasons, is what I'm getting at.
The worst part about euthanasia opponents is that they are complete hypocrites with no logical arguement.
They are against it because it's immoral and to allow a human life to come to it's natural end. They say that one cannot choose when to die because death should only come through the will of God and that euthanasia proponents want to "play God." Unfortunately what they refuse to acknowledge is that when modern medial science uses artifical means to prolong life, they are doing just that.
Trust me, when someone gets their skull smashed in in an accident, it's God's will that they be dead. Instead doctors are forced to "play God" by keeping such an individual on a respirator and/or any number of life support systems. Am I the only one who sees the hypocricy in this?

it was your grandfathers right to refuse medical treatment

it is ANYONES right to refuse any medical treatment. you cannot be forced to stay alive against your will

the trouble comes in when you arent in a position to have made a living will, your living will is inadequate to your situation, you refused a DNR order (do not resusitate) or your family is making a huge fuss to keep you alive even with a DNR and a well made living will.

that is of course seperate from hastening your end. i dont have a problem with any terminally ill person deciding that they want to end their suffering early but the number wanting to do so would go way down if they were offered adequate pain management. (not that every case HAS an option for adequate pain management)

a persons choice to end their life early when they are terminally ill is between them and their religious beliefs. if its OK with them, its OK with me.

Yes.

Because my father was in a car accident and has a serious brain injury, and would be dead at this time if not for modern medicine.

Do I agree with this?

Hell no. Because my mother is the only reason my father is still alive. He is alive for the sole benefit of her and his mother. They use him as a place to send their love and affection that they once had for him. Now he is a mere shadow of his old self, and has expressed on several occasions the wish to end the charade.

I love my father very dearly, but it's very hard to understand.

I think that suicide, assissted or not, is a real cheap way out. it's also pretty selfish when other people have emotions invested in you. On the other hand though, more air for me.

I believe the right to manage our own lives includes the freedom to take it whenever we want to.

However, there should be no pressure to do so. For instance, no one should feel pressured to die because the family can't afford their medical bill. My personal solution to this is socialized healthcare, but I digress.