LIFE AND DEATH

Elder suicide or dignified exit? A letter from Ohio

Summary

A widowed man from Ohio is 80 years old. His children live 4 states away and he knows
the day is coming when they will either uproot him and move him in with them or he will
go to the nursing home. He doesn't want either of those things to happen. He is also
suffering from prostate cancer and little bits of skin cancer here and there. These are
both treatable but he would rather save his money for his grandchildren after he passes.
He is wondering why he cannot take his own life without it being classified as a suicide.
He doesn't get why the elderly must suffer, he thinks he should have the right to end his
own life. He wonders how choosing his own end at his own time is considered anything
other than a most dignified exit.

Question 1: Should people have the moral right to end their own lives if they so
please?

This is a dilemma in which neither answer is satisfactory. Lets consider some

examples. We could easily categorize:

- A heartsick teenager slits her writs, stung by rejection from a boyfriend.

- A middle-aged businessman, shamed by failure in an economic downturn, hangs

himself in the basement.

as suicides. But what about:

- A Buddhist monk immolates himself to protest a repressive political regime?

- A sea captain goes down with his ship?

Are these suicides? Were a little less certain about what to call them.

So, what about these?

- A soldier falls on a grenade, saving his buddy.

- The pilot of a small jet plane whose engine is failing chooses to crash it into an open
field, rather than letting it hit the crowded schoolyard ahead; he dies, but the children
survive.

Are these suicides? No, we insist, they are absolutely not suicides, they are clearly acts
of heroism, of goodness, of faith.
 o If you focus on the mechanics of physical causation, it may look like suicide.
o If, on the other hand, you focus instead on the patients intention, it looks like
self-preservation, self-protection from a future that could be much worse.
As for the old man in this case, if we look at the End-of-Life Pack with a neat little pack
of white pills he would use to take his life, this would have been thought of as a clear
suicide. But if we look at his intention, passing his small savings on to his grandkids, to
give them a jump on college tuition, this might have been considered a heroic act of the
old man.
So, there are always two sides of a coin. However, there is one serious consideration:
Ethics involves you in the life of the world around you. GHILLYER, 2012. Business
Ethics Now, Chapter 1: Understanding Ethics. (Page 10) The man, though his original
intention is good, has somewhat leave out the concerns of the people around him, a
rather self-centered perspective. His children were willing to take care of him, not to
mention that his illness is treatable. Thus, he has left out one of the crucial question
when facing an ethical dilemma: What does the problem look like through the eyes of
the people involved? GHILLYER, 2012. Business Ethics Now, Chapter 1:
Understanding Ethics. (Page 10). What he mentioned in the letter is entirely based on
his own opinion. Though we dont know the thoughts of the other parties involved, we
can certainly guess that they wouldnt want their loved one to die; but, to live as long as
they can.

Question 2: Does being near the end of one's life make the decision to end it justified?

This one is also hard to answer. Is the end of this life a healthy one or is it a sick horrible
one? If it is a healthy one and the person just doesn't want to bother anyone and doesn't
want to be a hassle or go to a nursing home than it is not justified. A lot of elderly
people think they are burdens when the fact is that they are not and the people around
them just want them to be around longer and get to spend time with them when they
can. But if one is in a hospital bed, immobile and not being able to do anything you
love, then it is justified.

Question 3: What might the phrase "right to die" mean?

Humans on a regular basis have already had so many rights, so why isnt the right to
die ever included? This phrase somewhat means that an individual is in control of
his/her own life; thus, making death one of the decisions he/she can make on
his/herself, without any regard to the people around them. As for the old man in the
case, he believes that he is in possession of such right, which is, in my opinion, nothing
more than a self-justifying reason for his agony of not wanting to become a burden to
his family.
His value system - GHILLYER, 2012. Business Ethics Now, Chapter 1: Understanding
Ethics. (Page 10) - might make him believe that his decision is good but we know that
one important aspect of ethical studies is that the value system varies significantly. His
values might well be very different from his childrens, meaning that he might think his
children would be better off if he died, they might think the opposite. And his action
inflicts nothing but a sense of guilt upon them, making them believe that he died
because they couldnt take care of him well enough.

Question 4: Do people have the right to seek assistance in dying?

If one is diagnosed medically ill, in pain and they have no chance in surviving, then yes,
one does have a right to seek assistance in dying. Just as one has the right to decide if
they want to take radiation to fight cancer, its their choice to do so. Generally, a person
has their own choice of how they want to live their life. So, who has the right to tell
someone they must go through the pain and agony when there is no possible hope of
life left?
Although its against the law, if necessary, one can take their life by committing suicide.
How is one going to punish someone who is dead? If one isnt harming another in the
process, then I believe everyone has the choice to do what he or she wants with his or
her life.

Question 5: Do people have the right to give assistance in dying?

When it comes to people having the right to give assistance in dying, it really depends
on the circumstance that they are in. For example, if they were in a situation where their
family member was in a coma for the past three years and they had to decide whether
to pull the plug on them or not, it would be relevant for them to have the right to assist
in the death of that person because a decision must be made. It would be different if
someone you knew was depressed and wanted to commit suicide and they talked you
into helping them; this would be wrong because that person would give assistance that
person depressed in the wrong way.
Nevertheless, I find that it really all depends on the circumstance that the person is in,
such as the circumstance in the article Life and Death (GHILLYER, 2012) that the
older gentlemen is in, in that case I would say it would be wrong to help assist him in his
death, because he might not see the purpose of him sticking around any longer, but his
family and friends would; so, it would be wrong for someone to aid him in his death
because it wouldnt be fair to his family and friend, as well as the person helping him
with his death. That person might be considered as murdering the old man. Overall, it
really all depends on their circumstance.

Question 6: What kind of restrictions, if any, should there be on assisted suicide?

If the person is still healthy and able to do things that they have always done than
assisted suicide should not happen and should be illegal. If the person is on life support
or is in a hospital bed for the rest of their life, assisted suicide should be allowed and
legal. If the circumstance is right, we think that it should be legal.

End Thoughts

Have any of you watched the movie Me before you? The guy willingly chose to end
his life with the help of an organization in Switzerland, one such as Dignitas a
nonprofit member's society providing assisted/accompanied suicide to those members
of the organization who suffer from terminal illness and/or severe physical and/or mental
illnesses, supported by (of the organization independent) qualified Swiss doctors. Would
you consider that specific case suicide or is it dignified death?
I think, as with any ethical dilemma, there is no obvious right or wrong decision, but
rather a right or right answer, which I personally understand as whichever choice you
might make, your perception will find a way to rationalize that decision; thus, there really
isnt any wrong or right choice; but rather a decision which best suits each individual
circumstance.