Euthanasia on air

Saw it on Yahoo! home page. A UK man televises his assisted suicide. What do you think about this?

Pretty crap TV I'd have thought, I mean, everyone knows how it ends.

What do YOU think about it?

I saw a documentary film about a guy with MS years ago. He was an S&M devotee and performance artist who lead a fascinating life. I'm sure that film showed the point of his death, or a point very close, and also his dead body. It had a very profound effect on me. I was by it, but it did make me think about the nature and meaning of death and loss. I don't recall much controversy around that film, and on balance I think those final scenes were a very important part of the finished film. But that guy, and those around him, did not choose for him to die. Far from it, in fact.

Euthanasia is such an controversial subject because it will affect us all at some point in our lives. Everyone experiences someone close to us becoming so poorly that they are forced to accept that they will not get better. Many will become entirely dependant on those who are close to them and may wish to release them from this burden. Many will feel that their quality of life has deteriorated to an unacceptable degree, and wish to hasten the end. I would like to support the right of someone to make this decision, but would want to see the process very tightly controlled to ensure that nobody felt pressure to take the choice, made the decision when confused or depressed or simply bored. I am sure there are people out there in a much better physical state than Stephen Hawkins who feel ready to die and yet there's a man who, last I heard, was making full use of his life.

The question of who is allowed to be involved in the decision to die is also an emotive one. Should the person alone decide? Should family and friends have a say? Just the doctors? There's no answer that suits all cases. How horrible to contemplate an argument between siblings over a parent's right to die. What if they couldn't agree? How would it affect the will?

In practice, I'm sure that there's plenty of euthanasia going on in this country. The average sick person usually has access to a stack of things that would finish them pretty quickly and painlessly if taken in the wrong quantities. Medicine can keep very poorly people alive, and simply removing medication can be enough to end a life. A lot of people's lives are ended by turning off a life support machine, isn't that a form of euthanasia?

Hunter S Thompson endured quite a bit of painful surgery towards the end of his life and always said that the only thing that kept him going was the fact that he could end it all any time he wanted. Always a man to walk it like he talked it, that is just what he did - he shot himself in the head. Euthanasia legislation doesn't really apply when you keep a loaded pistol in your writing desk.

I didn't see tonight's film, by the way. I didn't want to.

A dead loss...........

Controversial indeed.

I'm all for it myself. If I ever got to the stage in life where I couldn't look after myself or do everyday tasks BUT had all my 'marbles', I wouldn't want to stay around and if I couldn't do it myself, I would definitely ask someone to help me. Some may think it a selfish attitude; in a way it is I suppose.

However, if someone close asked me to help them in that situation;I don't know if I could!

Pretty pointless post really

Kath wrote:

Pretty pointless post really

Yeah well, no sense breaking the habit of a lifetime I suppose

:p

"You'll never understand how much you want to live your life until the day comes when you think you might loose your life"

      Barry-Albin Dyer (funeral director - Bermondsey)

Wise words mate !

Euthanasia on air?? Not going to get you very far, is it?

Try euthanasia on a carefully prescribed combination of lethal drugs. Or just do it the unpretentious way: a litre of vodka and 200 paracetamol.

You'll be more than pleased with the results.

PETER COATES'S BELATED REDEMPTION wrote: Euthanasia on air?? Not going to get you very far, is it?

Try euthanasia on a carefully prescribed combination of lethal drugs. Or just do it the unpretentious way: a litre of vodka and 200 paracetamol.

You'll be more than pleased with the results.

bUT IF I LIVE WILL i support STOKE?

Rocket Mick wrote:

PETER COATES'S BELATED REDEMPTION wrote: Euthanasia on air?? Not going to get you very far, is it?

Try euthanasia on a carefully prescribed combination of lethal drugs. Or just do it the unpretentious way: a litre of vodka and 200 paracetamol.

You'll be more than pleased with the results.

bUT IF I LIVE WILL i support STOKE?

Naaaaah, paracetamol destroys your liver, not your brain.

Actually a litre of Vlad and 200 para's would make great TV, administer on Friday morning, spend the weekend watching them turn yellow (and hopefully saying "I've changed my mind" a couple of times.....and you're guaranteed your grand finale some time on Sunday evening.

isaac wrote: "You'll never understand how much you want to live your life until the day comes when you think you might loose your life"

      Barry-Albin Dyer (funeral director - Bermondsey)
                          

Wise words mate !

Not arf...........

Seems more like voyeuristic sensationalism rather than consciousness raising.

DigitalWaters wrote: Seems more like voyeuristic sensationalism rather than consciousness raising.

wow, I agree with DW

For it if the disease would normally kill without human intervention (medicine, machines, etc)

Against it if they would normally live (but could probably be pesuaded if in alot of pain).

What I have found interesting are the same people that are against it usually will step on a smaller animal or insect in 'pain' to 'put it out of its misery'... but won't afford the same opportunity to people

[magenta]cozmonite61[/magenta] wrote: Saw it on Yahoo! home page. A UK man televises his assisted suicide. What do you think about this?

i have to say welcome back my favourite daft mental sod well done