England Passes Euthanasia Bill
The dark side of dying
The United Kingdom parliament has recently passed a bill allowing terminally ill adults to be granted medical help to end their own life in England and Wales.
I confess to feeling ambivalent about euthanasia.
On the one hand, I get the argument about ending the pain and suffering of those who are dying from rehabilitating conditions and the intention to grant agency to people as to how and when they die.
My mother has had an inoperable and terminal brain tumour for 26 years. Initially, she was given only 7 years to live, with epilepsy, then reduced mobility, and finally descending into severe dementia and complete immobility. Her quality of life is poor, she is unable to communicate, possesses several co-morbidities, and has nearly died several times. Advances in medicine have preserved her life but also perpetuated her suffering in this life. She is now in palliative care with a do-not-resuscitate order. It has often meant, in consultation with my brother, having to make several difficult decisions about her treatment when she has been admitted to hospital. It is painful to watch a loved one live with such pain and feel powerless to help them.
If one believes that ethical dilemmas are solved by defining life as a contest of pleasure vs. pain and by the inherent right to human autonomy, then euthanasia makes sense.
But that is only half of the story, there is far more at stake in this debate, much that I find truly chilling.