Thursday, December 4, 2008

Euthanasia

Euthanasia is defined by the Webster dictionary as the act or practice of painlessly ending the life of an individual suffering from a terminal illness or an incurable condition, as by lethal injection or the suspension of extraordinary medical treatment. It is also referred to as mercy killing. The most common form of Euthanasia is doctor assisted suicide. When a patient has an incurable disease that is causing them massive amount of pain, they should at least have a choice to escape a world that only holds more pain in their future.
The Freedom guaranteed to every American of the pursuit of happiness should not end with hospitalization. They should have a right to a dignified and humane death of their own choosing. This willingness to die differs greatly from the act of suicide that is common in the US today. If a person knows that their death is going to be horrific and painful, they shouldn't have to endure such a horrible demise. It's not like the person can just say, "i wanna die." after coming to the hospital with a splinter. This option should only be available to those with no other options than to wither away in pain.
The family members of an individual that is going through so much pain should know that Euthanasia is the best option for their loved one. They should be allowed to alleviate that loved ones' pain when they are not able to make that decision. The decision to be freed of pain over the prospect of lasting, lingering anguish is a heavenly chance.
Many Organizations like Compassion in Dying, Death with Dignity, and the World Federation of Right to Die have been working to make this merciful choice an option for terminal patients in hospitals across America. Will you make that choice?
~charlie the unicorn~

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree. If people can choose to pull the cord on a loved one thats in a vegetative state, why can't the family or that person decide that they would rather die than live a pain filled life?

Anonymous said...

I agree, I think that a patient should be able to decide that they want to end their life early if they are in pain and going to die anyway. But I'm not sure about the family making that decision for them. If anyone has the right to decide when to die, it should be the individual...I think that it's a far too big decision for anyone else to make.

Anonymous said...

After reading this i believe "mercy killing" should be an option. I would not wanna live to a death with horrible pain.

Anonymous said...

Whether you want to waste away in a hospital bed or die right away is that patients choice. Like you said, who has the right to take away your right to be happy. The patient won't be happy writhing in pain until the day they die..that is for sure.

Anonymous said...

I agree, people should have the choice whether or not they want to die. If they have to suffer that amount of pain they should be allowed to decide when to end it.

Anonymous said...

Although I understand why someone would want to end their pain, I would never choose that option. Imagine the stress you would put on the individual whom you chose to help you.

Anonymous said...

I believe that a person has the right to say whether or not they wish to die. They should be able to determine for themselves that the pain is too great to bear.

The problem is, euthanasia usually doesn't happen this way. These people are "euthanized" because doctors and nurses don't want to care for someone that might be a burden to them.

Anonymous said...

I do agree, to an extent, with the argument made in this post. Your loved ones are usually the ones that are closest to you, and the ones that you trust the most. If you have an incurable disease and are in an immense amount of pain, and the best thing to do is to end your life, but you can't make that decision, they should be able to make that choice for you because they know what is best for you. A doctor should not be the one to persuade that decision, it should be totally up to the family members/loved ones to decide your fate.

Anonymous said...

I agree with this. However, some crazy doctors might say the person wanted to die when in actuality they killed them. So there would need to be much consideration if a bill was passed to allow this. Maybe several people should be notified and have it okayed in some type of court. Also how would they define you are going to die a painful death? What if the doctor miss diagnosed them or there was a cure for their problem. These are all things that needed to be taken in under consideration.

Anonymous said...

You say that it the right to choose death should only be reserved for people who face a painful death by incurable disease. But who is to decide what is too painful? And on that note, there are many different types of pain. People who commit suicide do it because they believe their pain is unbearable. So how is euthanasia any different? The person decides that they are in too much pain and ends their life before their time. I see very little difference between the two.

Anonymous said...

I think this is nonsense. I am biting my tongue here. I had a mother who suffered from cancer. She fought for SIX years to stay alive and be with her family. She knew she was going to die. She kept fighting though. She loved us enough to try and stay with us even though she knew it would cost her unbearable pain. the pain was so great it put her into a coma. She woke up though, she thought every ounce of pain and every kemo ray was worth it to spend one more second with her children. Euthanasia is little more than legal suicide if we allow it, its the easy way out. My mother didn't take that, she fought until she couldn't anymore. She slipped into God's tender embrace after six years of fighting. Not even after she knew she was going to die.

Anonymous said...

wow. That is an intense decision that could be luring in anyone's future. What a tough situation. But as much as i believe in the preservatoin of life, this article was very convincing that this is a humane decision. I agree with the fact that the patient should have a choice in which death they would rather endure.

Anonymous said...

I think Lucky Charms brings up some very valid points.
How will we be able to rate pain on a scale accurately (& consistently) then decide when it becomes too much or unbearable (again, consistently)?

Anonymous said...

a part of me agrees bulbasaur75. my best friend is fighting brain cancer right now and i think it would so much harder to deal with if his attitude wasnt "who says we should have a good life?" who says we deserve to be pain free?
but then another part of me knows that life is such a gift and we should trausure it. but then if youre in severe pain are you really living?
this is hard. and i really dont know where i stand.

Anonymous said...

yeah, i totally agree that people should have the choice whether they want to live of die. Like in the seinfeld episode where kramer watches a movie about a woman in a coma and wants to have the cord pulled but finishes the movie later, and realizes that someone can live through a coma, so he wants to live. That should all be someones CHOICE!!

Anonymous said...

I agree. people who are in so much pain and are dying anyway should be allowed to have euthanasia. the people who keep them alive because they cant bear to loose someone close needs to understand that by keeping them alive is just causing them to be in more pain for longer

Anonymous said...

Euthenasia can easily get out of hand. In Holland, where euthenasia is openly practiced, it was recently reported that roughly 20% of euthenized patients were killed without family member consent, with the majority of the doctors claiming they were acting in the best interest of their patients, many of whom had dementia and mental disorders. Also, isn't it a paradox to place the word "mercy" in front of killing? Let's not varnish a method of murder by calling it a right.

Anonymous said...

I understand this argument to some extent... but i know that I personally could never do that to my family. i care too much about them to leave them like that. and your future isn't set in stone, who knows if you decide to keep fighting instead of taking the easy way out you might just live longer and enjoy those precious moments with your family. and who knows you could even live through that pain, and be able to live a long and happy life.

GeorgeCostanza said...

It's hard to take a really solid stand on this issue. Euthanasia does seem like an easy way out in most cases, but in some it seems necessary. Simply because let's face it, if you that in your future there is going to be intense pain, that seems like a reasonable option. But then the question arises, when would one do it?

Anonymous said...

Its the persons life. Family members will know the patient better than anyone. Pull the chord for the right reasons, if you must.

Anonymous said...

I believe that no matter what, the person whos life is at chance should be able to decide if they want to end it or not. The family should not choose for them, even if they are in a state where they can't choose for themselves.

People have made miraculous recoveries and went on to live a happy life. And of course, that may not happen, but how do we know for sure if it won't?

Anonymous said...

This is such a tricky subject. I mean, humans could take the liberty of choice over life or death in a bad way, very easily. How can we be sure the wrong hands will not obtain this power? It scares me too much to consider it.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Lucky Charms. Who gets to decide what is too painful for someone to endure? The pain that a person is willing take is going to vary with each individual.

As bulbasaur75 said, his mother fought cancer for six years to stay alive. That in itself demonstrates a great amount of love and devotion to her loved ones. But what happens if someone doesn't have a family to motivate them to keep fighting?

I think that "mercy killing" is something that should be the sole choice of the individual in the hospital bed. Despite the family factor, why should anyone else but THAT person be able to decide if they live or die?