Swanson 1

Xavier Swanson

Ms. Gardner

English 2

4 May 2015

Euthanasia: Should It Be Legalized?

Should doctors be allowed to kill people before their deaths, in some cases years before?

In the Netherlands 1 in 30 deaths are by euthanasia. Euthanasia is the purposeful ending of life to

end suffering. There is a debate over the morals of killing people who are suffering without hope

of relief intentionally. Some assert that all killing is fundamentally wrong so euthanasia cannot

be allowed. People who argue for euthanasia assert that killing those who cannot be treated and

want to die is a kindness. Maria Cheng, writer for Buffalo News newspaper, quotes the judge in a

recent UK court case on the legalization of euthanasia, who said the matter of euthanasia ”raises

profoundly sensitive questions about the nature of our society.” The case involved two severely

disabled men who were appealing for the legalization of euthanasia by doctors. Their appeal was

denied, but it is true that the legalization of euthanasia would mean that our society had become

desensitized to death and loss. Some theorize that such a desensitization could lead to the

“euthanasia” of society's undesirables, people with disabilities, or people who can’t or don’t

contribute to society. There was a recent law passed on this subject in Quebec:

With the adoption of Bill 52, Quebec joins the Netherlands,

Belgium and Luxembourg as one of the few jurisdictions in the

world to allow physicians to administer lethal injections to

suffering patients. A handful of U.S. states allow assisted suicide,

Swanson 2

in which physicians prescribe medication so patients can end their

own lives. Ms. Hivon has said "medical aid in dying" ­ the

euphemism Quebec lawmakers chose instead of euthanasia ­ will

only be administered to "a small number of people" whose

end­of­life suffering cannot be relieved by palliative care. "There

will be this emergency exit, there will be this exceptional option, in

circumstances of exceptional suffering," she said this week.

(Hamilton)

The arguments presented in favor of euthanasia are emotionally moving; however, the downsides

are too great. Euthanasia should not be legalized because there would be too much room for

human error, great intentions, and involuntary death.

On principle, anyone would argue in favor of euthanasia because it could end the

suffering of terminally ill people who are unable to bear living any longer. Robert­ Jan Bartunek

gives the example, “Children must also be shown to be terminally ill. The child makes the

decision, with parental consent.” to show that there are protections against wrongdoing. If these

protections were foolproof then there would be no problems. It is presented as an “emergency

exit” for those in “circumstances of considerable suffering”(qtd. in Hamilton). In the end, those

who support euthanasia believe that it is a good way to end the suffering of the incurably ill. It is

true that many suffer from incurable diseases and in some cases it would be appropriate to kill

them to spare them any more pain. However, it could also end up causing more pain through

misdiagnoses, involuntary euthanizations, and deaths of those deemed useless by society.

Swanson 3

It is true that many could be spared years of unnecessary suffering through the practice of

euthanasia. However, when all of the possible risks are taken into account, the prospect of

euthanasia becomes impossible to wholeheartedly support. An article in the Sunday Telegraph

quotes Charles Falconer, British Baron and Barrister, “‘The risk is that those who find

themselves in this position could request assistance with suicide, not because it is a heartfelt

wish, but because they see no alternative.’”, who touches upon a difficult aspect of euthanasia.

What if people felt like they had to die when they really don’t. Apparently, in Belgium, a bill

was passed that allows euthanasia for terminally ill children without an age limit (Sunday

Telegraph). So, any child diagnosed terminally ill could be potentially euthanized. If someone

made a mistake, healthy people could lose their lives. As well, those involved in the

administration of drugs would not be responsible for any backlash from the death (Daily

Telegraph). Based on the research, euthanasia is a risky venture into uncharted ethical waters and

there are risks of human error. If euthanasia poses this much risk why would people try to bring

it into the realm of common medical practice.

There is another, larger risk that euthanasia will be legalized with the greatest of

intentions, but your intentions become twisted and destroy you. We could end up just like Pip,

only with quite a few more dead people. To illustrate, “ in the Netherlands: a healthy woman,

with tinnitus, died by euthanasia; a healthy man who was lonely, depressed and recently retired

died by euthanasia; a healthy woman who was deaf died by euthanasia; among many other

cases.”(Schadenberg), these people’s fates could be the fate of more people if euthanasia is

legalized. In addition, there are people who would abuse the power to cause death and there will

always be a reason to cause death (Schadenberg). Assisted death for psychiatric conditions

Swanson 4

tripled in the Netherlands in 2013 (Schadenberg). Obviously, following people’s wishes is

important, but killing otherwise healthy or treatable people for no reason is a waste of life. As a

result, euthanasia cannot be legalized because people are unable to use it responsibly.

Ultimately, the worst fear of those who oppose legalization is commonplace involuntary

death. In particular, situations in which the person being killed is not mentally capable to refuse

or request the procedure and the hospital is attempting to save money by culling the patients.

Similarly, we want to avoid a situation in which people can be euthanized like animals in

shelters. Recent statistics from the Netherlands indicate that there are at least 300 assisted deaths

without consent each year (Schadenberg). Obviously, in some cases it would be appropriate to

end an incapacitated person’s life. If they were about to suffer a slow agonizing death with no

hope of survival, for example. However, it is wrong to euthanize someone because a hospital is

trying to save money or they have a chance of survival lower than 25%. Therefore, euthanasia

cannot be legalized because there would be too many people willing to take advantage of the

ability to end life.

In conclusion, euthanasia should not be legalized because there is too much room for

human error, corruption of intention, and involuntary death. Euthanasia would cause

densitization towards death and it would infringe upon the value of life. If you want to die,

consider instead what your life means to the people who love you. If you have no one, consider

instead whether you could die without a single regret that you can resolve. If you have anything

left that you want to change or fix, then go out and fix it. After you have done that, come back

and consider again. Do it if you want to. Don’t do it if you don’t. Just make sure you’re not

hurting anyone else.

Swanson 5

Works Cited

Archer, Graeme. "Legalising Euthanasia Would Be Only the Start of Our Experiment." Daily

Telegraph. 15 Mar. 2014: p. 26. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

Bartunek, Robert­Jan. "Belgium Extends "Right­to­Die" to Terminally Ill Children." Reuters

Media. 13 Feb. 2014: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

Cheng, Maria. "UK Court Rules Against Euthanasia." Buffalo News. 31 Jul. 2013: n.p. SIRS

Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

Hamilton, Graeme. "Quebec Passes Bill Legalizing Euthanasia." National Post. 06 Jun. 2014: p.

A.1. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

"Life Is Too Precious for Lawmakers to Assist Its Ending." Sunday Telegraph. 13 Jul. 2014: p.

25. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

Thomasson, Emma. "Right­to­Die Movement Sees Gains as World Ages." Reuters Media. 12

Jun. 2012: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

Schadenberg, Alex. "A Dangerous Euthanasia Ruling." National Post. 07 Feb. 2015: A.13. SIRS

Issues Researcher. Web. 29 Apr. 2015.