Comment by a022311
3 days ago
Not going to express an opinion, I'll just leave this except from the Hippocratic Oath [1], which reflects society's primary beliefs on this topic approximately up until the 19th century:
> οὐ δώσω δὲ οὐδὲ φάρμακον οὐδενὶ αἰτηθεὶς θανάσιμον, οὐδὲ ὑφηγήσομαι συμβουλίην τοιήνδε
In English:
> Neither will I administer a poison to anybody when asked to do so, nor will I suggest such a course.
The modern hippocratic oath has no mention of poisons, also doesn't require the oath to be sworn before the gods of the pantheon. Up until the 19th century, physicians didn't believe in germs either. Attitudes change with the knowledge we accumulate.
Change doesn't inherently mean better.
That's likely to be a consequence of prevailing religious norms of the time.