As of late, it seems that many states have been deciding on whether or not to legalize assisted suicide. As a healthy, happy college student, something like this does not really pertain to me in this moment. However, I may still have the opportunity to vote on this issue, have someone close to me choose assisted suicide or think about it myself someday. It is important to think about both sides of the issue now, while it is being discussed in the media and court rooms. College students should all be informed on hot issues sooner rather than later, before they have to quickly decide how they feel about the issue.
One side of the issue would be to sympathize with the people who want to do assisted suicide. Some of these people are sick and wish to be put out of their misery, some might be looking at a future of something like Alzheimer's disease, and some want to die before they get too old to do anything, but lie in bed. Of course, these are not the only reasons one might choose this path. Whatever the case, these people believe it is their right to choose when to die. For some reason, they believe that their future will be unfortunate and do not want to face it. They would rather go peacefully and on their terms. Should doctors be allowed to show them compassion? This is certainly an important point to consider, as many people would agree that they too would not want to suffer. Also, if your on the opposing side, and do not want to give the people the option of assisted suicide, how do you know how you would react in their situation? It is important to understand that unless you have experienced what these people are going through, you cannot truly say what you would do.
The opposing side might argue that assisted suicide is selfish and affects others as well. Many families do not want to lose their loved ones, especially not by choice. So yes, someone might want to die on their terms, however, the family suffers the loss. Furthermore, many people believe that all life is sacred and people should die when it's their time. They say that people should respect the natural order of things and life their life to the fullest. By allowing people to commit assisted suicide, you are also allowing them to disrespect the life they have been given. Some people have their life cut short before they are ready, would they not have been thankful to have been given longer? This figurative example is just one of many that someone from the opposed side may reference.
Should assisted suicide be legalized? Given both of these sides, it is up to you to decide if you will side with the person's right to choose or to sympathize with the family who are forced to deal with the repercussions.
