Euthanasia. Is it right or wrong?

[Lyra]

Euthanasia is legal in some countries, but in others you can be imprisioned for helping someone kill themselves to stop them from suffering.

-> Euthanasia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Honestly, I think it should be legal, and I know i'd rather die in comfort surrounded by family and friends if I was in constant pain, rather than die in a hospital bed undignified.

[Human No More]

It's right... People have the right to choose what they want to do with their life. If I ended up unable to do things for myself, or facing a long and painful death by disease or injury, I want to die quickly and painlessly rather than face that, and my family know that.

[stdout]

Should definitely be allowed, clearly.

[TxonTirea]

Yup, should be legalized. When people are dying slowly and painfully, they should have a choice.

[rasomaso]

I think it should be allowed.

[josie20]

I agree with everyone who's posted so far. I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Everyone should have a choice in what they do with their life.

[ZenitYerkes]

Nah, I don't think so.

I believe that legalizing euthanasia is not risk-free and everyone dying the moment they would like; it could easily lead to situations such as hospitals deciding who deserves to live and who doesn't, just to save in costs for example; or old people asking for euthanasia when they're not suffering from any physical pain, but rather a depression for their relatives not coming to the old people's house, or feeling lonely. Also, the measurement of pain is subjective and dependent on the patient's ability to withstand it.

Pain is a part of life and specially on the last stages of it, and for me the last moment where to prove your strength to yourself. But that's me.

Euthanasia is actually a Pandora box: once opened it cannot be shut down again, and its contents -both good and bad- will be spread out.

[stdout]

Originally Posted by ZenitYerkes

Pain is a part of life and specially on the last stages of it, and for me the last moment where to prove your strength to yourself. But that's me.

Can't say I agree. At all.

I sincerely hope that if you have a pet and it suffers greatly in old age, or due to an accident etc, you have it put down, rather than letting it 'prove its strength'...

[ZenitYerkes]

Originally Posted by stdout

Can't say I agree. At all.

I sincerely hope that if you have a pet and it suffers greatly in old age, or due to an accident etc, you have it put down, rather than letting it 'prove its strength'...

Add the "to yourself" to the sentence. The pet doesn't or does want to prove anything since first of all it can't speak for what it wishes.

See, if you're a familiar and see your grandfather suffering greatly from his last heart attack, you may recommend him to receive euthanasia. But if he says he does not want it at all, you can't force him.

If it's my fate, I would not mind dying painfully. Why? I don't deserve to simply run away from the situation. I don't want to.

[Human No More]

Originally Posted by ZenitYerkes

Nah, I don't think so.

I believe that legalizing euthanasia is not risk-free and everyone dying the moment they would like; it could easily lead to situations such as hospitals deciding who deserves to live and who doesn't, just to save in costs for example; or old people asking for euthanasia when they're not suffering from any physical pain, but rather a depression for their relatives not coming to the old people's house, or feeling lonely. Also, the measurement of pain is subjective and dependent on the patient's ability to withstand it.

There is a huge difference between actually helping people who ask and deciding not to treat people to save money (which hospitals already do anyway, especially in countries without healthcare). Eligibility should not be linked to a condition anyway, anyone should have it available if they wanted it provided they were considered stable and understanding what they wanted... or would you like to make suicide illegal too?
Pain may vary depending on ability to tolerate it, but why should people have to at all if they don't want to?

Pain is a part of life and specially on the last stages of it, and for me the last moment where to prove your strength to yourself. But that's me.

Fair enough, but not everyone feels such a pointless need. I'd rather have things be over quickly than end up spending the rest of my life dying of something painful, or slowly losing feeling and control throughout my body, or lying there, aware but unable to move, or any other of the MANY nasty things life can do to a person if they are unlucky.

Originally Posted by stdout

Can't say I agree. At all.

I sincerely hope that if you have a pet and it suffers greatly in old age, or due to an accident etc, you have it put down, rather than letting it 'prove its strength'...

Very well said...
Doesn't it seem at wrong that we protect animals from unnecessary suffering, yet in many places, the same protection is not even available on a voluntary basis for humans? If individuals WANT to be kept alive in pain and suffering as long as they want, then that may seem immoral (and a waste of resources which in the case of healthcare could have gone to someone who needed them) to me, but it is their choice, but people should not be denied the freedom to choose a painless, dignified death if they wish.

[ZenitYerkes]

Originally Posted by Human No More

... or would you like to make suicide illegal too?

Shouldn't means to cope with the pain being offered before means to end with one's life?

Like, therapy, proper painkillers, stays with the relatives and friends,...

[Lyra]

I see your point, but euthanasia is letting someone WHO WANTS to die die. you're talking about killing someone against their will.

[Marley]

I agree with the majority... If that person truly wants to die they should simply be allowed to, I've no idea why in the world of today we don't allow euthanasia, sure it's like taking someones 'valuable' life, but the reason 99.9% of the time that they want to die in the first place is because their life holds no 'value' anymore...

[Lyra]

I should mention in the original avatar script draft, tsu'tey doesn't die how he does in the film. He has his queue cut off by a human, and is on the ground crying and in agony, and he begs Jake to kill him, which he does.

Euthanasia anyone?

[rasomaso]

Originally Posted by Lyra

Euthanasia anyone?

Not yet, I'm not ready.