Euthanasia


Hey Guys,

 

Following the controversial issues we've been discussing in class, I thought Euthanasia would be an interesting topic. We've already been talking about it on Saturday morning class, but anyway it's quite controversial and interesting.

What do you think of Euthanasia?

 

But what is it? Read the following text to understand it better.

 

 

 

Euthanasia:The word "euthanasia" comes straight out of the Greek -- "eu", goodly or well + "thanatos", death = the good death -- and for 18th-century writers in England that was what euthanasia meant, a "good" death, a welcome way to depart quietly and well from life.

The most commonly understood meaning of euthanasia today is more than the old dictionary definition of dying well -- a good and easy death. It refers, for example, to the situation when a doctor induces the death with a lethal injection, of a patient who is suffering unrelievably and has persistently requested the doctor to do so.

Suicide, whether irrational or rational, for unrelated reasons is not euthanasia. Nor is the forced killing of another person.

The Netherlands is the only country in the world where euthanasia is openly practiced. It is not specifically allowed by statute, but Dutch law accepts a standard defense from doctors who have adhered to official guidelines. These guidelines hinge on the voluntariness of the request and the unrelievable-ness of the suffering. Euthanasia and assisted suicide are defined by the State Commission on Euthanasia. Euthanasia is the intentional termination of life by somebody other than the person concerned at his or her request. Assisted suicide means intentionally helping a patient to terminate his or her life at his or her request.

Under Dutch law euthanasia is the termination of life by a doctor at the express wish of a patient. The request to the doctor must be voluntary, explicit and carefully considered and it must have been made repeatedly. Moreover, the patient's suffering must be unbearable and without any prospect of improvement.

Pain relief administered by a Dutch doctor may shorten a patient's life. As is the case in other countries, in this is seen as a normal medical decision in terminal care and not as euthanasia.

Euthanasia is a matter of continuing controversy, a tinderbox for debate, an issue on which positions range widely and include enthusiastic advocacy, guarded acceptance, outright rejection, and vehement condemnation, equating euthanasia with murder.

From: http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=7365 

 

Well then, do you think euthanasia could solve some of the public health problems we have in Brazil? How?

 

If you were a doctor or a nurse and one of your pacients were suffering unrelievably and asked you to give him a lethal injection? Would you do so?

 

What if the patient was someone in your family and he/she asked the doctor to turn off the machines that were keeping him/her alive, and the doctor asked your permission to do that. Would you allow him/her to turn off the machines?

 

And if it were you who were in a bed with an incurable disease and with no pain at all, but also with no movements either. Would you rather die or would you want to be kept alive?

 

Now, watch the following video.

 

 

By providing a "good death" to his wife, do you think the man gave her a proof of his love or not? Why?

 

These ar the lyrics of the song just for you to enjoy. I loved it!!

 

TO BUILD A HOME

Songwriters: PATRICK WATSON, JASON ANGUS STODDART SWINSCOE, PHILIP JONATHAN FRANCE, STELLA PAGE

 

There is a house built out of stone
Wooden floors, walls and window sills...
Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust..
This is a place where I don't feel alone
This is a place where I feel at home.......

Cause, I built a home
for you
for me

Until it disappeared
from me
from you

And now, it's time to leave and turn to dust........

Out in the garden where we planted the seeds
There is a tree as old as me
Branches were sewn by the color of green
Ground had arose and passed it's knees

By the cracks of the skin I climbed to the top
I climbed the tree to see the world
When the gusts came around to blow me down
I held on as tightly as you held onto me
I held on as tightly as you held onto me......

Cause, I built a home
for you
for me

Until it disappeared
from me
from you

And now, it's time to leave and turn to dust........

 

Well, this might be our last Forum this semester. I hope you join and enjoy it. In fact, I hope you have enjoyed all the work we've been doing through this semester. For me, I think it was good for a first experience. I know I could have assisted you more often and more effectively, but I also know that you have never had a better opportunity to practice writing and I'm sure the ones who have participated actively have had a great improving in their written ability.

Again, if you participate in the foruns you won't need to take any tests, but the listening one. If you choose not to take part in it, we'll need to do it in class.

 

See you then

 

Luciana