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Suicide is legal. After all, ever see anyone arrested for committing suicide. The problem with assisted suicide, is that elderly, infirm, handicapped people could be "persuaded" to sign forms so that someone else can kill them. Once this starts, the move will be on to clean up dependents that are costing society a lot of money. Ever seen the movie Soyent Green, staring Charleton Heston. In that movie, people who reached a certain age were encouraged to kill themselves for "the good of society." I think its Brave New World, where people reach a certain age are automatically killed. Don't think it can't happen. People are evil. Taking restraints off them will get you more evil.
"Your life is yours alone, and no one should be able to force you to live."
(minor typo corrected)
A forward-thinking fellow once had a great credo. It said...Question everything. Unfortunately we live in a state (former great nation) where the idiots among us have handed over virtually ALL THEIR RIGHTS to the GOOBERMENT! So now that same GOOBERMENT of politicians of every stripe and all cloaked in the cloth of rascals, tells us what we can an cannot do by making it law. The late, great Jimmy Durante would have exasperatedly slapped himself and exclaimed..."What a revoltin' development dis is!".
"The next to last chapter in "The Book of Our Demise" is titled "Letting the Government Assume Our Personal Responsibilities."
Why not? How about a NP, or PA? Would that be ok? A doctor would be best able to use a method that would be both successful and with the least amount of pain. In other words, best able to let the person die with dignity. Instead they have to put a gun to their head, which might not be successful, and is messy and traumatic for those who find them. Or pills, they have to OD pills not meant to kill which can be a slow, painful death, if successful. Or jump in front of train, or hang themselves, etc. All gruesome, violent, and degrading. Why put someone who is already suffering so much they want to end it, through more suffering to accomplish it? This makes virtually no sense whatsoever.
It's NOT murder. You really need to look that word up.
Murder is the taking the life of someone against their will. You know... they don't want to give it up. Kind of like theft. You can't be accused of stealling my TV if I'm asking your to take it, now can you?
Starman....murder is not just taking the life of someone against their will, it is: "the intentional and unlawful killing of a human being"....
Suicide is legal. After all, ever see anyone arrested for committing suicide. The problem with assisted suicide, is that elderly, infirm, handicapped people could be "persuaded" to sign forms so that someone else can kill them. Once this starts, the move will be on to clean up dependents that are costing society a lot of money. Ever seen the movie Soyent Green, staring Charleton Heston. In that movie, people who reached a certain age were encouraged to kill themselves for "the good of society." I think its Brave New World, where people reach a certain age are automatically killed. Don't think it can't happen. People are evil. Taking restraints off them will get you more evil.
That is a fact, but I believe there are more good than evil, within the populace. You make a good point, but that is why we would have checks and balances. If you wish, we could have a video before and after, whatever it takes to allow people less suffering is what we should do. We cannot outlaw everything because some may abuse that right. Freedom and liberty to decide ones destiny is what needs the utmost protection. If unable to make that choice, then others will have to be allowed to make that choice for you - in the individuals best interest, not that of the state or the collective.
And we cannot pretend affordability is not a factor, it is. We cannot continue to pay millions to keep a body alive, that has little hope of improvement. (that is where the state would have an objective interest, as opposed to letting faith and hope prevail.
There was a man that wished to die sooner than later, because he wanted to leave his daughter his savings, instead of losing everything he had built in a lifetime to pay for treatments that would only extend the inevitable.
I think that's a good enough reason right there. Why should people be forced to provide the state with all their savings, home, etc., against their will?
Last edited by claudhopper; 01-22-2013 at 03:55 PM..
Suicide is legal. After all, ever see anyone arrested for committing suicide. The problem with assisted suicide, is that elderly, infirm, handicapped people could be "persuaded" to sign forms so that someone else can kill them. Once this starts, the move will be on to clean up dependents that are costing society a lot of money. Ever seen the movie Soyent Green, staring Charleton Heston. In that movie, people who reached a certain age were encouraged to kill themselves for "the good of society." I think its Brave New World, where people reach a certain age are automatically killed. Don't think it can't happen. People are evil. Taking restraints off them will get you more evil.
Suicide lives in a gray territory of legality. It's classically illegally, but because it's unenforceable, no one is really prosecuted for it.
Your slippery slopes aside, Washington's law has a means to control for the unsound mind. A formal request has to be made--twice, and two doctors have to sign off on it. People can already persuade others into killing themselves, and it doesn't require legalization of assisted suicide to do it.
I'm going to assume they didn't give their consent, because they were incapable of doing so, others closest to you, along with doctors, will make decisions on your behalf. Your relative doesn't have free license to kill you. You are painting an unrealistic picture out of fear.
If your caregiver is trying to kill you, or abuse you, and you allow that to continue without complaint, then that is on you. They would then have to convince a team of doctors to kill you against your will - not going to happen.
I don't think my fear is unreasonable claudhopper, nor unrealistic...I mean just look at all the victims of society already who were tried, convicted and sent to jail....only to years later be found innocent...Why do you blame an elder for "allowing abuse", and not complaining about it, yet see it as alright that someone else takes his life? Don't you think that this same abused elder could also suffer an unwanted death?(especially if he's been declared incompetent and has lost his power of attorney) ..At first it would be " a team of doctors", but for how long before that changes. Once the foot is in the door (so to speak) that "door" could end up wide open.
Starman....murder is not just taking the life of someone against their will, it is: "the intentional and unlawful killing of a human being"....
Logically, murder requires both intent and unlawful. It's a purely legal definition, and we readily make exceptions for people to kill others, notably in self-defense and in war.
Starman....murder is not just taking the life of someone against their will, it is: "the intentional and unlawful killing of a human being"....
and the law allows for exceptions, such as self-defense, police actions, the military, death penalty etc. Life, liberty and happiness - liberty and happiness of their choice, not yours.
If someone was going to be tortured, let's say by enemy combatants, and begged you to kill him before they take him away - what would you do? The idea is that he is injured and can't escape with you.
I'm for it. I have COPD and struggling to draw that last breath with no hope of the next being any better does not appeal to me
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Works for Me......Too!
. It said...Question everything. Unfortunately we live in a state (former great nation) where the idiots among us have handed over virtually ALL THEIR RIGHTS to the GOOBERMENT! So now that same GOOBERMENT of politicians of every stripe and all cloaked in the cloth of rascals, tells us what we can an cannot do by making it law. The late, great Jimmy Durante would have exasperatedly slapped himself and exclaimed..."What a revoltin' development dis is!".
