Just because a parent has been involved in every aspect of a child's life, does not make them an expert on medical treatment.
I agree with that.
However, it would make sense that, if the parent truly cared, they would try to obtain as much information, not being an expert in everything, as they could in order to make that decision.
I'm agreeing completely with the sergeant argument that there comes a point where religious freedom stops and the state needs to intervene to prevent medical neglect. Though I reserve my opinion on the OP's example given the lack of critical details, it thus far appears that state intervention may be appropriate. I'm not sure at this point.
My concern regards where exactly the line is drawn and how that boundary can and likely will be abused
(imo) in the future.
You've mentioned a couple of times how this is similar to the abortion debate. Can you elaborate?
In both cases we have a parent who is choosing a coarse of action which will likely end their child's life when there are valid alternatives available. With abortion the parent can do whatever she chooses in accordance with her personal beliefs, but when it comes to treating this boy the parent's beliefs are tossed right out.
Why?
Topping it off is the child's own objection to receiving chemo. It is as though we have a ZEF screaming through the ultrasound into the doctor's ear "
abort me, abort me", yet the ***choice*** is being denied regardless.
On another thread we are discussing euthanasia. If the child himself and his family choose for him to die this way, who are we to object? It's their life, their child, and more over it's his life he's choosing to potentially forfeit.
It's his body, his choice, is it not? Granted he's a minor child and so we need his legal guardian to sign off any any contracts or consents
(unless he wanted an abortion, ironically), but his legal guardians are consenting on his behalf.
Since everyone is on board with this except the state, I want to know what establishes the state's compelling interest here.
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God bless FireFox and its built-in spell checker :mrgreen: