ESSAY ASSIGNMENT - EUTHANASIA

Should Euthanasia be legalized? Discuss with specific references.

Euthanasia is the practice of killing a person who is suffering from an incurable disease. The word euthanasia is taken from Greek eu thanos, meaning ‘good death’. Dr Megan Best, a bioethicist and palliative care doctor, calls voluntary euthanasia ‘An act where a doctor intentionally ends the life of a person, by the administration of drugs, at that person’s voluntary and competent request, for reasons of compassion’. (Best, 2010) Some advocates of euthanasia point out that patients’ suffering can be unbelievable and intolerable, and that euthanasia is a possible solution to end these hopeless situations (Battin and Lipman, n.d.). For instance, “a survey published in the JAMA [in 1992] indicated 64% of Americans thought physicians should be allowed by law to respond to a request for aid in dying by a competent, terminally ill patient in pain”(Battin and Lipman, n.d.). Rom Houben, was imprisoned in his body for 23 years. He was unable to do anything and was unable to communicate with his doctors and family. It was truly years of suffering for him, living but being presumed to be in a vegetative state. In this case, when euthanasia seems to be a considerable alternative, his recovery proved that there is always hope for recovery and that there is still hope when all seems dark.  In  this instance, people also begin to question, how measurable is the level of suffering for one to be considered for euthanasia? Arguments supporting euthanasia laws presuppose a world of ideal hospitals, doctors, nurses and families. But humans don’t live in an ideal world. People live in a fallen world where humans make mistakes and have selfish motives. For this reason, legalisation of euthanasia holds a number of risks such as the abuse of its practice. (Best, 2010) As such, euthanasia should not be legalized because of religious views and legalization problems.

 The abuse of euthanasia is a problem that can arise with the legalization of euthanasia. People cannot be sure that euthanasia, once legalised and socially accepted would remain voluntary. Vulnerable and burdensome patients may be subtly pressured to request termination of their lives, even though they don’t really want to. (Best, 2010) For example, “if euthanasia [is] legalized…vulnerable patients could feel obligation to accept it in order to reduce the burden on their families [and] their caretakers” (Battin and Lipman, n.d.).  Kate Cheney's death, is an example that illustrates the dangers of euthanasia. A lethal dosage was authorized by a managed care executive for Kate Cheney, an elderly cancer patient whose daughter was aggressively pushing for her death, despite the findings of a consulting psychiatrist that the woman's memory loss meant she lacked the mental "capacity to weigh options about assisted suicide" and that she did "not seem to be explicitly pushing for this". (Oregon Newspaper, 1999) In this case, how far can it still be said that euthanasia is solely used for the patients' needs? Moreover, pressure from doctors and medical expenses can also cause potential abuse of patients. For physicians, letting a patient die is much easier than continuing the treatment for recalcitrant pain and suffering (Battin and Lipman, n.d). Doctors may not be able to resist the extension of euthanasia to those who don’t, or can’t, consent to termination of their lives. Proponents of euthanasia have legal guidelines will prevent this happening. However, the Dutch Government’s Remmelink Report in 1991 found that around one in three euthanasia deaths were without patient knowledge or consent (around 1000 each year). Government reviews showed similar results in 1995 and again more recently, despite the fact that there are stringent guidelines in place in Holland. One argument put forward to support euthanasia suggests that we need to regulate what is already taking place illegally. If those doctors performing euthanasia now are unwilling to obey the law, why do we think we could trust them to do so after it is changed? (Best, 2010) Additionally, in the Netherlands, euthanasia was legalised in 2002 after 20 years of widespread practice under legal guidelines. By the time the law had passed, the courts had already legitimized the death of patients who were not terminally ill. The Dutch are currently debating the need to allow the elderly to be euthanized when they are ‘tired of life’ and early in 2005 a Dutch hospital published their guidelines on how to kill disabled new-borns. With euthanasia legalised, would there still be a caring society ready, in times of financial constraint, to continue to invest money and resources into attempts to improve the care of the terminally ill? (Best, 2010) Palliative care is expensive and becoming more so as patients survive longer and develop more complex problems. It is a very labour intensive discipline. Public opinion can be influenced once a law is changed.  Is this what we want?  Western medicine has progressed as far as it has because we do value all human lives and continue to seek cures for the diseases which afflict us. (Best, 2010)

Religious views show the importance of the value of life. According to Pope John Paul II, “Euthanasia is a grave violation of the law of God, since it is the deliberate and morally unacceptable killing of a human person.” (Evangelium Vitae, 1995) In Islam, there are verses on the sacredness of life found in the holy Koran. One of which is, “Do not take life, which Allah made sacred, other than in the course of justice.” (Quran 17.33) and another which states that “If anyone kills a person - unless it is for murder or spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he killed the whole people.”(Qur'an 5:32) Life is sacred and in the case of euthanasia, it is seen as wrong to take a life. In addition, death is the exclusive action of God and “When their time comes they cannot delay it for a single hour nor can they bring it forward by a single hour.”(Qur’an 16:61) and “no person can ever die except by Allah's leave and at an appointed term.” (Quran 3.145) Hence, what right does a doctor have to take a life that is not his to take? Similarly, Christians recognise that all humans are made in the image of God and thus have value that is not dependent on their state of health or abilities. It also means that they are creatures, and so their autonomy will operate within the parameters given to them by their creator, God. “Our bodies are not our own” (1 Cor 6:19-20). While Christians would say their bodies are not their own, legally, a man is free to end his life when he chooses.  But that does not mean he has a right to do so, and he certainly does not have the right to compel someone else to kill him. (Best, 2010) “Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time?” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-2)

In conclusion, euthanasia should not be allowed because of the problems that may arise with its practice and the common views of different religions which see life as sacred. The public debate is about whether we should change the law to allow euthanasia, not about whether euthanasia is right or wrong for individual cases. Euthanasia is legal in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. Physician Assisted Suicide (PAS) is legal in Oregon and Washington State in the US. There are serious discussions going on in Montana, Singapore and Spain. In The UK, over 100 Brits have died under the arrangements in Switzerland, and the government is developing guidelines for prosecution of those who assist in such suicides. The Swiss authorities are having a similar debate themselves, with the final outcome far from clear. (Best, 2010) The question is, why are there debates in Western countries at a time when there are more medical cures than ever before in human history? What is going on? Is ending life the best solution when there is hope more than ever? “Euthanasia is a long, smooth-sounding word, and it conceals its danger as long, smooth words do, but the danger is there, never the less.” (Buck, n.d)

References

Best, M. (2010). The Ethical Dilemmas Of Euthanasia. Retrieved from http://www.case.edu.au/images/uploads/Best_article__2_.pdf.

Brock, D. W. (1992). Voluntary Active Euthanasia. The Hastings Center Report, 22(2), 10-22. Retrieved from http://philosophyfaculty.ucsd.edu/faculty/rarneson/Courses/DanBrockVolactEuth.pdf.

Euthanasia quotes. (n.d.). In Famous Quotes, Love Quotes, Life Quotes | Quotations at Dictionary.com. Retrieved January 9 , 2013, from http://quotes.dictionary.com/subject/euthanasia?page=1

Ishimaru, Y. Legalization of Euthanasia. Retrieved from http://faculty.tru.ca/jhu/Legalization%20of%20Euthanasia.pdf.


Kate Cheney's Oregon Death Illustrates Dangers. (n.d.). National Right to Life. Retrieved January 10, 2013, from http://www.nrlc.org/news/1999/NRL1199/kate.html

Shadi, H., & Aramesh, K. (2007). Euthanasia: An Islamic Ethical Perspective. Iranian Journal Of Allergy, Asthma And Immunology, 6(5), 35-38. Retrieved from http://www.iaari.hbi.ir/journal/archive/articles/v6s5ar3.pdf.

ESSAY ASSIGNMENT - CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

Should Capital Punishment be abolished? Discuss.

Capital punishment is the practice of executing someone as punishment for a specific crime after a proper legal trial. The lethal injection, electrocution or the hanging method are the most common types of capital punishments that are used today. “Most people approve of capital punishment, but most people wouldn't do the hangman's job”, wrote George Orwell in his book, The Road to Wigan Pier. This quote can be used to describe the people who are supportive of capital punishment but would not choose to be responsible for the bloodshed. In this case, can capital punishment still be said to be justifiable and the best way of punishment for crimes if it is easier said than done? Captain James Kendall, convicted in 1608 in Jamestown, Virginia, of spying for Spain, holds the dubious distinction of being the first person known to be executed in the United States (The Death Penalty Information Center, 2001). During the next 400 years, more than 19,000 people have also been executed (Durham, Elrod, and Kinkade, 1996). Despite the number of executions, it is unknown whether the reasons for capital punishment in all these cases are justified and support for capital punishment in the U.S. is far from universal. Today, 38 states and the federal government have capital punishment as a possible punishment but the death penalty still remains a controversial subject. (The Death Penalty Information Center, 2001). There has been extensive polling during the past 60 years to determine the degree of support for the death penalty (Bohm, 1987; Bohm, Clark, and Aveni, 1990; Durham et al., 1996). Past polls show that support for the death penalty dropped from 79% in 1989 to 65% in 2001 (The Death Penalty Information Center, 2001) while in 2010, Gallup's annual Crime Survey finds that 64% of Americans continue to support the use of the death penalty for persons convicted of murder, while 29% oppose it -- continuing a trend that has shown little change over the years. (Newport, 2010) However, in support of the abolishers, capital punishment should be abolished due to religious views and deterrence.

Capital punishments are not an effective form of deterrence against crimes. Marquis De Sade, a French aristocrat, revolutionary politician, philosopher and writer, wrote in his book, Philosophy in the Bedroom, “The law which attempts a man's life is impractical, unjust, inadmissible. It has never repressed crime - for a second crime is every day committed at the foot of the scaffold.” The death penalty is not a proven deterrent to future crimes. Some criminologists, such as William Bowers of North eastern University, maintain that the death penalty has the opposite effect: that is, society is brutalized by the use of the death penalty, and this increases the likelihood of more murder. Even most supporters of the death penalty now place little or no weight on deterrence as a serious justification for its continued use. States in the United States that do not employ the death penalty generally have lower murder rates than states that do. For example, the U.S., with the death penalty, has a higher murder rate than the countries of Europe or Canada, which do not use the death penalty (The Death Penalty, n.d.). Additionally, the most recent case of the 2012 Delhi gang rape case which caused a huge uproar, questions the use of capital punishment as the best penalty for the six men who robbed the life of an innocent 23 year old women or best known as Damini as called by supporters. Many argue that the death penalty is the best form of action, even the six accused, demand to be “hanged” as a punishment for their crime. But ultimately, will this punishment reduce the number of rape cases that are widespread in the country? There were 24,206 rape cases registered in India in 2011, according to the National Crimes Record Bureau. But the number of convictions of alleged rapists occurred in only a quarter of cases, the statistics show. Additionally, many more cases are not reported due to pressure from families and the idea that the victim has experienced “shame,” activists estimate. (The Wall Street Journal, 2012) The death penalty only serves to terminate the life of criminals. Is this termination of life the best form of punishment? If it is seen from a different perspective ,the death penalty can be seen as a simple means of escape from years of suffering in prison and will not be an effective measure to prevent future crimes. Therefore, capital punishment is not an effective means of deterrence against crimes.

Furthermore, there are religious views which oppose the use of the death penalty as a punishment for crime. Based on the different religious views, the death penalty is seen as immoral. According to Helen Prejean, a Roman Catholic sister and a leading American advocate for the abolition of the death penalty, “If we believe that murder is wrong and not admissible in our society, then it has to be wrong for everyone, not just individuals but governments as well.” That is, if people see murder as wrong, then what makes the government killing these criminals for their crime any good? While, the "morality" arguments of atheists are not persuasive because if there is no God, then there is no absolute morality, only arbitrary and subjective opinion, the anti-death-penalty morality arguments of some Christians, on the other hand, are persuasive to many because arguments are based on statements made by Jesus Christ. Many Christians claim society should forgive criminals and instruct them to "go and sin no more." (Enyart, n.d.) This may be based on the ideology that everyone deserves a second chance, especially when their lives are hanging on the balance. The New Testament in the Bible finds that Jesus forgave the woman "caught in adultery, in the very act." and to those arguing that she should be put to death, Jesus said, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." (John 8:7) It is also stated that Jesus taught believers to forgive, "But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." (Mat. 6:15) This suggests that everybody makes mistake and despite the severity of their crime, they should be given a chance at life and death should not be made an option. Similarly, it is found from the Jewish point of view, a Sanhedrin that executed [more than] one person in a week is called a“murderous” [court]. (Mishna, Makkot 1:10) When considering the case of the Bali 9, is it still fair to sentence Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran to the death sentence despite their many reformations and contributions to the prison? If there are people who face doubts to forgive the wrong, then the reformations and contributions to the prison that Chan and Sukumaran have made should be evident enough as proof for their repent. Mr Siswanto, the governor of the prison, has even described Chan and Myuran Sukumaran as model prisoners and testified in court that they should not be executed because of the positive influence they have had. Siswanto said in an interview, "Chan organises courses in prison, leads the English-language church service and is a mentor to many." (Allard, 2011) Therefore, should the good they have done be disregarded and put to an end all because of their past mistake? The act of forgiveness is something that can be done by everyone and not only those with religion. Hence, the presence of religious views encourage the abolishment of capital punishment.

In conclusion, the death penalty should be removed because it is not does not serves its purpose of deterring crime and is against religious views which value human life. If capital punishment continues to be a form of punishment over the long run, there is no guarantee that the number of crimes can be reduced and the question then will be whether capital punishment serves its purpose of being a judicial form of punishment for crime. As Whitehead, Blankenship, and Wright (1999) point out, “Given the literal life and death nature of capital punishment, it is important to continue research on this topic” because the death penalty is the ultimate punishment in society. The issue on capital punishment should be continued to be evaluated on. There is ample room for reform and restrictions on the death penalty.  Recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions have demonstrated openness to the opinion of other nations in evaluating the evolving standards of decency that will ultimately determine the boundaries of acceptable punishment (Dieter, n.d.).  Taking a quote from Henry Ford, “Capital punishment is as fundamentally wrong as a cure for crime as charity is wrong as a cure for poverty.”

References

Capital Punishment Quotes. (n.d.). Notable Quotes. Retrieved December 23, 2012, from

http://www.notable-quotes.com/c/capital_punishment_quotes.html

Diament, N. J. (2004). Judaism and the Death penalty; Of Two Minds but One Heart.

Retrieved from http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/Diament.pdf.


Dieter, R. C. The Death Penalty and Human Rights: U.S. Death Penalty and International Law.
Retrieved from http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/Oxfordpaper.pdf.

 Enyart, B. (n.d.). Gods Criminal Justice System, Bob Enyart. Theology Online, Christian

Forums & More. Retrieved December 23, 2012, from http://www.theologyonline.com/DEATH.HTML

 Ians (2012, December 24). All Six Accused in Delhi Gang Rape demand Death Sentence

Bihar Prabha News. Retrieved December 29, 2012, from

 http://news.biharprabha.com/2012/12/all-six-accused-in-delhi-gang-rape-demand

deathsentence/

Newport, F. (2010, November 8). In U.S., 64% Support Death Penalty in Cases of Murder.

Gallup.Com. Retrieved December 29, 2012, from
http://www.gallup.com/poll/144284/support-death-penalty-cases-murder.aspx

ESSAY ASSIGNMENT - STRESS

Analyze the various causes of stress in today’s urban society

Modern definitions of stress all recognise that it is a personal experience caused by pressure or demands on an individual, and impacts upon the individual’s ability to cope or rather, his/her perception of that ability. (Blaugh, Kenyon & Lekhi, 2012) Surveys indicate that 60 percent of Americans feel they are under a great deal of stress at least once a week. The costs due to stress from absenteeism, medical expenses, and lost productivity are estimated at $300 billion annually. (Brain Facts, n.d.) Additionally, the American Psychological Association also states tha More than half (56 percent) of adults say they are doing an excellent or very good job of knowing when they are feeling stressed, but only about half as many (26 percent) report doing an excellent or very good job at preventing themselves from becoming stressed. While it is important to deal with stress, it is also important to know the sources and causes of stress so that we can eliminate and deal with them easily. Stress is everywhere and can commonly be brought about by pressures from work and from school.

 

According to statistics from the American Psychological Association (aPa), a startling two-thirds of Americans say that work is a main source of stress in their lives – up nearly 15 percent from the those who ranked work stress at the top just a year before. Work related stress is caused when people are presented with work demands and pressures that are not matched to their knowledge and abilities which challenge their ability to cope. (Leka, Griffiths & Cox, n.d) The faltering economy, shrinking incomes and rampant layoffs are undeniable factors that results in stress.  On-the-job stressors range from unclear job expectations and time pressures to noisy work stations. A significant factor is lack of accommodation for work/life balance, which can add to the stress load, especially for women who tend to be the primary caretakers of children and elderly loved ones.
 

At school, stress is mainly caused by the expectations that students are expected to meet. These expectations can come from teachers, parents and sometimes even friends. Exams. Assignments. Project deadlines. These are things that students are always tasked with in their school life. Additionally, it also cannot be denied that students are expected to meet a certain expectation when completing such tasks. When sitting for examinations, students are expected to meet a targeted grade by both parents and teachers. When doing a particular assignment, students are expected to follow a certain standard, and while doing projects, peers can also expect the student to participate and contribute their part.

 

In conclusion, stress can be caused by pressures from both the work and educational surrounding. Stress is a necessary and unavoidable concomitant of daily living - necessary because without some stress we would be listless and apathetic creatures, and unavoidable because it relates to any external event, be it pleasurable or anxiety producing. A person's response towards stress depends on whether an event is appraised as a challenge or a threat (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).



References

American Psychological Association (n.d.). The Impact of Stress.

Retrieved December 18, 2012, from

http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2011/impact.aspx

Blaug, R., Kenyon, A., & Lekhi, R. (n.d.). Stress at Work. A report prepared for The

Work Foundation's Principal Partners. Retrieved from

http://www.theworkfoundation.com/downloadpublication/report/69_69_stress_at_work.pdf.

Health Advocate Stress in the Workplace. Retrieved from

http://www.healthadvocate.com/downloads/webinars/stress-workplace.pdf.

 Juliano, C., & Sofield, L. Two Major Causes of Stress: Loss and Unrealistic

Expectations. http://www.humandevelopmentmag.org/articles/fa-spring10.pdf

Nandamuri, P., & Ch, G. Sources of Academic Stress - A Study on Management

Students. Retrieved from http://jms.nonolympictimes.org/Articles/4.pdf

Psychologically Healthy Workplace Program Fact Sheet by the Numbers.

Retrieved from

http://www.apa.org/practice/programs/workplace/phwp-fact-sheet.pdf