The Guardian Sarah Boseley Wednesday January 18, 2006
First UK study provokes furore
Doctors in the UK were responsible for the deaths, through euthanasia, of nearly 3,000 people last year, it was revealed yesterday in the first authoritative study of the decisions they take when faced with terminally-ill patients. More than 170,000 patients, almost a third of all deaths, had treatment withdrawn or withheld which would have hastened their demise.
The figures, extrapolated from the study, show rates of euthanasia and doctor-assisted suicide which are significantly lower than anywhere else in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, where similar studies have been done. The numbers immediately provoked controversy.
What ever the statistics are now they are almost certainly going to keep rising. Now that people are living longer its not so much a question of how long will I live, but when should I die. Young workers are much more wanted and needed according to articles like ” Seeking People to Work Down Under” in the latimes.com on January 20th.
In Australia, they need workers but they do not want people over 45. It seems to me that for many people (not just the terminally ill)aging will make them such a liability that taking a heart attack causing pill may be easier than becoming a burden to their countries of origin. In the United States they seem to welcome young uneducated immigrants and would like to rid the country of expensive less useful older people, especially those without health insurance or assets.
PS I’ve been down under and yes they like you to come to work, however you need more than a few assets to be able to call it home for the long haul. Many countries which become dependent on less expensive foreign workers willing to devalue their own citizens. Truthfully Euthanasia may be opposed by Christianity, and other groups, but many people including Christians and Politicians may be changing their minds more often when asked to pay higher taxes to help others.