Canada Debating Wild Euthanasia
A Canadian bill to legalize euthanasia/assisted suicide demonstrates vividly where the "right to die" crowd wants to take society. The bill, C-407, does not require that the person who wants to be killed be terminally ill. It doesn't even require that the suicidal person be physically sick. Severe mental pain will suffice. This is logical: If euthanasia is primarily about honoring autonomy and eliminating suffering (by killing the patient), then what does terminal illness have to do with it?
The bill also does not require that a doctor do the killing. Someone who is not medically trained can terminate the patient so long as he or she is under the supervision of a medical professional, whatever that might mean. This also makes sense since killing is not a medical act. I mean, can anyone imagine a bill permitting a non doctor to perform surgery so long as the non physician was somehow supervised by a doctor?
This bill is unlikely to pass. But don't be surprised if it is used as the "bad bill" to make a bill that is more restricted appear like the moderate position.
posted by Wesley J. Smith @ 8:13 AM
5 Comments
5 Comments:
The "wild" euthanasia proposed in the currently proposed bill is exactly the type of "assistance" that Florence Wald, RN (pro-assisted suicide advocate and founder of the first hospice in the USA - The Connecticut Hospice) proposed years ago. She said:
"I'll tell you the way I see it, and I know that I differ from Cicely Saunders, who is very much against assisted suicide. I disagree with her view on the basis that there are cases in which either the pain or the debilitation the patient is experiencing is more than can be borne, whether it be economically, physically, emotionally, or socially. For this reason, I feel a range of options should be available to the patient, and this should include assisted suicide."
If you don't think what Florence Wald says is important, take a look at her credentials and you'll quickly understand how influential she is in America:
Florence Schorske Wald, Fourth Dean of Yale School of Nursing, 1959-1967
from Yale University's website:
http://info.med.yale.edu/library/exhibits/nursing/nursing3.html
"Florence Schorske Wald was born in New York City in 1917. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mt. Holyoke College in 1938, a Master of Nursing degree from Yale University in 1941, and a Master of Science degree from Yale University in 1956. She was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law degree from the University of Bridgeport in 1967, an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Mt. Holyoke College in 1978, and an honorary Doctor of Medical Sciences from Yale University in 1995. Wald joined the faculty of Yale School of Nursing as assistant professor of psychiatric nursing in 1957, became acting dean in 1958, and was appointed the fourth dean of the Yale School of Nursing in 1959. After stepping down as dean in 1967, Wald continued to serve on the faculty of the School of Nursing. A pioneer of the hospice movement in the United States and founder of Hospice Care in America, she is a board member of Hospice in Branford. "
The public has to understand that what is sold to the public as "hospice" or "end-of-life care" is the type of hospice promoted by the Christian founder of the modern hospice movement: Dame Cicely Saunders, MD of the United Kingdom. What the public is getting is vintage Florence Wald, not Cicely Saunders' flavor of hospice which respected the sanctity of life.
Death, to the pro-death-on-demand folks, should be cheap, just as cheap as life is to the pro-death-on-demand folks. And, death-on-demand will help balance the state and federal budgets. That is why you don't see any real discussion of how to fund Medicare and Medicaid. The FINAL solution to Medicare and Medicaid (and the government budgets) is death on demand!
Add to that the push for "agressive" palliative care, the public is sure to be confused by any "alternative" "moderate" version of the bill. When "terminal sedation" is mis-used in "agressive palliative care" to kill nonterminal patients, we have outright euthanasia already being practiced in Canada and the USA as well as other Westernized and very secular nations.
Double-speak is the trademark of the death-dealers. Words never mean what most people would expect them to mean, and most "explanations" given by the death-dealers never reveal the full impact such policies would have on our society's frail, vulnerable elderly, disabled, chronically ill or other vulnerable citizens. Suicide on demand, made certain with the absolute power of a medical team bent upon fulfilling your "desire" for death, is the goal. And "suicide" when actively "assisted" is really euthanasia by another name.
"Wild?" "Wild" only in the view of those who dare to recognize the sanctity of life given by our Creator. The death-dealers wish death-dealing to become the norm, something akin to having your teeth cleaned at the dentist.
The public really needs to wake up if the "bait and switch" traps of the euthanasia movement are to be avoided.
Thanks, Ron. Saunders was a great humanitarian. I'll listen to her any day.
Thank you or your compassion, Wesley!
You have just been added to my blog.
Thank you again. God bless you!
As someone who has lived in continually worsening pain for decades and now is completely disabled, I find your religiously bigotted blog insulting.
There is nothing that can improve my quality of life to the point where it would be worthwhile living and I will die soon anyway.
I have already attempted to end my life unsuccessfully. My greatest regret was then and remains now that my attempt was unsuccessful.
For one whole day I was unconscious and free of pain. I would like to return there, permanently, and let my family get on with their lives free of the emotional and financial burden they bear for me.
My interpretation of Christ dying for our sins is that true forgiveness comes with death, when consciousness ends. Christ did not fear death and neither do I. Why do you?
Your motivations have nothing to do with concern for those who are suffering, and everything to do with promoting your religion. Go away.
I've read through this site and I was going to try and write well tempered and rational argument here but it's clear that won't do any good. Religion is the only poison you morons seem willing to share with the terminally ill. I think you're terminally stupid and sadly, that's very common. Stop talking about compassion and love when what you really want is dominance and singular fascistic vision.
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