What is assisted suicide/dying?It is committing suicide with the help of another person.Wider meaning of assisted suicide
What's wrong with Assisted Suicide?
Disallowing assisted suicide is futileEveryone is born to die,but it is a fundamental human right to choose the time and place to depart when one knows the future is suffering & indignity
Case for assisted suicide"Stephen Hawking said refusing terminally ill people the right to die was 'the ultimate indignity'." -- daily mail
Motives
ResponsibilityWho's life is it? Is it the governments life, or the suffer?
Is this a decision for :
This is primarily a decision for the Government, and not the courts, but once the Government has decided what are your rights, then it should be decided by the courts.
How can strangers make this incredibly powerful decision for another individual?
Where does the government the authority to make this decision?
Should children be given this right?
So we're supposed to be accountable for actions throughout life, such as stealing, murder and so on, but when we simply wish to end our own life due to terrible suffering, we are finally not allowed to account for our own actions? the government tends to think 'protect' means ' we own you'.
The mental capacity act allows people with capacity to make 'unwise decisions'. If they lack capacity then there is a legal obligation to act in their best interest.
A number of these cases would never have arisen if invasive and aggressive medical care had not been given in the first place. Consistency
The subject matter is even less contentious than abortion, since the life has awareness and choice
As things stand, I'd rather be treated by a vet if I contract a terminal illness. Animals get better treatment.
We already conduct euthanasia by turning off life support systems. If this is legal, why not assisted suicide?
But it is quite OK to put them into 'care' homes where they are abused by their 'carers'. If you personally would stop someone from assisting another to die, why should the government do it on your behalf?
Murderers are put to death in some countries without their consent when they themselves should be forced to live in solitude and discomfort for the rest of their lives, as punishment. Yet, a law abiding man who wishes to end his pain and suffering is forced to live the rest of his life in a living hell.
A right to die, needs to be added to the right to live to be consistent.
If you can't assist someone to die, are you compelled to be their keeper, and keep them alive?
You can sue for mental distress, if you are distressed to be kept alive, can you sue for that? You would not bury someone alive and that’s how this person feels Disabled can starve themselves to death and die in pain but he can't allow a willing doctor to put them out of their misery in a quick, humane and pain-free way Put a cat - a useless predator, killing our valuable wildlife - into a dustbin and the might of the law descends on you. Live a life of hopeless despair and misery and the law says tough sh**, keep on suffering. It is legally acceptable to withdraw food and water from a patient (this happened to my father). It is legally acceptable to administer an ever increasing dose of morphine (this happened to my mother) Netherlands ans Switzerland + some US states allow assisted dying.
You can choose to join an army with a near certain chance of death. But cannot ask someone to kill you.
For believers, God sent his child to dies for us.
Suicide is legal and that can be done for reasons like a breakup or debt, yet assisted suicide cannot be done for reasons far more serious than this.
We don't allow torture, why allow someone to be tortured as in a living hell.
Putting down an animal is called humane, unless it is a human?
We seem to accept more willingly the suicide of an able bodied person, who, in theory, should have less reason to kill themselves
You can kill yourself slowly by eating badly and smoking but not by quicker methods.
People are being forced to live and costing the system money
Then there are people who want to live and the system does not have enough money to fund their drugs.
People are all different and respond differently
People are all different and they get enjoyment out of their lives in different ways. It is very easy for someone like Stephen Hawking to carry on as his life is all about thought, mathematics and particle physics.
But for someone who enjoys sports and the outdoors the change to being totally passive can be too much. Not to mention being fed and taken to the toilet.
uk claim they want to live in a world were there is no suffering but yet we are allowing a man to suffer by not granting his wish
Strange that they are keeping this guy alive against his wishes and in a nightmare situation , but they allow folk to die who want to live because they cannot afford the drugs that are available ?
Surprising that we are allowed to kill babies with (almost) impunity but not ourselves.
We can kill millions overseas for wars with almost not reason, but not kill ourselves when life becomes unbearable.
In Netherlands/Swiss assisted suicide is fact.
Complications How do you change the law to allow assisted suicide?
Will this apply to babies, children, young adults, middle-aged or just the elderly?
At what age/disability/state of mind do you decide when a person's life is not worthy of treatment or life?
Should disabled people be allowed to use assisted suicide or is there a risk of abuse, but it would be discriminatory not to allow them to have the same rights.
And there is the central issue. Where are the lines drawn? What criteria are needed? Who makes the decisions?
The solution
Thats what a judge is for
If this law ever does gets changed I plead for one thing - ending life is a not a task ever given to doctors. When I see the person in the white coat I want to know that he or she is always striving to save my life.
our laws are loosely based upon Xian theology which says the body is not ours - it is gods, therefore to kill ourselves is a sin against god who gives and takes life.
So long as the Suicide Act 1961 remains on the statute book, anyone who helps another person travel abroad to kill themselves should be prosecuted and face the full force of the law.
Assisted suicide uis a victimless crime.
Assisted suicide or palliative care? We are all individuals and what would suit one may not suit another. It is a personal decision and there should be choice in the UK.
Modern problem We can keep people alive long past when they would have succumbed in the past.
The fact that our society denies me the right to dies as I wish says more about society than I ever could.
Of course a naturalist Darwinian sees physical death as the end, and ultimate way out of suffering, this is the ultimate expression that god does not exist (dying for their faith of no god) and why so many Christians hate suicide.
Is this a personal or state choice?
I think is what of concern is that there seem to be a number of policies, or loopholes, present and deliberately created within the NHS which leave patient rights in a very ambiguous state. There then appear to be people who use this vagueness, along with the drive some people want towards euthanasia, to override the patients right to decide their own future.
This is a simple civil rights issue. Do I or does the state own my body and my life?
Other thoughts
“There should be a safe, legal way for people suffering terminal or irremediable illnesses to choose the time of their own death. It should not be left to groups like Exit International to import drugs illegally and administer them in potentially unsafe conditions with no doctor present.
“Like the Supreme Court of Canada called it, there is a ‘cruel choice’ between a violent amateur suicide, and ongoing suffering for dying people under our current law. Our own High Court admitted that individuals in these circumstances are often forced to end their own lives prematurely, for fear of being incapable of doing so at the point the suffering becomes intolerable."
"It's a deeply personal issue that affects all of us and our families and all of us individually as we approach the end of our lives,"
Criteria for assisted suicideHow to protect vulnerable citizens while respecting their rights and choices at the end of life.
Conscience rights of healthcare providers, providers who may choose to refuse to provide medical assistance in dying for personal reasons or personal convictions.
Link34right-to-die case
Link3510 years of dignitas
LinksLink36dignity in dying
Link38The Suicide Act of 1961
Link669Assisted suicide by country
Link670Assisted suicide questions
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