Posted on 09/16/2012 9:52:35 AM PDT by wagglebee
An extraordinary poll published by the British Humanist Association (BHA) highlights the public ambivalence about assisted suicide and euthanasia. In conjunction with other recent surveys, it shows that more people are in favour of the law allowing the killing of relatively healthy patients like Tony Nicklinson than of those who are terminally ill.
The "respectable" wing of the assisted dying movement, Dignity in Dying, wants a very limited right to medically assisted suicide: only people who are terminally ill and in full possession of their faculties would qualify. Even this limited position is hugely controversial.
But the BHA believes that doctors should be allowed to help kill anyone who really wants to die and who cannot manage for themselves. This applies explicitly to perfectly healthy people as well as the terminally ill. And it is more popular than the limited position. No more than 15% of the population are opposed, or strongly opposed to it.
In fact, these attitudes are perfectly coherent and show that people understand there are clear limits to individualism. What the public wants is for everyone to have the right to determine as much as possible about their own lives. This includes the manner and moment of death. Suicide then becomes the grandest and clearest declaration that our lives are our own to do what we want with.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Perfectly stated.
Freepmail wagglebee to subscribe or unsubscribe from the moral absolutes ping list.
FreeRepublic moral absolutes keyword search
At the risk of crossing into dangerous moral territory, I might be willing to accept a private business which people could go to (unassisted -- if you can't get there on your own, then perhaps you care not responsible for the decision). People could go, register for a future appointment (two weeks out) and then come back (unassisted), pick up their designated pill and go immediately to a back room and get it over with. If you miss your appointment, you start over with a second appointment -- two weeks out.
As a truly personal decision, I think perhaps this could be an option. But any system which lends itself to getting rid of people, whom others have designated as "useless eaters", is definitely going in the wrong direction.
“....who’s to decide when a life is not worth living?...”
The Lord Jesus....
Possibly the owner of the vessel!
In America it will done fairly to make a determination in the best interests of society as a whole.
Government Death Panels"End Of Life Planning Boards" will conduct an unbiased evaluation for each person.
- Age?
- Christian?
- Gun Owner?
- Skin Color?
- Voting Record?
- Political Affiliation?
- Financial Donations To Lord Obama?
- Will it cost more than we will get back in taxes?
- Negative eMails or Tweets about Michelle Obama?
My best and oldest friend --- in fact, the only friend I still have from way back in high school days --- has a daughter age 20: sensitive, intelligent, lovely, and right now as we speak, suicidal. Her dad, a lovable and very decent man, has veen struggling with depression and alcohol, on and off, al his life. Mama and papa are in New Orleans, Lovely Girl was in NYC where she just 1 month ago dropped out of college.
I have no doubt in my mind that Lovely Girl could have gone to your proposed clinic, asked for the Sayonara Pill, gone back 2 weeks later and gotten it, gone back to her room with the pill, a glass of sherry and a book of poetry, and been dead by now.
I think, in fact, that that could have happened to any of us. Very few people would last the 8 years from 9th grade to the undergrad degree, if we had a painless and perfectly reliable pill, and especially no way to trace that it was actually suicide (spare your parents, you know.)
As it was, Lovely Girl called her parents, her Mama got some free ar tickets from some kind friends (they're not moneyed people), Mama flew into NYC and helped Lovely Girl get her stuff packed up, and they flew back to New Orleans, arriving back home last night.
Lovely Girl no doubt has a hard road ahead, since she thinks she's a friendless failure, headed for lifelong diappointment because she's, in temperament, her father's daughter, she's nothing (no husband, no lover, no degree, no profession, right now no clear future), and it would simply the world for others, if she was off the cast of this dismal play.
But I think God is still the author and stage-manager of her life (the script is partly but not wholly up to her) and she will come to know better days; and will learn deep lessons from the worst ones; and will; bless others not even knowing she's a blessing.
"Oh!" You might say. "No of course, SHE should't get the pill. There would have to be criteria."
But what criteria? As soon as thee are criteria, somebody else is deciding, "THIS kind of person is worth survival; THAT kind of person is not."
No, Sociaety MUST assume life is always a value, especially for the imperiled and fragile.
Otherwise, it's thr axe for all, bereft and bereaving one by one.
If we've learned ANYTHING from the culture of death, it is that they will always expand their definition of which lives are "not worth living."
Good points. Although I do put my toe in the water once in a while to explore a “broadminded” view of things, I would rather remain a pro-life absolutist. Thanks for helping me see that it is the best position.
And who speaks for the lord Jesus?
People make mistakes. Suicide is a mistake that cannot be undone.
I was once (27 years ago) at the intersection of about 6 life crises coming at once. I thought about drowning myself in the bathtub-- an impulse, I could have done it in a flash --- but what stopped me was realizing that my father or mother would find my body, and it would be too horribly cruel to them.
But sometimes people are so depressed they can't even think that far.
I will pray for your friend when I pray for my friend's daughter "Lovely Girl." I will ask Our Lord to draw to them the people they need.
Where there is life, there is hope. - Terri Schindler Schiavo
Thank you.
One sign of at least temporary hope. She called last night and promised to call again today to talk. She sounded upbeat, although I know that can be an illusion.
Thank you, BykrBayb.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.