Regardless of whether assisted suicide is introduced for the terminally ill, unless things change substantially in how people view life, connect to one another and play a part in this capitalist/ consummerist society, I expect there will always be opposition to non chronically ill people gaining access to assisted suicide.
I would have thought- at least by legalising it though and setting up authorised clinics, the idea that someone doesn't have to live only to suffer terribly before their death may become more widly accepted. That I would think could only be a good thing. Plus- who knows? Maybe then- more people will become empathetic to the other ways in which we suffer. I do expect it to one day extend to people with debilitating mental illness. I still don't think it will 'help' sound minded adults who simply don't want to participate in life but I don't see how its introduction could make things worse for us. Our societies are already anti-suicide. I doubt they could get much more so! Without making it illegal widespread again.
As to what @Darkover said- Do we have the right to die if we're healthy? Who do you think we need permission from? Do you think our lives belong to someone else then? Our parents, society, God?
That statement seems to suggest that we all have a duty to stay alive and to contribute to society- if we are well enough to do so. Of course- I'd say that of course is the reality. If you're not deemed ill enough to qualify for benefits and your parents won't support you- you work or you end up homeless. Basically- we're born in to slavery. Does a slave have the 'right' to rebel? Of course! What's happening to them is the immoral thing!
Where I'd say it becomes tricky is when we demmand for our 'captors'- our parents, society, the government to release us. (Help us die.) They won't- obviously. They simply won't recognise that life is that bad to begin with. They accepted the status quo and they don't understand why we won't.
Plus- mental illness is such a useful cop out. You're not so ill that you can't work (in many cases.) You're not suffering enough to be allowed to leave this place via assisted suicide but at the same time- you're too insane to be able to make decisions for yourself- especially if they include killing yourself. In fact- the moment anyone suggests they want to kill themselves, we'll call them mentally ill. They've got it made really.
Over our 'rights' though. I agree- self determination and the right to choose is prized highly in our societies. It's just that it falls short when it comes to the biggest and most important question there is- should we have the right to decide on whether we ourselves live or die?
We in fact fail spectacularly there! Being born isn't a choice for that child. We don't seem to give a shit what kind of life it's born in to. To give the adult or child parents the right to determine their own destiny, in some cases that child will (predictably) suffer. Still- again- I don't see how you could restrict people without incurring outrage.
As for- do we owe it to society, our families and loved ones to stay alive? That has to be up to the individual. Plenty of people here are staying alive (begrudgingly) for their loved ones. Depends on whether they feel able to cope with their own suffering so as not to pass suffering on to others. I just think it's a balance and only that person knows as to how much they can take.
Should they feel obliged to though? No- how is that fair? They're suffering. Why would someone who claimed to love them want them to stay and suffer?!! That's the selfish (and slightly sadistic,) thing.
Again though- they (conveniently) simply won't recognise how much that person is suffering. It's terribly convenient to simply become blind to the suffering of others in order to keep our own lives jogging along nicely. As a race- we're so good at it! On some level, we are conscious that billions of animals suffer and are slaughtered- not always hummanely for us. We know that cheap T-shirt or phone was probably made in a sweat shop. We're very good at ignoring and exploiting the suffering of others. It really shouldn't be a surprise then that we do it on a personel level too with suffering loved ones.
Starting to state that some people don't have the 'right' to suicide though I'd say denies them their right to autonomy. It's one thing to say- 'I hope you'll reconsider. I hope you'll try this and this.' It's another to say- 'you can't do this. You're not worthy of release.' Of course- our society at large does and will continue to do it- because it can reframe the whole thing saying- life isn't that bad- it's your perspective that has become distorted through mental illness. Take these pills... (Plus- they have the added support of the majority- our 'loved' ones who also don't want to see us go.)
Still- as pro-choice individuals- we personally are able to recognise one anothers right to think and do this. That's all we have really. Our own conviction that we have this right and knowing that there are other free thinking pro-choice people out there that share our views.
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