Sunday
19Oct2008
THE RIGHT TO KILL...
Sunday, October 19, 2008 at 10:13AM 
It's a tough subject and I can certainly understand the anguish of those with loved ones who seek to die but in the final analysis, euthanasia is wrong."One of Britain's leading moral philosophers has called for a change in the law to allow assisted suicide in Britain following the death of paralysed rugby player Daniel James. Baroness Warnock, writing in today's Observer, calls for liberalisation of euthanasia laws on the grounds that 'we have a moral obligation to other people to take their seriously reached decisions with regard to their own lives equally seriously'.Sorry but once again, Baroness Warnock is misguided. Allowing people to kill their nearest and dearest is not moral, it is immoral. The obligation must be to protect the sanctity of life and that it what must prevail.
in Health
Health 
View Printer Friendly Version
Reader Comments (4)
I agree, the slope is too slippery.
Both sides play God on this issue. But who can say if either or neither is right...or wrong.
Slippery slope arguments don't make any sense unless the next step in the process is genuinely required by the first. You may as well say that allowing killing in self-defence is the first step in a slippery slope to legalising murder.
Or for that matter it is no better than the argument that if you prohibit killing in the name of 'sanctity of human life' then that is the first step on the road to outlawing killing in self defence.
People should say what's wrong with the thing being discussed, not some other thing it may lead to.
Allowing people to kill their nearest and dearest is not moral, it is immoral.
Except that that is not what happened in this case. This young man had made three attempts on his life before his parents facilitated his journey to Switzerland. Now (thanks to a tip-off from some interfering moralising busybody) they are being investigated by police in the UK and may well be prosecuted.
The law needs to change to allow individuals in this young man's position the choice to bring to an end a life which they do not wish to lead. In the end this is a matter of individual liberty.