Excerpt
“I will not give a fatal draught to anyone if I am asked, nor will I suggest such a thing”. –THE OATH[1]
It exists is no clear-cut answer to the question of whether euthanasia should be made legal or not. “Euthanasia is the deliberate killing of a person who is very ill and going to die, in order to stop them suffering.”[2] Since it became legal in Netherlands, Belgium, Oregon and Washington, there has been existing a lot of debate about this bioethical topic. The following essay will discuss at first all arguments supporting legalisation of euthanasia. Then, there will be offered the arguments in contra. The author will conclude by stating that euthanasia should not be made legal, because of too much gaps in law leading to misuse.
Obviously the major argument in favour of euthanasia is that the person concerned is in great pain. In the same way the affected patient must not endure inhuman conditions further. “If a person is suffering considerable pain due to an incurable illness, then in some cases that person`s death is in his or her own interest.”[3]
In addition, people should not be strained to stay alive. Neither the law nor medical ethics call for that "everything be done" to continue a person breathing. Moreover, persistence, against the desires of the patient, that death be postponed by every means available is opposite to law and practice. Undoubtedly, it would also be brutal and inhumane. “The justification for his doing (the doctor) so is that the patient is in terrible agony, and since he is going to die anyway, it would be wrong to prolong his suffering needlessly.”[4]
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[1] From the book: Gillet, G.R. (2004). Bioethics in the Clinic: Hippocratic Reflections. p.211
[2] Search in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Online: Retrieved April 25, 2009 from http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/euthanasia
[3] From the book: Cohen, A.I., & Wellmann, C.H. (2005): Contemporary Debates in Applied Ethics. p. 163
[4] Paraphrasing from the book: Gillet, G.R. (2004). Bioethics in the Clinic: Hippocratic Reflections. p. 65