Euthanasia: Precious Life :: Free Euthanasia Essay

Euthanasia Precious LifeMy impression is that the idea of euthanasia, if not the practice, isgradually gaining credenza indoors our society. People like Jack Kevorkianattribute this to an increasing inclination to devalue human life, but I do notbelieve that this is the major factor. The acceptance of euthanasia is muchmore likely to be the result of unthinking sympathy and benevolence. It is aneasy step from this very human response to the view that if soulfulness would bebetter off dead, then it must be right to kill that person. Although I respectthe compassion that leads to this conclusion, I believe that this conclusion iswrong. I want to show that euthanasia is wrong. It is inherently wrong, butit is also wrongly judged from the standpoints of self-interest and of practicaleffects.Before presenting my arguments, it would be well to define euthanasia.An congenital aspect of euthanasia is that it involve fetching a human life. Also,the person whose life is taken must be som eone who is believed to be sufferingfrom an incurable disease or injury from which recovery cannot reasonably beexpected. Finally the action must be deliberate and intentional. Thereforeeuthanasia is intentionally taking the life of a presumably hopeless person.It is important to be clear about the deliberate and intentional aspectof the killing. If a hopeless person is presumptuousness an injection of the wrong drug bymistake and this causes his/her death, this is wrongful killing but noteuthanasia. The killing cannot be the result of an accident. In addition, ifthe person is granted an injection of a drug that is believed to be necessary totreat their disease or better their condition and the person dies as a result,then this is neither wrongful killing nor euthanasia. The intention was to makethe patient well, not kill them.Every human being has a natural inclination to continue living. Ourreflexes and responses suffer us to fight attackers, flee wild animals, and dodgeout of the way of trucks. In our daily lives we exercise caution and c arnecessary to protect ourselves. Our bodies atomic number 18 similarly structured forsurvival right down to the molecular level. When we are cut, our capillariesseal shut, our blood clots, and fibrogen is produced to start the process ofhealing the wound. When we are invaded by bacteria, antibodies are produced tofight against the alien organism, and their remains are swept out of the body byspecial cells designed for clean-up work.It is enough I believe to recognize that the government activity of the human