What is “assisted suicide”, and why do I hear in the news that some people think it should be legal?
Assisted suicide means that others help a person to take their own life. It is a very controversial issue and a hot bed of moral debate. When we hear about assisted suicide in the news it is usually in reference to a medical professional helping a terminally ill person die. The argument in favor of this type of suicide is that the individual in question is already going to die and that suicide allows them control over how, how much pain they must live with first, and gives them a chance to say goodbyes and set affairs in order before the illness overcomes them. Arguments in favor of assisted suicide never apply to emotionally distraught individuals, mentally ill people, or clinically depressed people. With few exceptions, when we talk about assisted suicide we are not thinking about teens. For the record, in North America and most other Western jurisdictions assisted suicide is a crime.
