Euthanasia

[Dutch Baka]

I'm not sure why I choose this topic, but I was looking for an interesting topic for the Serious Discussions section and I found this.

This is the question:

What's your opinion about Euthanasia?

First some background about Euthanasia:

What's Euthanasia? Euthanasia is the practice of having a medically assisted death.

Forms of Euthanasia:

passively euthanasia
the withholding of common treatments (such as antibiotics, pain medications, or surgery) or the distribution of a medication (such as morphine) to relieve pain, knowing that it may also result in death
non-aggressively euthanasia
Non-aggressive euthanasia entails the withdrawing of life support
aggressively euthanasia
the use of lethal substances or force to kill

Euthanasia and the law:
See this link for more information where euthanasia is legal/illegal.

euthanasia in the media:
Terri Schiavo

More links:
wiki article about euthanasia
www.euthanasia.com
Statistics, Charts and Graphs

So ones more, what's your opinion about Euthanasia? If you are having an incurable disease... would you use it?


My opinion:
I think euthanasia should be allowed for persons whom are not able to recover from their disease, and are in that much pain that life has no meaning anymore. This should of course happen with a the knowledge of at least 1 doctor and/or a psychiatrist whom have been around this patient for a while to know his/her disease.

My Uncle died from cancer last year, and he was thinking about euthanasia but his body was already to weak to really fill in the paperwork so he died with a lot of pain. It would have been easier for him, and for the family if he had an earlier opportunity to take euthanasia.

Well I'm looking forward reading your opinions.

(it's been a while since I made a thread such as these, so I hope there aren't any mistakes lol )

[Kinsao]

I am against euthanasia, but I am NOT against the following practices:
1. Increasing of a person's pain-relief medication beyond the point that it hastens their death, as necessary to keep them out of pain (this is currently legal in this country).
2. Switching off a person's life-support machine.

There should be no reason for someone to die in pain, as it is legal to give them the necessary amount of medication to relieve their pain, even if that also causes their death (since the primary intention is to relieve pain).

I feel very sad to hear of people who have had relatives or friends die in pain, as I have seen cases where people dying of painful illnesses, have been able to die peacefully without pain, due to doctors and nurses administering sufficient pain medication for the circumstances.

I have great reservations about life or death judgements made on the basis of 'quality of life' - not because I wish that people should suffer unnecessarily (well... maybe my worst enemies... but I'd rather not carry on that route...!), but because I mistrust when people are given power to judge on another's 'quality of life'... it is too easy to misjudge, as quality of life is subjective when viewed from the outside (that is, not the person themselves), and it is likely that the value of life becomes to be judged by its value to society... and where do you draw the line at poor quality of life? This can easily become to be used for a convenience and not for the genuine relief of suffering. Should a person contemplating suicide perhaps then not be dissuaded or attempt made to help, but assisted in doing so, since evidently their sense of 'quality of life' must be very low?

I emphasise, I am not against turning off life-support machines, which is a somewhat different case.

Under English law now, food and fluids are considered as 'treatment', so witholding food and fluids to hasten someone's death is legal as in 'assisted dying', which has most unpleasant effect, basically causing someone to die of dehydration.

[Mars Man]

Firstly, you did a good job there with the OP, Dutch Baka san. There may be a couple or so spots at the most where a bit of an editing job might make smoother--but no problem. Nice job.

Then, I'd have to say, for the moment, that I am not against euthanasia, where the decision is made by the individual.

In the case of suicide, I would have to spend more time thinking about it and trying to dig up some stuff on it, yet for the moment, feel that there are very likely some cases where the actor should be given the choice.

Along with this these two matters, of course, there naturally comes the individual (and usually subjective, as Kinsao has pointed out) worldview on the matter of 'life,' and the matter of 'death.' Just how an individual sees these will have some bearing.

I look forward to further discussion on all these matters, and here, in this thread on those of euthanasia. I hope to input more later.

[Derfel]

Well I personally find passive and aggressive euthanasia kind of cruel.
The first because of the long agonizing, and the second because of its intensity.
I vote for non-aggressively euthanasia.
But in my opinion a hastened court procedure should be the custom before it, say like they make a decision in 1-2 days whether the patient is in pain and agony, or simply wants to die for any other invalid reason.

[SushiShin]

Even if he/she will live like a plant for the rest of his/her life, still think he/she still deserve's to live, unless it's hurting him/her and then you can end his/her life.

[Uncle Frank]

After 13 years of watching my patients die(3 years in Hospice), I find there is no overall answer that would work for grouping people into catagories. Not only does each patient feel different about dying naturally or with help, but the friends and family around him have a great deal in deciding about the patients death. Many times the patient might want an early death, but presure from those around him make them suffer it out longer. Other times everyone but the patient wants to see him helped along sooner. I've noticed people with long term illness usually loose the ability to think clearly and logically but don't realize it. Many times deep depression controls their thinking; one day they might wish to die, the next feel full of life. I do believe a person should be able to die when and how they choose, but they should have to have counsuling with a religious person of their faith(if they have one) and a psychologist/therapist/socialogist who deals and understands depression and the phychology of dying. When it comes to dealing with death, there seem to be no easy answers.
I make sure I have several ways available to myself in my home to end my life, but they won't do me any good if I end up in a hospital or nursing home. It is a discussion that everyone should think about before a crisis arrives that forces you to deal with it while emotions are high. A living will is something everyone should know about and have drawn up ahead of time.

Uncle Frank

[Goldiegirl]

I wouldn't want to end my life on purpose even if I had a terrible disease. I would want pain control though, as much as it would take to keep me comfortable. I suppose if it killed me in the end, that would be ok, because that wasn't my intention. I would never take away tube feeding or water. I think that is an inhumane and cruel death. I don't know what to do about people in a vegetative state.

[tokapi]

Should be granted under 1 condition,at patient's request & consent of his or her immediate family.

[nice gaijin]

interesting that there's so much debate over euthanasia, and so little discussion about the unnatural lengthening of our lives. Our medical and technological advancements have pushed the average lifespan far beyond our ancestors, but are thus far unable to address the mental and physical decline that comes with age. Have we improved the quality of life to our own detriment?

I have an old neighbor that I dearly love that has fallen victim to the disease of old age: Alzheimer's, dementia, the works. She's been reduced to a drooling zombie in diapers, incapable of communicating, prone to random violent emotional outbursts. She is in good physical condition, but she is no longer the person that used to sit on her veranda and share cookies and tell me about the good old days. She doesn't live anymore, she merely exists. On the other side of the old folks home is her husband, mentally all there but his body is falling apart. He's unable to enjoy his retirement, or share his old age with his wife that doesn't even recognize him anymore. We can extend our lives beyond our body and mind's ability to sustain themselves, why not give people the ability to expire before they shrivel up and die "naturally?"

[Revenant]

Personally, I'd happily endorse the use of aggressive euthanasia on myself at the time that I lost control of consciousness and there was no way I would be getting control back. Consciousness as I define it is the ability to make decisions based on memory and anticipation, and to control the intensity of my emotion as well as changing the emotion when called for and possible.

As to intolerable pain, I guess were there also no way to further my goals due to a physical condition or some sort of physical pain, would I also take an aggressive euthanasia.

Peacefully going to sleep isn't a bad way to go out as I see it, and in the end, we are just the sum and heirarchy of our goals. So the moment our goals are forever out of reach, and we can't find new meaningful and attainable goals to take their place, would I consider a life finished.

[Mars Man]

Some good points raised in these two posts, as well. I go right along with you, as far as I can determine, nice gaijin, and Revenant. Quality life is the one reason I am in favor of euthanasia in some cases.

In Japan there is the 'pin-pin-korori' thing...it's like, enjoy life till you drop. I reall a good friend of mine here, in the radio business, who after coming down with cancer, told me that if some operation meant he wouldn't be able to function in social settings as he usually had been doing, he wouldn't do it. He survived for an additional three and a half years and died of heart failure due to the complications. I took his attitude to heart.

In reading one article on this, overdosing on pain killer will do it too. For myself, as I have just talked about, I will not allow this silly ole body just to be hooked up to a machine, or to simply live without my better knowledge and control of it. By that time, I will have contributed to the life force, I will have succeeded in the goal of life...to live for life's sake. (I have co-procreated five people)

[MadamePapillon]

I am against passive euthanasia, I find that to be cruel beyond all measure, to let a person suffer in pain until they finally die.

However, I am for non-agressive and agressive.

If a person has been on life support for five years and there looks to be no hope of recovery I think at that point they are no longer thinking of the best interests of the patient. It's not natural to be kept alive even when your in a living death state. While we might all be scared of death, it has to happen and there's no point in trying to hang on to a memory.

As for agressive euthanasia. When there is no hope of recovery (once again) and you know you are going to be in extreme pain when you die I think a person should have the right to go out with dignity instead of in pain and so doped up on medication the can barely string together a sentence. It's better for both the person dying and their family, they can all say proper goodbyes and resolve any issues. Plus they get to keep the memory of their loved one when they were still relatively healthy, not ravaged by disease and a shadow of their former self.

But I stress, this is only a last option, only when there is nothing else to be done and the alternative is a slow, painful, lingering death.

[thatsme]

Consequences or not do we have the right to decide to when to go to another dimention whatever that means?

I feel that all the morals that have been inculcate into us disable us to feel comfortable to think that euthanasia is morally practical.

We can argue about what is right or wrong all day, it is an all depends thingy, depending on how we have been indoctrinated from the society where we live.

I can only say that with in the human society we have to adapt and follow the rules that have been floating around for billions of year, regardless what we think about it.

I at the present moment think that euthanasia is within our human right, paradoxically speaking.

I would like to emphasize that is what I think now, it may change depending on new life experiences, and even though I might change opinion, I will still respect the opposite way of thinking.

Thanks

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I think people should have the right to be killed if they want it to be so, like in the situation where the person has a horribly debilitating diseases like motor neurone diseases where the person has no hope of ever being cured but has a 100% certainty of being killed very slowly by their condition/disease sooner or later.

These people don't deserve to be forced to die slowly from horribly painful and degrading/debilitating/humiliating diseases- how can we call our society civilized when we force people to die in these ways when these people have done nothing wrong? Aren't we forcing them to suffer the ultimate cruelty? Do we not own ourselves? Should we not have the right to live just as much as the right to die?


If an animal is horribly sick and is living in great pain and suffering and has no chance whatsoever of recovering or being cured, then we put the animal to sleep because it is the most humane thing to do.
Shouldn't we allow the same dignity and peace of death to human beings in similar situations who want to end their constant suffering and die in peace and dignity because they have no hope of being cured or recovering at all and will be taken by their illness sooner or later?

[thatsme]

Actually,
What I meant above is that whatever reason ,and not only for illness reason human have the right to euthanasia, basically a more comfortable way to kill our self.

[Mavrek]

Well friend its difficult to give answer in yes or no . Personally I don't like to practice this euthanasia on my self in any case . Life is more worthy than just a swear pain . In my opinion it depends upon the board of doctors and the members of the diseased person to decide on the spot according to the condition of the patient .

[eir-ca]

Despite I understand that this is against moral, but I believe that euthanasia should only be allowed to a certain degree isn't it so?
Indeed, it lies in one's opinion whether he/she has the will and determination to continue living, even it means in agony. I guess you can't forbid anyone to say from euthanasia, yet this does not imply that euthanasia should be used as a form of force of pressure to make people accept such murder in the name of mercy, when the rights to die becomes a duty.

[Thorham]

In my opinion people have the right to die whenever they want. It's their life and no one has the right to keep someone from dying if they really want to die.