The Nuremberg Code's Argument For The Legalization Of Euthanasia

Similarly, in the sixth principle, the Nuremberg Code holds that, “the degree of risk to be taken should never exceed that determined by the humanitarian importance of the problem to be solved by the experiment.” This principle, however, is as effective as ineffective, for the principle fails to illustrate the difference between expected risk and foreseeable risk, as well as leaving open the question—how bad does the risk have to be? Moreover, in the last principle, the Nuremberg Code asserts that the experiment is to be terminated in event such that, “the continuation of the experiment is likely to result in injury, disability, or death to the experimental subject.” This condition fails to address the issue of time limit between the conducted

Besides the religious position, arguments made against the practice of euthanasia generally rest on a psychological perspective in that the legalization of euthanasia could lead to the state becoming more cruel and brutal, diminishing the concerns for its citizens and its moral responsibility, as demonstrated by the doctors and nurses in Nazi euthanasia program. Similarly, a number of practical arguments has also been put forward that allowing the practice of euthanasia might result in giving doctors more authority over their patients, reinforcing the paternalistic attitude and undermining the Nuremberg Code, which adopts a more patient-centered approach by emphasizing a patient’s autonomy and rights. The strongest argument against the practice of euthanasia, however, has been the slippery-slope argument. Ethicists, for instance, fear that legalizing euthanasia could repeat the Nazi episode—in this case, mass murder and involuntary euthanasia. This slippery-slope argument, however, raises a number of questions. While the slippery slope argument suggests that legalizing euthanasia might lead to another Nazi episode of undesirable killing, the argument fails to show the likelihood of this direction, raising the question—is the episode of the Nazi euthanasia program a unique one time occurrence? As with