If and when anyone reads this post, death with dignity, aka euthanasia or suicide may be legal in your city or state. Let's start from the top on this morbid topic.
First of all, death with dignity is possible with every death. You don't have to take a deadly cocktail to make your death dignified. On the other hand, death with dignity may not be dignified after all. When we hear about these deaths, we aren't really privy to the details of such. Did the person become nauseated? Was there emesis? Were they incontinent of bowel and bladder? Did they have seizure activity? Did their mouths hang open and spill contents on their bedding? It's hard to believe that all we see with this type of death are some shallow respirations and then Poof! It's over. Tell us how this is "dignity."
Secondly, is calling death with dignity any better than calling it suicide? Of course suicide is precisely what is occurring. The intentional well planned out taking of one's own life. Should we stop using euphemisms and call it what it is? Why not? Is the word suicide offensive to us? If so, why?
Could it be because killing oneself is inherently wrong? "Well, not if." Where do the "not if's" end? Not if you are terminally ill. Not if you might suffer. Not if you don't want to live that way. Not if there is no cure. Not if you are old. Not if you are too young. Not if you are beautiful and don't want to become old and ugly. Not if you are....
Slippery slope? Oh yes.
Why shouldn't a person be allowed to kill themselves, to end their life, to avoid potential suffering or loss of dignity? To answer that we need to know whether or not life matters.
I think most of us agree that life matters. Life matters because it is a gift. Life matters because it is how the species propagates. Life matters because there is potential for greatness. Life matters because there is beauty. Life matters because there is love.
It's an interesting paradox that once a baby is born, the life of the baby matters. Doctors, parents, will do nearly anything to help a baby survive. Why should this be? Is a baby valuable? Of course. Why? Because the baby matters. The baby matters to his or her parents. The baby has potential. The baby matters because it is alive.
But what about an old person? An old person with cancer? Does their life matter? Of course it does. Why? Because they are a person. The same person they were when they were a baby. A human being. Alive. The worth of the old person does not diminish because of years. It does not diminish because the person has an illness. There is dignity in every person. No matter how old. No matter how young. No matter how sick.
Dignity is the honor or respect one has of his self worth. If you are a baby, you can't contribute to society. You can't work. You can't even feed yourself. But you are so valuable, you have dignity, you have inestimable worth. If you are old and dying of cancer, your worth does not change. Your dignity, your honor is still yours. You have value in your living. You as a human are beyond price.
Should you kill yourself? No. You don't deserve to die because you are sick. You don't need to end your life to end your suffering. Modern medicine can control your suffering. You don't need to kill yourself because you are afraid you will get sicker, or that you will be in pain or that you will LOSE YOUR DIGNITY.
Your dignity is your worth as a human being. It is priceless. It doesn't change when you become ill. You are still worthy of life, your presence in the world is needed until you die.
Why should society convince you that you should have control over when you die? How is that a right? You didn't have control over when you were born. You didn't have control of becoming terminally ill. So many things are beyond human control, and we don't say "But I had a right to know that I would get sick. I had a right to know I was going to be born." We accept certain things are what they are, uncertain.
Who has told us we can't live until we die? Who has made it ok to change the word suicide to "death with dignity?" If we can't say the very word that is what is actually occurring when we make the choice to take those pills, maybe it's time to think about why we are taking them.
to be continued...
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