The question we all need to ask is why, as a society, we come up with mobile euthanasia units as a solution to poor palliative care. As seen in this article, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/8949141/Third-of-hospitals-and-care-home-breaking-dignity-laws.html, it is no wonder that our elderly despair and consider assisted suicide. Shouldn't we be providing mobile palliative care units and alleviating suffering and depression?! Since when has death become the answer that medical practitioners offer to both physical and psychological medical problems?

I agree with Yabby. After considering this issue, preparing myself to see my heart specialist, after a bad night , and sending the data from my page maker computer chip over the phone to him early this morning.

Also what I learnt from my visits to the Netherlands, is that the Dutch government is much more democratic than we are, the length of time and effort they take to discuss issues like this.

A load of unmitigated emotive drivel, obviously penned by a religious bigot with no compunction about distorting the facts, whilst holding up to ridicule a genuine effort by an enlightened secular government to tackle the most pressing problem presently facing the developed countries. Would that our politicians were similarly enlightened, and similarly free from fear of a right wing voter backlash.
Add to that the disgusting lampooning of the sufferings engendered by Nazism - sufferings disproportionaly felt by the Dutch people themselves - and you have an article without any mitigating merit whatsoever.
Shame on you

What the Dutch are doing sounds like a great idea, once you get through the twisted, vile logic and rhetoric of the author.

Russell’s article is intended to frighten. It is but another example of the Christian right attempting to foist their narrow views onto the Australian population. By adding dubious and emotional phrasing after quote mining, this piece of nonsense is demonstrably void of substance.

It is quite sad that the more extremist parts of religion involve itself with these conspiratorial-like scenarios where an ‘evil’ humanity is out to do harm to others. Their own faith-induced paranoid fears about death and dying drive this irrational behaviour.

It is a bit much to assume that 80% of an informed population who want a system of voluntary euthanasia introduced, are not capable of coming to that conclusion by thinking about the matter. Even surveys of religious folk are not far behind that figure.

There is a slippery-slope at work here; it is the fact that specific religious carrot and stick indoctrination of children can lead some down the path of a lifelong journey of ever expanding self-righteous irrationality
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Legal voluntary euthanasia will become law sooner or later. It will happen because level headed and compassionate people who have not lost the power of empathy will make it so. Those who have surrendered their minds to superstition will not prevail.

David

This was indeed a very emotive article, and a load of rubbish!

I am not an advocate of INvoluntary Euthanasia, but am a passionate advocate of voluntary Euthanasia.
At the end of the day, I have no problem with any palliative person refusing euthanasia , if they want to suffer on until the very 'natural' end. Many people won't need to ask for it anyway.

I just don't want any palliative person who does request euthanasia, being refused it by those who think they know better.

I am involved in providing palliative care in the community, and I am sorry to tell you all that it doesn't always work, unfortunately.

Australia has some of the best Palliative care methods in the world, and yet there are still some dying patients who we can't really help, especially those with terrible vomiting, nausea and loose bowels, that doesn't respond to medications.

All the countries that have legalized Euthanasia have strict guidelines in place, and I am sure Australia will learn by their mistakes when the time comes to let compassion overtake the old-fashioned religious superstitions of the past, and legalize Euthanasia.

Walk a mile in my shoes, and see if you change your' mind about legalizing Euthanasia...