Euthanasia Informative Essay
The Controversy of Euthanasia One of the biggest and most controversial topics throughout society today is the act of euthanasia in humans. In the medical field, euthanasia is commonly known as assisted suicide that is essentially for terminally ill patients only. When thinking about euthanasia, Americans tend to relate it towards the rights for animals, but in this specific example I will focus on the controversial topic of legalization on behalf of people who are professionally diagnosed with a life-threatening diseases. This will not include minorities under the age of eighteen or the elderly over the age of sixty. Thus when looking at the data in today’s society, euthanasia is clearly defined as taking action of ending a person’s life to relieve persistent and relentless pain. As of today, the majority of our nations population believes that euthanasia is immoral. Although euthanasia is illegal in the United States currently, some citizens argue in defense of dying peaceful with dignity rather then suffer in a hospital bed for months on end. After several decades of consideration, euthanasia is extremely difficult task to break down due to both disagreements within the choice for and against this practice. For instance, the term ‘euthanasia’ comes from the Greek words eu meaning god, and thanatos meaning death (Manning 2). Euthanasia can also be referred to as ‘mercy killing’ or the practice of assisting someone the aid of death whether it may be legal or illegal, depending on a country's jurisdiction. In other countries it is legal, like Belgium, Norway, Sweden, and Albania. Most of the United Kingdom, since 2009, declared legalization in all hospitals for medical euthanasia under the condition that a patient is suffering from chronic pain along with an incurable disease (Mattlin). The specific classification of euthanasia within legal jurisdiction becomes more complex when looking at what is considered fair and what is unjust. During the 1300s suicide or
Cited: Humphrey, Derek. "Biography, Information and Resources of Derek Humphrey." Derek Humphry - Biography, Information and Resources - Derekhumphry.com. Final Exit Network, 2 Sept. 2010. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. <http://www.derekhumphry.com>. Manning, Michael. "Historical Timeline – Euthanasia." Euthanasia – ProCon.org. Web. <http://euthanasia.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000130>. Mattlin, Ben, comp. "The Debate About Assisted Suicide." The New York Times. The New York Times, 05 Nov. 2012. Web. 27 Feb. 2013. Mattlin, Ben. "Suicide by Choice? Not So Fast.." The New York Times. The New York Times, 01 Nov. 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. Miller, Mike. "Dr. Death, Jack Kevorkian, Dies at 83." Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 03 June 2011. Web. 26 Mar. 2013. <http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/03/us-kevorkian- idUSTRE7523JP20110603>. Nitschke, Philip. "Assisted Suicide/ Voluntary Euthanasia." Exit International. ABC Compass, Exit International, 10 Jan. 2010. Web. 26 Mar. 2013. <http://www.exitinternational.net/>. Nordqvist, Christian. "What Is Euthanasia (assisted Suicide)?" Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 19 Mar. 2010. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. ProCon.org. "Top 10 Pros and Cons." ProCon.org. 18 May 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. Robinson, Bryan. "Kevorkian Sentenced to 10 to 25 Years for Murder." Court TV News. Courtroom Television Network LLC, 13 Apr. 1999. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. <http://web.archive.org/web/20070406114239/http://www.courttv.com/trials/kevorkian/0 41399_pm_ctv.html>.