Euthanaisa and Physician Assisted Suicide

Live Dying, or Die Trying?

            All throughout childhood, kids are taught to appreciate things for quality, not quantity. This lesson is followed through life, starting at appreciating the toys a kid has, all the way up to enjoying the quality of life with family. Yet all of a sudden, life hits a rough patch, and this lesson is dropped. Terminal illnesses strike, and instead of appreciating life for quality, machines and technology take control of the life functions that the body can no longer do. In turn, they make each day just another 24 hours of pain and machine-controlled lifeless suffering. Why are terminally ill, miserable patients forced to live their final days in absolute suffering? When instead, the use of Euthanasia or Physician-Assisted Suicide could empower the patients to enjoy their last hours, doing what matters most to them, and enjoy life for the quality not quantity.

The question about whether Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide are immoral or a human right has been lingering for decades. Flare ups between arguing sides have come and gone in the past, but more recently the problem has been publicly displayed, making newspaper headlines and breaking news stories. In reality, the argument boils down to one question, should life be judged by quality or quantity? Often times, the biggest reason behind the protesting of this practice is the fact that many people aren't fully aware of all the information on the topic, in turn allowing everyone to make their own opinion based on small pieces of information.

Although Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted suicide are often lumped into one category, they are ultimately two completely separate practices. “Euthanasia is generally defined as the act of killing an incurably ill person out of concern and compassion for that person’s suffering,” (Euthanasia and Physician). Euthanasia is split into two sub groups: Active Euthanasia and Passive Euthanasia. Active Euthanasia is the...