Assisted suicides

[imtommygunn]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hereford/worcs/7675745.stm

Has anyone ever heard of "assisted suicides" before?

I wasn't aware any such thing was legal. I knew euthanasia in some places but not this.

Very very wrong in my opinion.

[orangeman]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hereford/worcs/7675745.stm

Has anyone ever heard of "assisted suicides" before?

I wasn't aware any such thing was legal. I knew euthanasia in some places but not this.

Very very wrong in my opinion.

I'd be inclined to agee but it's very difficult to say what is going on in these cases.

[imtommygunn]

Yeah it's hard to know what a person's mindset is.

It's hard to believe it's legal though.

I wonder do they take any form of consideration for the other family members? (e.g. does their need to be approval etc.)

[mylestheslasher]

It is difficult to make a sweeping statement for or against "assisted suicide" or euthanasia. But I know this. If I was dying, in agony and being a burden my loved ones I think I'd like to put an end to it all. Ideally you would not want to involve anyone else but that might not always be possible. In such cases I don't believe criminalising the "helper" is fair.

[The Iceman]

very sad indeed

God help the lad that he thought it he had nothing left to live for

I can't believe there is an organisation out there to assist with someone taking their own life.

I caught myself thinking there that it was such a shame because of the lad's situation - but there should be no exceptions when it comes to this.

Life is life - and not ours to take away or assist in snuffing it out

[mylestheslasher]

There is a line in the report that clarifys Swiss Law on the matter

"... it was permitted as long as the person carries out the act themselves and the helper has no "direct interest". "

Am I alone in believing that this is not an unreasonable law?

For example, if the guy was paralysed everywhere except for his arm and so was able to shoot himself - should he himself them be a criminal? Should the maker of the gun be the criminal? The person who left the gun where he could reach it?

And lets all get high and mightly about the value of life either. If someone was  threatening any of our families with violence I doubt we'd think twice about pulling the trigger on them.

I'm not for legalising wily nily this type of thing but I believe there are circumstances where it should be allowed.

[Maiden1]

It's a tough subject.  If someone with all there faculties decides they do not want to go on after a certain point then it is hard to condemn them.  Not being able to use the toilet by yourself, losing your mental capacity etc can be tough.  It's when relatives come in and put pressure on someone as they don't want to look after them and don't want the money they where going to inherit going to a nursing home that it can get particularly dangerous.

[rosnarun]

the term 'assisted suicide' always reminds me of
'f**king for virginity'
GARDA Intelligence
Microsoft Works
friendly fire

[imtommygunn]

The law is what it is but how could anyone bring themselves to do a job where they were assisting suicides?

These things are always very sad and it's hard to know what goes through people's mind etc but the main reason I brought it up was that I read it and was shocked that this type of thing is legal.

[nifan]

Anyone ever watched Million Dollar Baby?

[imtommygunn]

Never heard of it.

It's on a related topic I assume?

[pintsofguinness]

Im against them because it just can't be controled or regulated - to much scope for someone to knock someone off and get away with it.

[milltown row]

hard to have a point of view on this unless you've been affected by the circumstances that surround it. put yourself in their shoes, be they carers or  ones going through a terminal illness that they suffer on a daily bases.

fortunately touch wood this hasn't happened and if it does  it would be difficult to decide whats best. Guinness is right very hard to control or regulate

[The Watcher Pat]

I think it would be hard for me to actually assist someone in this......but you never know if it was me and i was going to be a burden on people for years .....Who knows??? Very hard to have a opinion if you haven't been in that situation yourself!

[The Real Laoislad]

I'm not sure what to think,All i can say is a very close friend of mine has a father who is suffering from Alzheimer's
To see this man who was a big strong real man's man in this day,and also a great family man reduced to someone having to feed him,wash him, bring him to the toilet and clean up after him and also for him to have no idea who his wife,son and grand children are is just heartbreaking.
I told my own father one night I would prefer to see him buried in the grave yard than to see him like that