Posted on 03/28/2008 5:25:10 PM PDT by Grzegorz 246
Teenagers should be given the right to medically assisted suicide and the parents of terminally ill younger children should be able to choose euthanasia under proposals from members of Belgium's coalition government.
The plans to extend rules allowing doctors to perform euthanasia on terminally ill people suffering "constant and unbearable physical or psychological pain" comes amid heated Belgian debate on the issue.
Under existing Belgian laws, in place since 2002, patients, other than newborn babies, must be over 18 to qualify for assisted suicide, a situation that Bart Tommelein, leader of Belgium Liberals, wants changed.
Mr Tommelein, whose party is a key member of Belgium's coalition government, has pledged to bring forward new legislative proposals extending euthanasia to children and old people suffering from such severe dementia that they are unable to choose for themselves.
"We will seek, as Liberals, parliamentary majorities," Mr Tommelein said.
The ethical debate will mean another headache for Belgium's new Prime Minister Yves Leterme and his fragile government, which took power last week after a nine-month political crisis.
Cardinal Danneels, Belgium's Catholic Cardinal, used his Easter sermon to start a polarised national debate on euthanasia.
"Avoiding suffering is no act of bravery," he said. "Our society seems unable to cope with death and suffering."
The Cardinal has reacted to Belgian media "glorification" of the "brave" euthanasia least week of Hugo Claus, a Flemish writer suffering from Alzheimers disease.
There are more than 39 cases of euthanasia declared by doctors in Belgium every month, but the true figure is thought to be double that.
Euthanasia is currently permitted on infants and more than half of the Belgian babies who die before they are 12 months old have been killed by deliberate medical intervention.
In 16 per cent of cases parental consent was not considered.
“Euthanasia is currently permitted on infants and more than half of the Belgian babies who die before they are 12 months old have been killed by deliberate medical intervention. “
Good Lord.
Just flat out evil.
No, no, no... give them the option. The more idiots we get out of this world the better. I know several teens and early 20-somethings who are so miserable and whacked out on Xanax that they’d be better off. It’s really a sad state of affairs, but welcome to the next Generation!
Take heart liberals, Europeans agree with you. The unborn, the old and the infirm should be eliminated.
I’d like to see all fetuses have a right to be born and then, once they are old enough, let them decide if they would like to continue living.
I’m sorry but do something for the kids you ‘know’ instead of offing them. Get them off the prescription drugs, talk to the parents. Talk to them about God and that every life having a purpose.
I’m not saying their condition is your fault or that you are responsible for them bieng that way. But don’t just give up on ‘em. They need a reason to feel useful and that there is some plan for them being here, right now - and it ain’t about them committing suicide.
Just a guess here but God has to be done with Europe.
Ya know, I keep thinking that the Nazis won in the end... The EU is lot like what a Nazi German dominated Europe would have looked like.
‘Bout the only they don’t have is “Lebensraum” in the East.
Presumably this does not include abortions.
So Brussels is where the devil stays when he's in europe?
Ping
“where the devil stays”
I am sure he feels right at home. Isn’t Brussels where the EU is headquartered, also?
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Actually Belgium is behaving like they have moral authority in case of human rights, democracy etc. when in fact with laws like this one they should be treated like an ass of the world.
Tell me again why we wasted American blood saving these demons from the Nazis.
All they had to do was sell contraception. Abortion soon followed - after abortion, it isn’t much of a journey to kill anyone at any stage of life.
They just can’t kill enough people fast enough, can they?
Ping....
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