Should Euthanasia Be Allowed?

Euthanasia allows a human being to die with dignity. Originating from the Greek terms "eu" (happy or good) and "thantos" (death), euthanasia means literally "happy death" or "good death". It is commonly defined as the act of bringing about the death of a hopelessly ill and suffering person in a relatively quick and painless way for reasons of mercy (LeBaron). Assisted suicide is a form of euthanasia, when a person helps commit suicide or provides information of how to do so to another person. A person taking another person's life without his or her request in order for that person not to have ample suffering is a mercy killing. Both are methods of euthanasia. We all have the right to die if it ends a person's suffering or if a person is terminally ill and will die anyway. People should not have to suffer if they do not want to.

Throughout the years, many people have argued whether euthanasia should be legal or illegal. To some it is considered "playing God"; to others it is a generous act. Do the people who consider euthanasia "playing God"; consider prolonging life "playing God" also? Everyone has the right to die. Patients have the right to refuse treatment.

A patient has the right to refuse treatment to the extent permitted by law and to be informed of the consequences, stated in the "Patient's Bill Of Rights" (Landau 16). So then, why is euthanasia not legal? It is not legal because most people consider it murder. It is not murder; it is a request or

wish by the patient. There are many choices that American citizens have and choosing to die is not one of them. A group of people should not be able to take that choice for the public. The only choice people have to live or die, is if a patient is terminally ill and medication can be provided, the patient has the right to refuse the medication or treatment and would be able to die with dignity.

A person can also have a living will. This is a document requesting that if certain things should happen to that person, his or her life could be terminated. When a person's functions of the brain cease to work, that person is considered brain dead. If a patient cannot live without a life support system, then that patient cannot breathe on his or her own. If there was not a support system, the patient would die. Is the person considered dead? Not by most people, yet he or she technically would be dead. In my opinion, if a person cannot live without a life support system and is brain dead, that person should be considered dead and be able to die.

Euthanasia is not entirely legal or illegal. Most people have heard of the man who practices euthanasia, Dr. Kevorkian. Throughout the years, Dr. Kevorkian has helped relieve over 40 people from their misery. He has helped people such as Sherry Miller, Thomas Hyde, Donald O'Keefe, Ann Arbor, and Jessica Cooper. The state of Michigan, where most cases occurred, has been trying to convict Dr. Kevorkian. Each case is thrown out because Michigan does not have a law against euthanasia. Patricia Smith, a 40 year-old nurse from Lee's Summit, suffered from "rapidly progressing multiple sclerosis" and died in Kevorkian's presence. Her husband and her father were also present. She died August 22, 1996. To show the terminally ill patient respect of his or her decision, most loved ones will witness the experience. "My lone voice cannot accomplish much. But in having written this book and taken action through the practice of medicine as the first step