Comment by dbZJtFuAXUrVLmY
3 days ago
This comment really bothers me. I am not put off by the idea that the memory of a person is worth protecting, what I am put off by is the suggestion that death is a good option here, or that death is better than having lived those 3 years of life. The idea that when someone loses the capacity to retain their reputation and dignity it would be better for them and others that they were dead and that they have nothing good to offer is such a dangerous one and is just wrong. It applies to many people who are not near their end of life too. I am really pro assisted suicide as a way of shortening suffering when made as a conscious decision by people of sound mind, but comments like these make me very very uneasy.
> I am really pro assisted suicide as a way of shortening suffering
You don't consider years of mental trauma on the individual and years burden and stress on loved ones to be suffering?
I don't think the average amount of suffering for people with Alzheimer's and their families is sufficient to warrant euthanasia as a solution. I don't doubt there are some cases where it could be warranted, but I find it very difficult to get behind the idea that consent should pass from the individual. I obviously see that people with Alzheimer's and their families do suffer, the degree to which depends on the availability of proper care. We're essentially debating whether euthanasia is a better option to high quality care, and that's where the life of a person becomes a pretty gross economic equation. High quality care deprives families of assets. That tension between selfish (or so called "practical") interests and prioritising the interests of the dying is non-trivial, particular where the dying can't reasonably consent. The gentleman mentioned in this scenario would have had a more dignified death had he been provided the correct facilities, and probably shouldn't have been left to run riot in the community. It pains me that this is a story about how some guy became an asshole in his final years and not one of how a guy was deprived of a dignified death by the structures of society. I suspect to some degree people see euthanasia as a simple way to offer compassion and dignity in death, but I do think it's highly informed by ableist prejudice. There is a wide spectrum of dignity and life left to live in an end of life pathway and jumping to euthanasia as the solution is a pretty dangerous one in my opinion.
It's really up to them, not you. If you're pro assisted suicide you have to be pro other people making the decision in ways you disagree with.
That's the issue with assisted suicide. A lot of old people bring burden and stress on loved ones at some point. How many old people will be guilt tripped into an assisted suicide because of this philosophy?
I don't see what that has to do with my comment, but okay: A lot less than are unwillingly bringing undue burden and stress to their family and neighbors because there is no legal mechanism to avoid it. Even fewer if we acknowledge that assisted suicide should be an option with a very high bar for those who would qualify. I wrote another comment about one way it might work.
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