[Caael]

Euthanasia, for those who don't know, is basically assisted suicide. The most common type of euthanasia is where somebody is dying from a terminal illness, or has recently recieved a disease that changed their life in a negative way (eg Quadriplegia due to a car crash). In such conditions, these people no longer want to live, due to crippling pain, or being unable to live their lives as they used to be able to and wish to die peacefully. This can be done in a variety of ways; most people just ask for somebody to "pull the plug", which means disconnecting life-support from them meaning they die peacefully. "Dr Death" otherwise known as Jack Kevorkian was a very controversial figure in the 1990's, who actively campaigned for legalising euthanasia, and created the Thanatron. A lot of controversy has surrounded the subject due to beliefs that it is murder, however if the person wanted to die, should their requests really be ignored for them to carry on living in pain?

Discuss all matters of assisted suicide in this thread.

[Quacnar]

Kevorkian was for assisted suicide...

[Moonear]

As long as the patient is in their right mind, they're in a considerably bad condition, and they give their consent, why should it be illegal? It's not like the doctor is choosing for them. Personally, if I had full body paralysis or some other condition, I wouldn't want to live any more. I couldn't see there being any point in living.

[Caael]

killercoz, on Dec 15 2008, 03:25 AM, said:

Kevorkian was for assisted suicide...

It's almost 3am, give me a break

[Quacnar]

It is where you are, not where I am. I couldn't have known.

[Toasty]

GL already made a topic for this two years ago.

Anyway, I say you should follow the wishes in their will. If they don't have a will, keep them alive for as long as at is financially feasable. After that, you should just pull the plug. Chances are that they aren't going to come out of it, especially if they're brain dead.

Heck, if they brain dead then there's no reason to keep them alive anyway. I mean, if they're in a coma, they at least have a chance of waking up, But if they're brain is fried, they're just flat out gone.

[Golden Legacy]

I don't know, I really have mixed feelings about this. Who's to decide what the patient would want? If there is even the slightest chance of recovery, is it not worth preserving life for?

[Blue]

Psh, assisted? Lazy ass suicidal people...
Lol, just kidding.

Seriously though, If they want to die then there shouldn't be any real issue. It's their life, shouldn't they be the ones to decide?

[Ironsight]

^ What if they are vegetables?

[Golden Legacy]

Right, but let's say we have a scenario where someone is in a vegetative state. Happened after an accident or a stroke, and we don't know what his or her wishes are.

Who makes the decision then?

[Ironsight]

Close family members would be my vote.

[Golden Legacy]

Hmm. I can understand the notion of putting someone out of endless pain, out of a meager existence without self, but how then should it be done? Active (i.e. administering drugs) or passive (removing all life support)?

[Gio]

Golden Legacy, on Dec 14 2008, 10:23 PM, said:

I don't know, I really have mixed feelings about this. Who's to decide what the patient would want? If there is even the slightest chance of recovery, is it not worth preserving life for?

Golden Legacy, on Dec 14 2008, 11:41 PM, said:

Right, but let's say we have a scenario where someone is in a vegetative state. Happened after an accident or a stroke, and we don't know what his or her wishes are.

Who makes the decision then?

I would have to agree with you. If they aren't capable of making the decision themselves and we don't know what decision they would make. Then who are we to say. Even if there is close family. For instance if you owned a car and your family just decided to take it to the junk yard. What right do they have to do that. Same goes for someones life. (crappy example)

about them being awake though, I sort of have mixed feelings. I think suicide in almost any form is a selfish act carried out while only thinking of yourself, I could however see why someone who was terminally ill would want to.

[Split Infinity]

It's not selfish if you think the world would be better off without you.

[Caael]

Golden Legacy, on Dec 15 2008, 07:02 AM, said:

Hmm. I can understand the notion of putting someone out of endless pain, out of a meager existence without self, but how then should it be done? Active (i.e. administering drugs) or passive (removing all life support)?

Thanatron. Contains anaesthesia and lethal injections so it's painless and quick.

[Gio]

Split Infinity, on Dec 15 2008, 01:59 AM, said:

It's not selfish if you think the world would be better off without you.

I am not talking about that. I mean that it is selfish because whenever you are doing it, you are thinking only of yourself. Not the friends and family that are going to miss you, just yourself, and all the pain YOUR in.

[Split Infinity]

Most people don't commit suicide with the knowledge that they'll be missed.

[Gio]

Split Infinity, on Dec 15 2008, 05:26 PM, said:

Most people don't commit suicide with the knowledge that they'll be missed.

They don't think that they will be missed. I find it very unlikely that there is even just a small amount of people out there who don't have anyone that would miss them.

[Ironsight]

So they have to put themselves through their own pain for everyone else's sake? That sucks.

[Split Infinity]

@Gio: That's my point. You can't call them selfish with that frame of mind.

[Gio]

Miley Cyrus, on Dec 15 2008, 06:50 PM, said:

So they have tp put themselves through their own pain for everyone else's sake? That sucks.

Split Infinity, on Dec 15 2008, 06:50 PM, said:

@Gio: That's my point. You can't call them selfish with that frame of mind.

While it does suck. I am not incorrect when I say that it is selfish.

[Split Infinity]

I'd take deluded over selfish.

[Blue]

Weren't we talking about Euthanising Spli...
I mean...
I've got a funny question, what happens if the person was a burdden on the world, would it be selfish for them to get assisted suicide then?

[Toasty]

I think some people are misunderstanding this.

It's not assisted suicide. The person in question is either brain dead or in a coma. They're aren't awake.

It's not whether the person thinks that the world is better off without them or not, it's whether the person has any chance of waking up or not.


If the person is brain dead, then there's no reason to keep them alive. They're not comming back. If they're in a coma, they have a chance, and therefore you might want to keep them on life support for as long as you can depending on the likelihood that they'll wake up, or whether or not you can't bare to pull the plug.


It isn't assisted suicide.

[Kuchiyose]

Quote

I think some people are misunderstanding this.

It's not assisted suicide. The person in question is either brain dead or in a coma. They're aren't awake.

It's not whether the person thinks that the world is better off without them or not, it's whether the person has any chance of waking up or not.


If the person is brain dead, then there's no reason to keep them alive. They're not comming back. If they're in a coma, they have a chance, and therefore you might want to keep them on life support for as long as you can depending on the likelihood that they'll wake up, or whether or not you can't bare to pull the plug.


It isn't assisted suicide.

Quality of life I believe its called? I remember discussing this in RE. When cases pop up about Euthanasia, its normally a person appealing to the Court of Appeal (or hosue of Lords) stating they want to allow there Partner to help them die, normally there dying from terminal disease which is very painful to live with. However in our country if someone performed Euthanasia its classed as murder

[TheEnglishman]

I heard about a guy who was left paralyzed after a rugby scrum collapsed, who decided to have an assisted suicide. It's a difficult topic to even discuss, but I think it's fine in the right circumstances. I have respect for anyone who can make this decision, because I don't know if I could.

[Cube::Hard]

Sometimes it's hard to see an argument from both sides unless you imagine yourself going through it.

Imagine you have just been in a car crash. Your wife and two kids are dead. You are in full paralysis. People will be feeding you, essentially going to the bathroom for you, and waiting on you hand and foot for the rest of your natural life. Is it really fair to say "no sir, you must endure this for the next 30 years" ?

[Nemphtis]

If someone wants to die, let them die. The only reason they want you to pull the plug is because they're too weak to even move. Else the person wouldn't be asking you, they'd just open the hospital window and jump the f*ck out.

In a world where we can kill healthy people from other countries in cold blood, I find it quite a joke that people are actually concerned about those who wish to die by their own will. Let's worry more about murder, and less about suicide.