HI-TECH Suicide?
The euthanasia debate in Australia gained a face when 66 year-old Bob Dent of Darwin (Northern Territory), Choose to die under the world’s first right-to-die legislation.
Mr. Dent was assisted by a computer in taking his life. A computer was attached to a pump attached to a syringe with a lethal cocktail mix of drugs. An intravenous drip ran from the syringe to Mr. dent.
He had already gone through the procedure of gaining three signatures: from his doctor, a cancer specialist and a psychiatrist. He had observed the nine-day cooling-off period. Under the Northern Territory’s “Right of the Terminally I’ll Act” he was free to choose the time of his death. After launch and a glass of beer, he answered yes three times as the computer asked: “Are you aware…” that you will die if you press the yes button on the last screen? Then, “Are you certain…” you understand that you will die? Then, in 15 seconds you will be given a lethal injection…”
The president of the Australian Medical Association said, “it is simply not safe to have in place legislation that authorizes doctor to kill people.”
“Eventually this sort of procedure will settle down to be no more extraordinary that abortion,” said Marshall Perron who, as the NT Chief Minister, proposed the law. He’s not the first to make the abortion-euthanasia link. Since when did abortion become anything other than an extraordinary?
Was Mr. Dent’s act simply hi-tech suicide under another name?
