Euthanasia4
Euthanasia has become an issue of increasing attention because of Dr. Jack Kevorkian's assisted suicides. Dr. Jack Kevorkian, an U.S. physician, has injected physician-assisted euthanasia sharply into the agenda of public issues widely discussed in the United States. His activities have brought with them several moral, ethical and legal concerns regarding this controversial topic. Who has the right to choose death, and under what circumstances? What responsibility does a physician have to sustain life when witnessing a patient suffering? What role should law play in this personal matter, and who should have the authority to control individual wishes regarding his or her own body? Euthanasia should be legalized so, if we ever have a loved one that is suffering and death is certain, that we have the choice to ease their pain. With the passing of this law that most people would be against the right-to-die, not so. In a poll cited in a 1998 issue of USA Today, eighty percent of Americans think sometimes there are circumstances when a patient should be allowed to die, compared to only fifteen percent think doctors and nurses should always do everything possible to save a person's life. It also showed that eight in ten adults appr
Not all the should everything be done to preserve a life. The advances of technology have disturbed the natural balance of life and death. No longer does a person die when they are supposed to; life-support now prevents that. Opponents say doctors should not play God by killing patients, but do they realize that by prolonging death the medical profession is doing exactly that? Christian Barnard, at the World Euthanasia Conference, was quoted as saying, "I believe often that death is good medical treatment because it can achieve what all the medical advances and technology can't achieve today. And that is stop the suffering of the patient" (Battin 21) ove of state laws that allow medical care for the terminally ill to be removed or withheld, if that is what the patient "wishes", whereas only thirteen percent disapproved of the laws. Also seventy percent think th4e family should be allowed to make the decision about treatment on behalf of the patient, while another five percent think this is suitable only in some cases (Colasnto 62). The United States was founded because people wanted to be free. Americans have fought for freedom ever since. If euthanasia is made illegal, it will take away one of the founding freedoms, the freedom of choice, the freedom for a person to choose a death with dignity and free of pain and suffering for themselves and their families. As Seneca quoted in Bolander writes, "A punishment to some, to some a gift, and to many a favor" (Bolander 24). Seventy percent think it is justified at least sometimes for a person to kill his or her spouse, if he or she is suffering terrible pain caused by a terminal illness. About half the public think a ""oral right" to suicide exists if a person has an incurable disease or is suffering great pain with no hope of recovering (Colasnto 63). And about half of
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Approximate Word count = 1238
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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