Euthanasia : Murder or Mercy

“Explore the ethical dilemma of euthanasia – a concept aiming for a ‘Good Death.’ Delve into the arguments for and against it, the changing global perspectives, and the need for stringent regulations. While some view it as a humane choice to end unbearable suffering, others argue against interference with the course of life. As the world grapples with this controversial topic, striking a balance between individual autonomy and responsible use is crucial.”

Euthanasia is the painless termination of a patient’s suffering; those patients that are dealing with an extremely painful and incurable disease. The English word ‘Euthanasia’ is derived from Greek words ‘Eu’ and ‘Thanatos’ which when combined together mean ‘Good Death’. The idea behind this concept is to, prevent people from the trauma and suffering that comes from experiencing a slow and painful death. This trauma is not just limited to the person with the disease, but also everyone around them who has to watch their close ones suffer each and every day of their remaining life. Euthanasia is of two types, Active and Inactive. Active Euthanasia, is when death is brought about by an act of human intervention, whereas Passive Euthanasia is where death is brought about by intentional withholding of treatment.

Even today in most countries regardless of their economic status or their culture, euthanasia or assisted dying is illegal and is almost taboo to even talk about. Slowly we can see signs that in these modern times the perspective towards the subject is changing and people have started understanding the concept. There needs to be a lot of rules and regulations, some laws that need to be put in place before we can even start to think about granting people this freedom. This shift in the modern perspective can be seen in many countries like the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, also some states in the USA that have legalized Euthanasia already.

As far as the subject of Euthanasia goes, it has always aroused a lot of controversy and debate amongst people across nations. Many people are against Euthanasia because they feel that, as medical technology grows rapidly with each passing day, there is always a possibility that a cure gets developed for the disease that the person opted for Euthanasia because of? Their argument is that the person could have maybe lived a full life if they just could have endured the pain a little longer. They have an idea fixed in their heads that, life should take its own course and that humans should not intervene with nature. The whole idea of Euthanasia also hurts the religious sentiments of many people of varied religions, to them it is an act of defiance against their God’s will. There’s also a different set of people who believe that it could also not be God’s will to make a person go through all that pain and agony just waiting for the end could not have been God’s will either.

Some argue that every individual should have the right to choose whether they want to end their suffering or not. Apart from the people who’re themselves dealing with these harsh realities, nobody else can understand the need or the feeling of wanting to end their lives to free themselves of their misery. The good that we can say will come out of legalizing Euthanasia is that nobody again will have to go through the torture again. Living in constant pain and suffering, waiting for a death that they know is near and certain; people can go on their own terms. It will circumvent all the pain and agony that they would have had to endure otherwise.

The world is still at  crossroads about legalizing Euthanasia, but before thinking of granting this right to the people, strict rules and regulations need to be in place and policies need to be drafted to make sure that this “Right to End One’s Pain and Suffering” isn’t abused. If Euthanasia is legalized, humans get this great power in their hands, and we need to evolve and be responsible and mature enough to be able to handle this power because with power comes the ability to abuse it too. And we as humans need to rise above the temptation of using this power for evil.

With proper rules and implementation, euthanasia can be a blessing for human society. A planned death from Euthanasia can be more humane than waiting for nature to take its course. Even though the perspective about Euthanasia among people around the world is changing, who is to decide when one gets to be euthanized and when one doesn’t? For everyone, their pain seems unbearable and we can’t decide without having walked in their shoes if their pain qualifies them for Euthanasia or not. It is a matter which requires a very stringent set of regulations to begin.

It is not just laws and regulations that need to be put in place for this to be implemented successfully. Our doctors and medical staff need to be properly inducted into the concept and be imparted articulate training in the techniques used for the process of Euthanasia. Without proper training and knowledge, the process could go horribly wrong, resulting in just magnifying the pain for the already suffering and even worse death. The citizens of the world also need to come to a consensus on the subject of Euthanasia, or else it could lead to civil unrest in some places.

On the whole, we can say that we are still a long way from Euthanasia being readily accepted by the world. On one hand, we have the supporters of Euthanasia who believe that a person must be able to choose when they want to die whereas, on the other hand, we have the opposers who believe that life is a divine gift and only God can take it. Euthanasia will do a lot of good for a lot of distressed people, but it also has a huge potential for abuse.