Euthanasia (Mercy Killing)

[SilverHawk]

Is it justified to kill someone who is suffering from a serious illness? Should it be legalized? Would you have it done to you? Would you do it?

Discuss.

--Debate suggested by esb--

 

[Jessi]

I believe it is justifiable to allow the person to kill themselves, or to allow them to have someone else do it if they are incapable. I do not think that in any circumstance that life should be taken without conscious consent of the dying. If anyone wants to do anything to themselves, however, they should be allowed.

 

[TheDamien]

Assisted suicide, euthanasia and suicide should all be legalized.

 

[undeadorcjerk]

Assisted suicide, euthanasia and suicide should all be legalized.

True. Assisted suicide for the incapable, and regular suicide cause... well, if they I don't think the suicidey cares if its legal or not, so its a pointless law.

 

[~GaLs~]

True, thye all should be justified and legalized.

Euthanasia - Suffering from SARS? I think the victim would wanted to get killed rather suffering.

 

[Rheias]

I think the only case it should be legal is the victim is able to think clearly and sign a document saying he wishes to be killed. Further more, he must be very ill or injured badly. If not, then I think there should be a punishment, though it shouldn't be considered as a murder.

 

[Geelottaja]

Euthanasia, like regular suicide, should be a legal under some circumstances, but not all. It should only be given when the subject is in immense pain and nothing seems to be a cure for it or there are no possible means of healing it for a long time (for example, if you CANNOT get to a hospital in a reasonable time, an absurd example would be in the middle of a desert) AND the subject WANTS TO die and fully realizes the magnitude of the decision. Coma patients can't do that, and for that reason you should tell people what to do if you get into a coma state.

 

[Wiseman_2]

There's no point whatsoever in making suicide legal. Why? 'Cos by the time the - *ahem* victim (for want of a better word) - has topped themselves it's too late to do anything about it. Who's going to be prosecuted? The razor blade? The rope?

However, Assisted Suicide (Euthanasia) should be legalised in cases so long, as Rheias said, that they are thinking clearly. If they aren't capable fully of independent thought then they might have an evil relative sign their death warrant simply because they don't want to care for them anymore (or want to seize their inheritance).

 

[Ninva]

Think about it:
We all have crummy days. We were dumped by our girlfriend, our grandma died, our dog was ran over, and we lost our house due to a sinkhole.
That is a pretty depressing day, and depending on the situation I probably wouldn't enjoy life too much... and maybe to the extent of suicidal thoughts/suicide. Now, you may think that's crazy, but just stay with me for awhile.
Now, lets say I do kill myself, so now I'm dead in the ground, but lets see an alternative future. I'm still depressed in this alternative future, so I do something I rarely do, and buy a lottery ticket. That ticket was the winning ticket, I'm a multimillionaire now.
Now, lets say I have an illness that will kill me, and I'm sitting there dying. I want to die for the pain is too much, but I can't. So, I ask someone to kill me. They do so, but lets look at an alternative future as well.
Before I die someone comes up with a way to cure my life threating disease. They give it to me, and I'm better. Then I share my life experiences with many other people as I live to an old age.

I don't care about chances, and I don't care for math for tomorrow we can all die. What's the point of living and posting on TH.net if the chances of dying tomorrow is so high? Hundreds of people die in one day. Think about it, but put the gun down.
I don't want you killing yourself because you figured out that you have no hope. No, that wouldn't be a good thing.

 

[Geelottaja]

Like I said, the only permitted way would be when you can't be healed, atleast for a long time and are thinking clearly. If they're thinking clearly they would realize the possibility that they might win the lottery, that's their choice. And think of a suicide just as you think of euthanasia, only that no one else is there to do it for you, the same rules still apply.
Ps. This typing box seems to be awfully laggy, I wonder why?

 

[TheDamien]

I'm still depressed in this alternative future, so I do something I rarely do, and buy a lottery ticket. That ticket was the winning ticket, I'm a multimillionaire now.

How is this preferable to non-existence?

Before I die someone comes up with a way to cure my life threating disease. They give it to me, and I'm better. Then I share my life experiences with many other people as I live to an old age.

Once again, how is this preferable to non-existence?

I don't care about chances, and I don't care for math for tomorrow we can all die. What's the point of living and posting on TH.net if the chances of dying tomorrow is so high? Hundreds of people die in one day. Think about it, but put the gun down.
I don't want you killing yourself because you figured out that you have no hope. No, that wouldn't be a good thing.

People ask "what is the point of life?" as though there must be one. There isn't. If a person wishes to discontinue their existence, then they should go ahead and do so.

 

[Ninva]

People ask "what is the point of life?" as though there must be one. There isn't. If a person wishes to discontinue their existence, then they should go ahead and do so.

You haven't decided to commit suicide yet. Why is that? Is it because you just haven't decided to destroy your life, do you have kids, or people you want to provide for?
If what you said was true, then none of this would matter. Not that pride you bare, not the honor you keep, not this post on TH.net, nothing. If what you say is true, then what reward would you get for staying alive for so long? Nothing, like our lives on earth... Think about it.

I remember a quote from a book. The character said, "When I die, all of this will disappear."
He meant, through him he sees a world. Once he dies, that world dies. So it goes.

 

[Wiseman_2]

People ask "what is the point of life?" as though there must be one. There isn't. If a person wishes to discontinue their existence, then they should go ahead and do so.

That recieves the award for "Most depressing quote of the year".
If that's your view then to you everything is worthless. You may as well simply be a smudge in the universe because let's face it, to hold that view you must have low aims, thinking there's no point to it, so you aren't going to be remembered for doing anything great.

And aditionally, you point out how things are not preferable to non-existance. Clearly you think that it's a better alternative. I'll restrain myself there and then because that's the sort of Flame that would get me banned.

 

[Geelottaja]

Life's meaning is unique to everyone: Every person has his own answer for the meaning of life. Even if one aknowledges that there is no real meaning for our lives, one can still live on without thinking that one should stop living because it has no meaning: the meaning of death can be equally noexistant, counterweighting it.

Even though life could be meaningless to the universe, it always has a meaning for the individual (which sometimes can be even negative, which can result to thoughts of suicide).

 

[Ninja_sheep]

In europe there was lately a depate about 'suicide tourism'.
In switzerland there's an organisation called 'quit' that kills you if you want (ofc all taken very carefully and regulated). Now in Germany this is illegal. So Germans came to Switzerland to die!

My mother is a medic and she speaks with people that want to die (but doesn't kill them). She told me sometimes about the fate of these people. People with cancer that just want to die.

I once heard of a mother that killed her crippeled child. It only laid in hospital, couldn't do anything and it was obvius it felt pain. After that she had to appear before a court. I don't know if she got any punishment.


Some cases of suicide just shouldn't be discussed because it's obvius and nothing speaks against it. If somebody knows he'll die soon and feels pain all day but still can think clear. Why not permit suicide to him?

>lifes meaning
In my opinion life's meaning is a believe. To find life's meaning is as impossible as to find god. The only thing possible is to find a meaning of life for your own life. How is this relevant? I think it's the same to not suicide because of the bible or life's meaning.

>the meaning of death can be equally noexistant, counterweighting it.
The meaning of death can only exist if the meaning of life exists. Because death can only exist if life exists. If somebodies meaning of life would be to help other people this means to give or do things for/to them and if he is unable to do anything and only a burden this could also mean to die - and not be a burden.


owww, I'm talking strange things.

 

[TheDamien]

You haven't decided to commit suicide yet. Why is that? [...]

I don't plan on getting a reward for staying alive. I simply feel like staying alive. If I do something, it is because I enjoy it or feel compelled to do it. My beliefs need not have any effect on what I do or how I feel on a day to day basis.

That recieves the award for "Most depressing quote of the year".

I'm sorry that you feel this way, I can not imagine why you do.

[...] You may as well simply be a smudge in the universe because let's face it, to hold that view you must have low aims, [...]

Why would I have low aims? And if I did, how would it be relevant to this discussion at all?

And aditionally, you point out how things are not preferable to non-existance. Clearly you think that it's a better alternative. I'll restrain myself there and then because that's the sort of Flame that would get me banned.

It would be a wasteful thing to get banned over, too. I don't think non-existence is preferable to anything. If I were to believe that it was, then I would be implicitly assuming that the concept of preferability is relevant to a non-existent being, which is quite absurd.

 

[Geelottaja]

I don't think you really got me, Ninja. In short, what I meant that everyone has a different view of his/her own lifes goals and such, giving life an unique meaning in the persons own eyes, everyone has an own perspective of what is the "meaning" of life. Bah, hard to explain it and then put it in English...

 

[Rad]

There's no point whatsoever in making suicide legal. Why? 'Cos by the time the - *ahem* victim (for want of a better word) - has topped themselves it's too late to do anything about it. Who's going to be prosecuted? The razor blade? The rope?

What if the attempt fails? Attempted suicide sound familiar? Thats what its mostly about. The point in this case is giving people the power to allow the suicide.

This can cause alot of problems. Say someone somehow conviced said person to commit suicide, through blackmail and that sort of thing. Perhaps they threaten to kill their family? Who cares, let movies make up that scenario.

Its not something you give the person the power to do. Especially if they aren't in their state of mind. It shouldn't be openly allowed, but it shouldn't be disallowed by law.

"It hurts to breath and theres no cure!"
"No, its illegal and I'll get sued."

 

[Geelottaja]

That's what I'm saying. It isn't justified or legal when you don't have a good reason for it and therefore a permission, roughly put.

 

[Kings]

meh, i say eutahnasia should only be allowed in cases of terminally ill patients or people who have no chance of survival, if someone just doesn't want to live anymore, then they should just find better hobbies.... have reason to die or live i say, that n dont shoot kittens