Euthanasia
The fear of death is powerful. Yet even more powerful can be the fear of not dying, or of living a life full of pointless suffering. From this fear stems the belief that we should be masters of our own fate. This then brings about the euthanasia and doctor assisted suicide movements. Christopher Docker, defines physician assisted suicide as, " ... the provision by a doctor, consciously and legally, to a patient who has completely requested it, of the means for that patient to end his or her own life" (Docker 10). Euthanasia is associated with the act, by the doctor, of mercifully ending the life of a suffering person. These movements ask the question of why should we then be forced to endure purposeless pain. If the medical technologies offered to us do nothing to alleviate the pain, then why can they not aid us in a merciful release? Those who are terminally ill should have the choice of such a release.
In the 1891 case of Union Pacific v. Bastford, the Supreme Court held that, "no right is more sacred or more carefully guarded, by the common law, than the right of the individual to the possession and control of his own person." If this control is granted to us in life, than surely it must be valid when those who are in unbearable pain seek to be released from such suffering. Control over life is imperative for each human being, but it must include a choice to end this life if there is no longer quality in it. People that are terminally ill, such as those with AIDS, know that there is no cure and that they are certain to die from their disease. They are also aware of the probability that the death will be messy and painful. Researchers have found that factors that have an important influence on the quality of life include, "security, family, love, pleasurable activity, and freedom from pain, suffering, and debilitating disease" (Landers 62). AIDS victims may lose all of these factors. The people in such situations should be able to choose the way...