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> but the abuse potential is massive. How so? We don't have to create a system in which it is legal to shoot someone in the head and then claim they asked you

by slg 5y ago

> but the abuse potential is massive. How so? We don't have to create a system in which it is legal to shoot someone in the head and then claim they asked you to do it. Have it be a medical procedure that must be done in a hospital by government certified doctors. You can even require a psych evaluation before it becomes an option. I can understand there being some gray area in which it isn't clear that the person has all their faculties to the point they can request it, but that shouldn't stop us from creating a system that works for all the obvious cases.

metalliqaz 5y ago
... then the psych evaluator gets sued by kin, etc.
- JamesBarney 5y ago
  Well the first problem is that it's not legal. Lets fix that problem for fixating on the secondary issue of the American legal system exacerbating principal-agent problems
SCLeo 5y ago
Family members can pressure the patient to give up.
- birksherty 5y ago
  Family also pressure to give birth even in cases where the potential child leads a terrible life and it's abused too.
  - TeMPOraL 5y ago
    This is the reverse case, though. Plus, child abuse can in principle be found out and mitigated. Death is irreversible. Incentives are different too. Outside of highly fundamentalist cultures, there isn't really a strong benefit to a family from pressuring someone to keep a child. In developed countries, children are a huge liability for the first ~20 years of their life. Meanwhile, with assisted suicide, there are strong incentives around cessation of ongoing medical care (costs), and obviously inheritance. Between that and possibility of presenting some murders as assisted suicide, I think if the idea is to be implemented, it really needs to be done extra carefully.
    - birksherty 5y ago
      Child abuse is just one thing. There are people who don't have the capability to give proper physical and mental care, they don't even know anything, just wanted a cute thing because they don't have anything else to do. Then there genetical disease. Many just wanted a boy, so they play gamble and give birth to 3 girls. These kids are here for someone's selfish wish, may live miserable life in 3rd world countries. Bring someone to life, but don't let anyone escape unless going through huge suffering whole life. Car kills many, doesn't stopped that from banning cars completely. Yes do it carefully, but no. Even people who live alone, doesn't have anything valuable, are not able to die with dignity. Must suffer.
- Broken_Hippo 5y ago
  Sure, but they also pressure folks into marriage and birth and organ donation and all sorts of things. It is definitely possible to do it in ways that help minimize this. And even then: We already allow families to decide to take folks off of life support.
R0b0t1 5y ago
There's a system in india where mercy killings are normal and there are plenty of stories of families plotting to kill their elders. It could end up like that if normalized.

by slg 5y ago

metalliqaz 5y ago

... then the psych evaluator gets sued by kin, etc.

JamesBarney 5y ago
Well the first problem is that it's not legal. Lets fix that problem for fixating on the secondary issue of the American legal system exacerbating principal-agent problems

SCLeo 5y ago

Family members can pressure the patient to give up.

birksherty 5y ago
Family also pressure to give birth even in cases where the potential child leads a terrible life and it's abused too.
- TeMPOraL 5y ago
  This is the reverse case, though. Plus, child abuse can in principle be found out and mitigated. Death is irreversible. Incentives are different too. Outside of highly fundamentalist cultures, there isn't really a strong benefit to a family from pressuring someone to keep a child. In developed countries, children are a huge liability for the first ~20 years of their life. Meanwhile, with assisted suicide, there are strong incentives around cessation of ongoing medical care (costs), and obviously inheritance. Between that and possibility of presenting some murders as assisted suicide, I think if the idea is to be implemented, it really needs to be done extra carefully.
  - birksherty 5y ago
    Child abuse is just one thing. There are people who don't have the capability to give proper physical and mental care, they don't even know anything, just wanted a cute thing because they don't have anything else to do. Then there genetical disease. Many just wanted a boy, so they play gamble and give birth to 3 girls. These kids are here for someone's selfish wish, may live miserable life in 3rd world countries. Bring someone to life, but don't let anyone escape unless going through huge suffering whole life. Car kills many, doesn't stopped that from banning cars completely. Yes do it carefully, but no. Even people who live alone, doesn't have anything valuable, are not able to die with dignity. Must suffer.
Broken_Hippo 5y ago
Sure, but they also pressure folks into marriage and birth and organ donation and all sorts of things. It is definitely possible to do it in ways that help minimize this. And even then: We already allow families to decide to take folks off of life support.

R0b0t1 5y ago

There's a system in india where mercy killings are normal and there are plenty of stories of families plotting to kill their elders. It could end up like that if normalized.