More and more people decide to resort to sweet death. The new data concern Holland, but the debate on euthanasia is also investing Italy. And sooner or later it will touch us seriously. It starts from a news news. In the Netherlands, cases of assisted suicide have increased by 10% in the last year. Has another step towards progress has been taken? The discussion is open. However, it is good not to expire in the simplifications. The countries of northern Europe certainly cannot be accused of obscurantism. Indeed, on the issues relating to civil rights they have always arrived first compared to the rest of the world.
The theme is thorny. And judging the suffering of others can often lead to a blind end. In most circumstances, you are faced with terminal patients. Everyday life becomes the alternation of atrocious pain and suffering. A situation that can go on for years, where living degrades more and more in merely survive. So what do you do? The temptation is to unplug, put the point to situations that have become unsustainable.
Yet when it comes to euthanasia it is the caution that our work must guide. In particular, in contexts such as that of the Netherlands. Where a law allows doctors to end a person’s life if this “suffers in an unbearable way, without prospects for improvement”. But in the category there can also be those who are suffering from psychiatric problems. And here the risk of drifts is around the corner. “Although absolute numbers are still low, there has been a huge increase in requests and eutanasias performed on patients with psychological disorders, especially among young people under 30 years old”. To report it is Damian Denysprofessor at the Amsterdam University Medical Center. Which is said to be deeply worried. Because in those situations it is not possible to establish with certainty if a “young man with a development brain certainly wants to die”. Resorting to assisted suicide in Holland has been possible since 2002. According to current legislation, only doctors have the power to put an end to someone’s life. However, precise criteria must be respected. The patient’s request must be voluntary and there must be no “reasonable alternative” to his situation. Similar trends are also found in Canada.
But in general it is the whole West that is hit by the theme. Pro or against euthanasia? This is the dilemma of post-modern companies. Research of unbridled Avonism and consumption alternate with depressive symptoms and burnout. Death is canceled by reflection, removed once and for all by our horizon of thought. While increasingly weak social and community ties empty the figure of the other with meaning. Which, when sick, is perceived as a weight. The debate recently has also rekindled in Italy. On February 11, Tuscany decided to legalize assisted suicide. Greeted as a victory from progressive political teams, also center -right -guide regions want to take a similar step. But are we sure it’s the right way to go? Or is it just a stratagem to cover other deficiencies? Such as, for example, the use of palliative care. To which most of the patients are seen denied access. Therefore a doubt arises. That the sweet death becomes an easy and comfortable shortcut. And that human life is measured through a mere economic calculation. The sick cost too much, better get rid of it. If this is progress …
