Euthanasia Shanda Hastings West Virginia University

8 STOA
people of society. They would be there to watch out for the groups
that are considered to be in danger of the slippery slope argument.
Neither my argument or the opposition's argument is foolproof. It
is impossible to prove what would happen if voluntary active
euthanasia were legalized unless it is tried. So the question then
becomes, which argument poses the greatest risk to autonomy and
well-being. When it comes to autonomy, there is no doubt that by
prohibiting euthanasia, autonomy is clearly denied. The choice about
living or dying is taken away from the individual, and instead
decided by the government. When someone chooses to live or die it
doesn't harm any one else's rights. However, if voluntary active
euthanasia were allowed, then autonomy would only be at risk in
cases where there has been an illegal action or when someone is
pressured into their decision. With all the safeguards built in to the
regulation, these risks seem less serious. Even if it ended up that
strict regulation prevent doctors from performing euthanasia, then
nothing more would be lost than if we never tried to legalize.
As far as well-being goes, it is a proven fact that with the system
we have now, people go through unnecessary pain and suffering
because they are not allowed the option of a quick and painless
death. If legalized, obviously these people would be relieved of their
pain and suffering. The risk then faced is the well-being of those
who do not consent to euthanasia, and as I said before, there are
safeguards that can be implemented. They may not counter all
abuses, but I would say for the most part they probably would.
In conclusion, it is hard to definitely know that legalization of
voluntary active euthanasia is the best choice, even when there are
clear threats to autonomy and well-being if it isn't legalized. There is
no way to know enough about what would happen in the future, to
know for sure that good regulations could prevent abuses and
pressures. However, there is an absolute denial of autonomy and
well-being in the current law. In the future, at least there are plans
that could be enacted that could possibly work to protect autonomy
and well-being for everyone. The current system has no chance of
that because it undoubtedly denies the rights of people to make