Post by raynamcginty on Feb 11, 2015 7:14:32 GMT
Dignity in Death - Rayna McGinty
United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 3: "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person" You have the right to live. You have the right to be free. You have the right to feel safe within yourself. These are your rights. But of course there's a catch, that 'so called' freedom does not allow the control of ones death or when they feel life has now became an inconvenient gift. Euthanasia is subject to debate worldwide whether it be morally righteous or wrong in an individuals eyes. Every year in Britain 57000 patients die without being told that all efforts of treatment had ceased to cure them. Every year that is 57000 patients too much who die without the choice of dignity in death. This is unmitigatedly wrong, we as a developed species most definitely deserve to know, wether the truth bares brutality or happiness, wether or not we are going to survive.
The implications of this is that euthanasia is viewed as murder. This could not be more erroneous. We need to have a sensible attitude towards euthanasia and to try and put ourselves in the shoes of others who desire it. Euthanasia is a gateway to a universe where there is no suffering for victims who endure utter pain and anguish every day, the terminally ill who's last wish is to have control over their death. With this in mind, over 900 people are diagnosed with cancer everyday in the UK (Cancer Research) and many of these sufferers are faced with the agonising news of the disease being terminal. Although technology has elaborately advanced in the past few decades and pain can be managed much more effectively using drugs such as morphine and fentanyl, this does not take away from the fact that the patient is staring death in the face. They may feel like they have lost control over their life and the only way to regain this authority over this detrimental illness is to decide for themselves when they want to die and not when someone else decides for them. According to 'Statistic Brain' 55% of terminally ill patients die in pain and euthanasia could have been a potential solution to this. Further to this, there is the issue of people who are in a coma or have brain injuries as they cannot make this decision themselves. Euthanasia shouldn't be an easy way out furthermore rules and regulations should be tight and examinations carried out to decide wether an individual is a suitable candidate or not. We as civilised humans are entitled to have the right to dignity in death. It is our life, our death and our choice.
As if this were not enough, the law is said to protect society, yet all they do is target the innocent and punish them for carrying out a persons dying wish. One example of this is on the second of May 2002 a courageous woman, Diane Petty died of the deteriorating condition motor neuron disease where she was paralysed from the neck down. Diane Petty asked for an affirmation that her husband would not be prosecuted if he were to assist her suicide. Sadly this was denied. Who are we as a society to decide when, who with and how we die? Is there no true liberty left in this corrupt world? Assisted suicide is punishable for up to an astonishing fourteen years imprisonment in the UK and this needs to change now! According to "YouGov" 74% of the public believe that assisted suicide should be legalised. Every day, every hour, every minute victims of life shattering illnesses die the very way they always feared, in a slow, decaying, traumatic death.
The fact euthanasia is illegal has spawned far more shocking consequences than imaginable. Alternative methods of suicide are used, causing complete distress, discomfort and devastation to not only the sufferer but to their friends and family as they watch their loved one decay. We are inducing an unnecessary and unbearable amount of pain and horror onto the tormented, an illustration of this is that Tony Nicklinson, 58 died from a week of starvation after his plea of assisted suicide was rejected from court. Tony was subject to "locked-in" syndrome where he could not move or speak. Face to face with his inevitable death he felt this was the only way to die in dignity. It shouldn't have had to come to this. With this just being one example, there are thousands more. The devastating consequences of illegal euthanasia results in calamitous effects on the life of not only the ill but the relatives of the loved one that could have easily been avoided. In addition to this the "American Association of Suicidology" state that for every twenty five suicide attempts only one is actually 'successful'. Failed suicide can result in an even more destructive effect on the body and mental health of an individual and this added stress is needless. Euthanasia could eradicate this need for amateur suicide and make available an option to die in peaceful and dignified way. We must take a stand against this and fight for what is right, a better world without an added pressure on individuals through their last days on our planet. Euthanasia should not be frowned upon.
Opponents counter this with reasons being that euthanasia would be a cheap and easy exit for financially struggling individuals in areas where there is no NHS equivalent of such. They believe patients will opt for euthanasia to avoid the costs of extortionately expensive treatments of life threatening illnesses. This is wrong. "CNN" say that only 1.7% of deaths in the Netherlands, approximately three thousand people out of one hundred and forty thousand, have died as a result of euthanasia where it is legal. This is an extremely small minority contributing to country's annual deaths. The fact is that euthanasia would not create a wave of a country's population to die but would allow an individual to die by a method of their choice furthermore enabling their last moments to be of quality and dignified. Thus cutting out the unavoidable excruciating mental and physical anguish that they would have gone through without euthanasia.
We never accept torture and inflicting of pain on one another in the UK, for example bodily harm, abuse or harassment, so why do we subconsciously hurt individuals who are already suffering extreme terror in what the future may bring by denying them their right to die in dignity? In the near future euthanasia must be legalised to prevent further mass destruction the deprivation of this choice has already brought about. An intelligent reader will see the force of this argument and realise that euthanasia ultimately reduces the horror people are forced to feel on a daily basis and allows death with dignity to become a choice for the convalescent people of today. Because who are we to play God with someone's life?
Word Count: 1167
United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 3: "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person" You have the right to live. You have the right to be free. You have the right to feel safe within yourself. These are your rights. But of course there's a catch, that 'so called' freedom does not allow the control of ones death or when they feel life has now became an inconvenient gift. Euthanasia is subject to debate worldwide whether it be morally righteous or wrong in an individuals eyes. Every year in Britain 57000 patients die without being told that all efforts of treatment had ceased to cure them. Every year that is 57000 patients too much who die without the choice of dignity in death. This is unmitigatedly wrong, we as a developed species most definitely deserve to know, wether the truth bares brutality or happiness, wether or not we are going to survive.
The implications of this is that euthanasia is viewed as murder. This could not be more erroneous. We need to have a sensible attitude towards euthanasia and to try and put ourselves in the shoes of others who desire it. Euthanasia is a gateway to a universe where there is no suffering for victims who endure utter pain and anguish every day, the terminally ill who's last wish is to have control over their death. With this in mind, over 900 people are diagnosed with cancer everyday in the UK (Cancer Research) and many of these sufferers are faced with the agonising news of the disease being terminal. Although technology has elaborately advanced in the past few decades and pain can be managed much more effectively using drugs such as morphine and fentanyl, this does not take away from the fact that the patient is staring death in the face. They may feel like they have lost control over their life and the only way to regain this authority over this detrimental illness is to decide for themselves when they want to die and not when someone else decides for them. According to 'Statistic Brain' 55% of terminally ill patients die in pain and euthanasia could have been a potential solution to this. Further to this, there is the issue of people who are in a coma or have brain injuries as they cannot make this decision themselves. Euthanasia shouldn't be an easy way out furthermore rules and regulations should be tight and examinations carried out to decide wether an individual is a suitable candidate or not. We as civilised humans are entitled to have the right to dignity in death. It is our life, our death and our choice.
As if this were not enough, the law is said to protect society, yet all they do is target the innocent and punish them for carrying out a persons dying wish. One example of this is on the second of May 2002 a courageous woman, Diane Petty died of the deteriorating condition motor neuron disease where she was paralysed from the neck down. Diane Petty asked for an affirmation that her husband would not be prosecuted if he were to assist her suicide. Sadly this was denied. Who are we as a society to decide when, who with and how we die? Is there no true liberty left in this corrupt world? Assisted suicide is punishable for up to an astonishing fourteen years imprisonment in the UK and this needs to change now! According to "YouGov" 74% of the public believe that assisted suicide should be legalised. Every day, every hour, every minute victims of life shattering illnesses die the very way they always feared, in a slow, decaying, traumatic death.
The fact euthanasia is illegal has spawned far more shocking consequences than imaginable. Alternative methods of suicide are used, causing complete distress, discomfort and devastation to not only the sufferer but to their friends and family as they watch their loved one decay. We are inducing an unnecessary and unbearable amount of pain and horror onto the tormented, an illustration of this is that Tony Nicklinson, 58 died from a week of starvation after his plea of assisted suicide was rejected from court. Tony was subject to "locked-in" syndrome where he could not move or speak. Face to face with his inevitable death he felt this was the only way to die in dignity. It shouldn't have had to come to this. With this just being one example, there are thousands more. The devastating consequences of illegal euthanasia results in calamitous effects on the life of not only the ill but the relatives of the loved one that could have easily been avoided. In addition to this the "American Association of Suicidology" state that for every twenty five suicide attempts only one is actually 'successful'. Failed suicide can result in an even more destructive effect on the body and mental health of an individual and this added stress is needless. Euthanasia could eradicate this need for amateur suicide and make available an option to die in peaceful and dignified way. We must take a stand against this and fight for what is right, a better world without an added pressure on individuals through their last days on our planet. Euthanasia should not be frowned upon.
Opponents counter this with reasons being that euthanasia would be a cheap and easy exit for financially struggling individuals in areas where there is no NHS equivalent of such. They believe patients will opt for euthanasia to avoid the costs of extortionately expensive treatments of life threatening illnesses. This is wrong. "CNN" say that only 1.7% of deaths in the Netherlands, approximately three thousand people out of one hundred and forty thousand, have died as a result of euthanasia where it is legal. This is an extremely small minority contributing to country's annual deaths. The fact is that euthanasia would not create a wave of a country's population to die but would allow an individual to die by a method of their choice furthermore enabling their last moments to be of quality and dignified. Thus cutting out the unavoidable excruciating mental and physical anguish that they would have gone through without euthanasia.
We never accept torture and inflicting of pain on one another in the UK, for example bodily harm, abuse or harassment, so why do we subconsciously hurt individuals who are already suffering extreme terror in what the future may bring by denying them their right to die in dignity? In the near future euthanasia must be legalised to prevent further mass destruction the deprivation of this choice has already brought about. An intelligent reader will see the force of this argument and realise that euthanasia ultimately reduces the horror people are forced to feel on a daily basis and allows death with dignity to become a choice for the convalescent people of today. Because who are we to play God with someone's life?
Word Count: 1167