The Individual's Right to Die

The Individual’s Right to Die

Jon A. Bastian

English Composition 112

Professor Bingue-Romano

April 16, 2012

The Individual’s Right to die

No one lives forever. Moses eventually died at age 120, according to Deuteronomy 34:5-7, although urban myth places his age at 800 years when he died. Everyone dies, some sooner, some later. In the last century, the oldest living person, Kamato Hongo, 1887-2003, lived to be 116 years, 45 days (Frater, J. The Ultimate Book of Top Ten Lists; 2010). But who wants to live forever when the human body and mind deteriorating to a state of decrepitude and mush, despite science’s best efforts to prevent this effect of aging or disease. Let this be clear: dying is as natural as the transition of day to night, night to day and the rising and falling of the tides. So why is there such widespread societal opposition to a person causing his own death when death is inevitable? Every person must have the right to die, despite legal, religious or moral claims.

Having the right to die is the ultimate life-affirming, life-ending heroic act a human being can take. How can civilization come to the 21st century after hundreds of thousands of years of evolution and still there is a question of man’s right to die, regardless of the circumstances? Euthanasia, or “mercy killing,” is practiced worldwide and has existed from the onset of human existence. Voluntarily ending one’s life through suicide or second-party assistance like physician-assisted suicide (PAS) or euthanasia allows a merciful, death-with-dignity ending. According to the Nightingale Alliance, a non-profit organization which is anti-euthanasia and anti-PAS, only the states of Oregon and Washington approve PAS and euthanasia. In Europe and overseas, PAS and euthanasia are legal and widely practiced in the Netherlands, while PAS and euthanasia are legal in Belgium and Luxembourg. Assisted suicide is technically not legal in Switzerland but widely practiced there. The...