Being allowed a ‘good death’

I wish the laws would better reflect popular convictions. According to an Angus Reid poll, a large majority of Canadians support the right to die for people enduring the full course of a terminal illness. In Quebec, support is at a whopping 84%. Yet the Criminal Code of Canada outlaws suicide assistance, with penalties of up to 14 years in prison. I suspect the penalties are based on what is considered “morally” acceptable; driven by pro-life supporters, who champion the sanctity of life as a gift and as something that should not be deliberately thrown away.

I find the laws baffling. Drunk driving in Canada claims more than 1,600 lives a year. Yet a third DUI offense will only net you 90 days in prison and 3 years driving prohibition. Numerous drunk drivers who killed behind the wheel have received such lenient sentences they amounted to no more than a slap on the wrist. But if I assisted a loved one who was dying a slow and painful death, out of compassion and a desire to end their suffering, I would be subject to the same or even worse penalties as someone who indiscriminately and unconsciously mowed down an innocent pedestrian while driving drunk. Why?

Isn't it hypocritical and illogical that most current laws allow doctors to accelerate death by withholding a drug, but claim it illegal to administer a drug to achieve the same end?

Euthanasia literally means “good death”. Just like it is our soul’s obligation to seek happiness and fulfillment in life, it is perfectly reasonable to want a dignified death. We can philosophize all we want about the sanctity of life, but at the end of the day, if you were facing certain death from an incurable illness, while suffering intolerable pain, would you not want the option of ending it all, while you still had the capacity to? And wouldn’t you see that as the ultimate act of compassion; not as a crime? I know I would.

Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands openly and legally authorize assisted suicides. The state of Oregon has had a physician-assisted suicide law since 1997 and since the “Death with Dignity Act” was enacted there, there’s been no evidence that the elderly or the disabled have suffered from abuse or exploitation. There are simply too many safeguards in place. What's Canada waiting for?

When those against mercy killings talk about "the sanctity of life" are they willing to take into consideration its quality? A good death should be just as seminal as a good life and it's about time we had legislation that was honest enough, brave enough and –most importantly- compassionate enough to reflect a value that paradoxically at its core is much more life-affirming than what is currently in place.