Can Euthanasia Ever be justified?

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Can Euthanasia ever be justified?

Those who believe that euthanasia should be legal would argue that everyone should have the right to choose how and when they want to die. The whole campaign about legalising euthanasia is to have the right to choose, which makes sense, as we are in a free country. We are allowed to “abuse” our bodies (through alcohol and cigarettes) .Why not allow people to choose when they die?

So if someone is terminally ill why not allow them to die? Most people would say that the reason why they want to be euthanized is because they don’t want to be a burden (emotionally and financially) to their families and society. It should be realised that not everyone dies well. At least 5% of terminal pain cannot be controlled by drugs. It would prevent patients from suffering needlessly. Passive euthanasia is sometimes allowed and it is not any better than active euthanasia. The government has nothing to say on your religion so has no right to determine your faith or even if you have any faith at all and the main arguments against euthanasia are based in religion. So the state’s intervention is only justified when the argument goes beyond religion.

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Arguments against euthanasia:  One of the most important arguments against euthanasia is that we never know if the person will recover or not, “miracles” do happen (e.g. people do wake up from long term comas). Hospices exist, and what these do is make sure that the patients are not in pain and don’t feel lonely. This is done by offering support and company. So if the main argument for euthanasia is that they don’t want to suffer, why not go to a hospice instead of being euthanized? There is also the worry that by giving doctors the right to ...

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