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Euthanasia, should people have the right to decide their own end?

What is you opinion of Euthanasia

  • In favor, if it is my time, I hope it is possible for me

    Votes: 21 70.0%
  • in favor, but I doubt I would choose to die in that manner

    Votes: 4 13.3%
  • I don't want it, but other should be free to make that choice

    Votes: 3 10.0%
  • against, because ..............

    Votes: 2 6.7%
  • I am not sure/I don't know

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    30
I'm surprised that you of all people came up with no. Can you explain your position to me? I'm genuinely curious.




(disclosure: I have about 100 30 mg. Roxycontins ground up with prilosec. I have no intention of suffering. I recently watched my Father die and he would have been better off without that last 2 weeks of agony and the shame of wetting himself. A noble man brought low.)

Because I think it devalues human life to be able to throw it away. One cannot stop another from killing themselves if they are so motivated, but nobody should be forced to help them do it.
 
Really don't care. There are no guarantees in life except you will eventually die.

You can avoid a painful horrible death with the administration of a drug cocktail by a medical professional who knows what he or she is doing.
 
Because I think it devalues human life to be able to throw it away. One cannot stop another from killing themselves if they are so motivated, but nobody should be forced to help them do it.

There are some doctors (Dr. Kevorkian for example) who would willingly put people out of their misery. Watching someone suffer like that is horrible.
 
Then I think you immoral, heartless and at best misguided.

All questions of morality pertain to human suffering, you who would require it.

I could care less about what you think of my morality. I do not require suffering you arrogant wind bag--nature does.
 
There are some doctors (Dr. Kevorkian for example) who would willingly put people out of their misery. Watching someone suffer like that is horrible.

You can avoid a painful horrible death with the administration of a drug cocktail by a medical professional who knows what he or she is doing.

Still don't care. That Dr. Kevorkian also killed people who were not even terminally ill should be a clue to you as to what kind of door you are opening.
 
Why do you presume anybody would be "forced" to help you? Doctors in OR can write the scrip and give you instructions - they don't have to - they just can. It's no different than medical marijuana permits. No MD is "forced" to write them, they do it for either money or a genuine belief that it helps the patient.

Is this our misunderstanding? Do you presume that if suicide were legalized that someone or some agency would be forced to write the scrip? That's all it is - it is self-administered. I'd prefer a professional administer it in a cozy environment (think Soylent Green's Public Suicide chambers where you pick the video, the music and your friends (if any).)






Because I think it devalues human life to be able to throw it away. One cannot stop another from killing themselves if they are so motivated, but nobody should be forced to help them do it.
 
Rick Santorum has made very deceitful comments about Dutch Euthanasia, the comments can be heard in the first part of this video:



very funny is also the response by the Santorum campaign when questioned about this by a Dutch reporter:



And please believe me, nothing of what he said was true. There are no "do not kill me bracelets", euthanasia is not 10% of deaths, involuntary euthanasia does not exist and our elderly do not go to foreign hospitals in droves because they are afraid of being killed.
 
**** you you heartless piece of ****

I could care less about what you think of my morality. I do not require suffering you arrogant wind bag--nature does.

You clearly do. Also, you would need to have a morality for me to think anything of it.

As if I cared what the likes of you cared about. Its a good thing you have no power to stop people from ending their suffering.
 
Still don't care. That Dr. Kevorkian also killed people who were not even terminally ill should be a clue to you as to what kind of door you are opening.

Does one need to be terminally ill to decide it's time to exit what might remain of their life?
 
Then they cannot expect my support. There is no situation in which I would support euthanasia. None. Not a single one. People think it is humane. I think it devalues human life. Life is a bitch and so is death usually. That is just how it is.

And you are free to feel that way, I think letting someone die in unbearable pain and suffering is much more inhumane than euthanasia is. And again, if someone does not want to be die by euthanasia that is fine, more than fine with me. I just would like people who do not think like you to have the freedom to choose euthanasia if and when the time comes for them to make that decision.
 
Santorum is as crazy as a loon. Even the GOP couldn't deal with him during his failed Presidential run.


Rick Santorum has made very deceitful comments about Dutch Euthanasia, the comments can be heard in the first part of this video:


very funny is also the response by the Santorum campaign when questioned about this by a Dutch reporter:

[video=youtube_share;V

And please believe me, nothing of what he said was true. There are no "do not kill me bracelets", euthanasia is not 10% of deaths, involuntary euthanasia does not exist and our elderly do not go to foreign hospitals in droves because they are afraid of being killed.[/QUOTE]
 
Still don't care. That Dr. Kevorkian also killed people who were not even terminally ill should be a clue to you as to what kind of door you are opening.

There does not have to be a slippery slope.
 
If a person wants to die bad enough, sure. As long as it's on their own. The liabilities and potential for abuse are far too risky to allow third-party actors.
 
If someone is willing to commit themselves to non existence, then they deserve the right to.
 
In the Netherlands no doctor can be forced to actively be involved in any way shape or form with euthanasia of their patient. However they do not have the right to deny that patient from changing to a doctor that does not have a moral issue with the process of euthanasia.
 
Not only in favor, but we should encourage it. Tax breaks for the survivors, or something.
 
I am for it with certain qualifications. I think that it should definitely be done with medical supervision or at least trained supervision and I think that it should not be allowed for absolutely everyone. Terminal patients, yes. People in a lot of pain where there really is no alleviation of that pain, yes. Just someone who is depressed, I don't agree with allowing them to kill themselves rather than getting them help.
 
as long as the individual is a terminally ill adult, i don't have a problem with it. i would add that i support extreme oversight when it comes to depression related issues in young people, though. youth is an extremely tempestuous for some of us, and euthanasia at 25 for potentially treatable psychiatric illnesses is a mistake, IMO.
 
Not only am I in favor of people's right to choose euthanasia, but I don't think they should have to justify it.

We don't get to decide what qualifies as "a life worth living" for other people. Just because someone doesn't have terminal cancer doesn't mean their life is necessarily worth living to them. And at the end of the day, their opinion is the only one that matters.

You can say what you like about the fact that people can kill themselves now if they really want to, but consider the impact this has. If the person fails, they may wind up extremely debilitated, or locked away against their will. If they succeed, they may traumatize loved ones and police officers who encounter a gruesome scene (since the most effective methods are often the most gruesome). They further traumatize loved ones by having to act in secret; the shock is often as bad as the loss itself.

Legalizing euthanasia gets rid of all of these problems. But it requires people to let go of the idea that their own fear of loss is a good enough reason to force someone else to live against their will.
 
Not only am I in favor of people's right to choose euthanasia, but I don't think they should have to justify it.

We don't get to decide what qualifies as "a life worth living" for other people. Just because someone doesn't have terminal cancer doesn't mean their life is necessarily worth living to them. And at the end of the day, their opinion is the only one that matters.

You can say what you like about the fact that people can kill themselves now if they really want to, but consider the impact this has. If the person fails, they may wind up extremely debilitated, or locked away against their will. If they succeed, they may traumatize loved ones and police officers who encounter a gruesome scene (since the most effective methods are often the most gruesome). They further traumatize loved ones by having to act in secret; the shock is often as bad as the loss itself.

Legalizing euthanasia gets rid of all of these problems. But it requires people to let go of the idea that their own fear of loss is a good enough reason to force someone else to live against their will.

I can agree with the caveat that a person suffering from depression must first undergo a period of counseling and evaluation to determine if it is a true desire or merely a passing phase caused by the depressed mood.
 
A few years ago my grandmother had a massive stroke. It left her unable to move or talk, yet she was still aware of what was going on. The family knew her wishes, that she wouldn't want to live like that. They ceased use of feeding tubes and IVs. But since she was able to breath on her own they just had to wait until she died from dehydration/starvation. Sure, they kept her doped up so the process wouldn't be as miserable but had the option been available to simply give her an injection, ending her life in seconds, they would have jumped on it. Who wouldn't.

Alzheimers and other forms of dementia runs on my mom's side of the family. Hopefully I take after my dad's side and just drop dead of a heart attack in my 70s but if I get diagnosed and start showing the signs of something like Alzheimers, I will check out while I still have the sense to do so. It would be nice if a doctor could assist.
 
In favor, and I hope to maintain enough self-awareness until
I know I should carry it out, with no help from anyone else if necessary.
 
Last night I saw a Dutch documentary about a young woman called Priscilla, she had an incurable illness which caused her to suffer greatly. She lived in a hospice facility aged 25 and her bad days were greater in number than her "good days". Her mother had suffered from the same illness and she knew when she was informed that she had the same disease that she would die young. Her mother died aged 31, she had been suffering terrifying pains for years and had been totally bedridden for years prior to her death. But she kept on hanging to life because she had 2 young children.

When Priscilla found out she had the same disease, she made a decision for herself not to have any children. She decided to live life to the fullest until she no longer could but that she would also not suffer as her mother did for years, bedridden and miserable. She had already discussed it with her GP and at that time she was not ready to talk about it, but she knew she would want to die through euthanasia when the time was right.

On the day she turned 26 she died, the days before her death she tried to live as best as she could, she gave one last birthday bash on the day before her birthday/death-day for all those who loved her. The day of her 26 birthday, surrounded by friends, family and loved ones, she was given a lethal mixture of barbiturates which ended her life.


My grandmother had chosen long before going into a senior citizens facility that if the time came, she would want to die through euthanasia. If she ever were in a situation where she was suffering great pain while suffering from a deadly condition/illness, that she would want to die by euthanasia. She also did not want to end up in a vegetative state/coma.

However, she never went through euthanasia because she began to suffer from Alzheimer and ended up in a nursing home for Alzheimer patients. In that case euthanasia was no longer an option. After moving to that nursing home from the facility she lived in and that she absolutely did not want to leave, she slipped into unconsciousness due to an infection and she died peacefully a few days later.

I never knew my grandfather, he died about 1 year before I was born in 1968. He died aged 53 from cancer. My grandmother was lucky enough to find a new partner and like the person that she was, she refused to marry him and lived with him "in sin" (the extremely catholic area of my country would have seen it as a sin, she however did not) until the day he died.

He was a miner, coal dust had ravaged his lungs. He was always short of breath but still a wonderful man who taught me loads of things and who was always there for my and my mother/sister. He did smoke and combined with the coal dust it gave him lung cancer. He could no longer walk properly, nurses had to help him cough up slime from his lungs because he no longer had the strength to cough hard enough for it to happen naturally. He also wanted an end to his suffering and although euthanasia was illegal at that time, in agreement with his doctors, they had agreed he would be allowed to die without prolonging the indignation and suffering. He was given such a large dose of morphine that he slipped away and died. At that time euthanasia as said was still illegal but was being condoned as long as it was done with due diligence and strict guidelines. These guidelines and due diligence rules later became the basis for the Dutch euthanasia laws.

But how do people here feel about euthanasia?
I support euthanasia, but I'm not sure I would ever do it. Never say never, though, as you cannot predict the future.

As to the part in red, I'd support her, I'd visit her prior, and give her a big hug and reassure her, but I don't think I could be there when it's done.
 
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