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Assisted Suicide Today Essay

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Assisted Suicide in Today’s World.
There are many different feelings about assisted suicide today. When people think about it they first consider it murder, but today it has evolved to an issue of compassion. Helping someone die is a decision people have started contemplating as an ethical question and a constitutional right. Below I will address what is assisted suicide and the background in the United States. Next I will discuss whether it is becoming acceptable or unacceptable. As a final point I will present my own thoughts and feelings about assisted suicide.

What is Assisted Suicide?
Assisted suicide is also known as euthanasia, or loosely described as mercy killing. There are two main classification for assisted suicide (euthanasia), and two classifications of the procedure. The classifications are Voluntary assisted suicide – this is conducted with consent. Next is Involuntary assisted suicide – this is conducted without consent. The two procedural classifications are Passive – this is when life-sustaining treatments are withheld, and active – lethal substances or forces are used to end the patient’s life. Assisted suicide has been a debate since the early 1800s in the United States and other countries. In 1828 an anti-euthanasia law was passed in New York. In the early 1900s support peaked in the USA , and then rose up again during the 1930s for euthanasia support. In 1990 the Supreme Court approved the use of non-active euthanasia. The Death with Dignity Act in 1994 was approved in the state of Oregon. The second state to legalize doctor-assisted suicide was Washington State. (Nordqvist, September 2014) …show more content…

• Choice – This is based upon liberal democracies and the free market systems. Some believe that a person should be given the

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