Robles 1

Javier Robles
Pd 8
The Choice of Life
Pamela Bone once said I'm not afraid of being dead. I'm just afraid of what
you might have to go through to get there (Bone Online). Euthanasia is important
to know about because one day we might face the adversity of getting a terminally
ill disease and having the choice of continuing living with the pain or choosing to
end it. The controversy over euthanasia is if it should be legalized, many people are
in favor of this idea but others do not support it.
The topic I have chosen is should euthanasia be legalized because I have not
heard too much about it and I am very curious. I dont know too much about the
topic but I have heard a lot about something similar recently. On the news it came
up that a women in Texas since November had been kept alive by live support and
was pronounced brain dead few days after her accident but the state did not let the
family take her off life support, Of course this is a bit different from the topic but it is
along the same lines regarding the end of a life and choices.
I selected this topic because it interested me the fact that a decision as
ending your life for an illness can play out and if people are in favor or against this.
This made me wonder the choices you are given by doctors if you are terminally ill
and are suffering a lot of pain. Also I selected this topic because I wonder if children
are also affected by this and if parents can or cannot have any say in their future.
Most of the information I found derived from online databases such as sirs,
but much came from around the web. The most helpful sources were ones that
came from news articles and books. My least helpful sources were from articles that
expressed too much personal views/beliefs. One problem I encountered was having
to choose between statistics that mattered and those who were outdated and
irrelevant to the topic. I overcame this problem by using more sources that provided
more up to date information and were very easily understood.

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Euthanasia has been around for many centuries and has always been
considered a controversial topic. Euthanasia is defined as knowingly and
intentionally performing an act that is explicitly intended to end another person's
life in cases of incurable illness and the act is undertaken with empathy and
compassion. In the novel Utopia by Sir Alex Moore it says "They console the
incurably ill by sitting and talking with them and by alleviating whatever pain they
can. Should life become unbearable for these incurables the magistrates and priests
do not hesitate to prescribe euthanasia.... they end their lives willingly either by
starvation or drugs that dissolve their lives without any sensation of death"(Staff
Online).The quote shows where the word euthanasia derived from and how it was
used to symbolize piety for those who are sick. Laws against euthanasia have been
around for many decades in which New York was one of the first states to pass a law
against it, a New York commission led by Dudley Field drafts a criminal code that
prohibits "aiding" a suicide and "furnish[ing] another person with any deadly
weapon or poisonous drug, knowing that such person intends to use such weapon or
drug in taking his own life"(Staff Online). This shows even from the 1800s people did
not approve of it and even till this day euthanasia continues to be controversial. The
Hippocratic Oath plays a large role in why euthanasia is seen as something wrong,
just as well as people religious belief. The Hippocratic Oath is a statement in which a
doctor must swear not to give a poison or deadly drug to anyone who ask for it or
give a suggestion of using one(Staff Online).
Having a choice is always a good thing. There are many people who believe
euthanasia should be legal because it promotes a death with dignity (Mchugh
Online). There are many people that see the positives of euthanasia, one writer
wrote While refusing further life-sustaining treatment in this manner may look
distinct from swallowing barbiturates to take one's own life PAS leads to a more

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peaceful, serene and dignified death whereas dehydrating and starving to death
entail weeks of severe and needless suffering (Ho Online). Seeing people in pain is
not a good thing and there should always be an option to relieve that pain and
suffering without causing the people in ones live too much worries. New Mexico has
recently legalized euthanasia which has benefited many people, New Mexicans,
both healthy and sick, now enjoy the comfort and peace of mind that come with
knowing they can prevent a prolonged, agonized dying process at the end of
life(Bryan Online). The people who support euthanasia this lift a burden of their
shoulder and opens new doors to other people accepting it as well. Just as well
courts begin to rule for euthanasia, patients have a fundamental right to seek aid
in dying because the New Mexico Constitution prohibits the state from depriving a
person from enjoying life and liberty or seeking and obtaining safety and happiness
(Bryan Online). This as well benefits the community because if more states file for
euthanasia and gains more support this may cause a nationwide approval. Only
time will tell if it truly gains the support necessary to continuing benefitting the life
of many.
Centuries of rituals and belief may be tarnished. Many people argue against
euthanasia because doctors should be trying to save people lives not end them. It is
proven that many doctors do not support euthanasia, Only one in five doctors
surveyed by the Canadian Medical Association said they would be willing to perform
euthanasia if the practice were legalized in this country. Twice as many - 42 percent
- said they would refuse to do so (Kirkey Online). This shows that doctors strongly
follow their pledge of trying to saves lives not end them. Often doctors reject the
idea because there is still a chance the person may survive Dr. Ken Stevens, a
radiology oncologist in Oregon, said he had a terminally ill cancer patient ask him
for the medication in 2000. The woman, Jeanette Hall, wanted no more treatment,

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he said, but he convinced her that treatment would help. He said he talked to her
about her fears and persuaded her to try radiation and chemotherapy. Five years
later, he said, he saw Hall in a restaurant, and she thanked him for saving her life
(Hallenbeck Online). This proves that hope and faith should be the last thing a
person should lose in life. There is also the factor that people may believe that no
one cares about them, Together with the increasing cost pressure in the health
sector and the increasing loneliness of older people, organised assistance for
suicide is a breeding ground which promotes suicide," Roland Graf, a priest who is
vice-president for Human Life International Switzerland, told a separate news
conference. "The pressure is growing on people who can no longer give to society
what is expected of them. They increasingly feel themselves as a burden for society
and their relatives"(Thomasson Online). This symbolizes ones strive for being selfreliant but losing it becoming a hassle for the people around you which many see as
not a good thing. There are many significant cons that maybe reason why
euthanasia may not be legalized nationwide.
There are many reasons why euthanasia should be legal and also why it
should not. My personal stand point is that it should not be. I can see why so many
people support euthanasia a reason being a death with dignity (Mchugh Online),
but for me hope is the last thing one should lose and miracles can always happen.
One pro argument that I do agree with is that it can bring a sort of comfort and
peace to people because you have a solution. There is also one pro argument that I
do not agree with that being that we put pressure on those who are sick and judge
them because they don't contribute to society, personally I believe this is the time
we become more involved in the persons life showing them love and affection.
Hopefully more people become aware of this topic and try to help find solutions.