{"id":198760,"date":"2019-03-25T10:17:58","date_gmt":"2019-03-25T15:17:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=198760"},"modified":"2019-03-22T17:27:30","modified_gmt":"2019-03-22T22:27:30","slug":"euthanasia-parties-suicide-contrary-messages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/euthanasia-parties-suicide-contrary-messages\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Euthanasia parties’ wrongly celebrate suicide and send contrary messages"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Earlier this month, Canadian Dan Laramie threw a party for about 50 friends in his home. As the evening began to wind down, a doctor arrived and administered a lethal injection, killing Laramie. In any other circumstance this would be seen as tragic and deeply disturbing. However, the headline on the story<\/a> of Laramie\u2019s suicide is \u201cPartying until the end!\u201d because Laramie\u2019s life ended as part of state-sanctioned assisted suicide.<\/p>\n

According to the Daily Mail<\/a>, Laramie requested single malt whiskey and cigars for the \u201cparty\u201d and friends played a \u201chaunting\u201d rendition of \u201cStairway to Heaven.\u201d Laramie, who was 68, had diabetes since childhood. In recent years he suffered complications that would have required further amputation and he had issues with his blood pressure, kidneys and heart. Just two months prior to his suicide, his wife says, his doctor discussed the possibility of assisted suicide along with his medical diagnosis and treatment options. In the time since then, the family planned a party, which was attended by Laramie\u2019s son, daughter, and grandchildren, in addition to friends and even some of his nurses.<\/p>\n

Laramie\u2019s is not the only \u201ceuthanasia party\u201d lauded by the media. Other Canadians have chosen to end their lives with fanfare favorably covered<\/a> by sympathetic news outlets.<\/p>\n

Even so, the glowing descriptions of euthanasia parties cannot mask the strange and tragic nature of these new social gatherings. In an article about another euthanasia party, an attendee said<\/a>, \u201cThe idea to go and spend a beautiful weekend that culminates in their suicide \u2014 that is not a normal thing, not a normal, everyday occurrence. In the background of the lovely fun, smiles and laughter that we had that weekend was the knowledge of what was coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

While many might object that these parties are not bad because assisted suicide is reserved for the terminally ill, most people do not realize how terminal illness is defined in the law<\/a> \u2014 and how that definition is expanding<\/a>. The average person might think that assisted suicide is only for those whose lives are hopeless and devoid of meaning as they face a certain death involving great pain. This is incorrect; as euthanasia expands, people are now being killed for suffering from\u00a0sexual abuse<\/a>,\u00a0depression<\/a>, and even for\u00a0autism<\/a>.\u00a0Additionally, studies show<\/a> that terminally ill patients who choose assisted suicide do so not because of pain but due to feelings of hopelessness, lack of support, and fear of becoming a burden.<\/p>\n

Assisted suicide advocates insist it is not \u201csuicide,\u201d but \u201cmedical aid in dying,\u201d or even \u201cdeath with dignity.\u201d Not only do these semantics imply that somehow assisted suicide is not <\/em>the deliberate killing of a human person, which it is, <\/em>but they also suggest that enduring a chronic medical condition or living until natural death is undignified.<\/p>\n

Celebrating assisted suicide is even more disturbing as preliminary data<\/a> suggest legalizing assisted suicide is correlated with a rise in suicide generally. The suicide rate has risen more than 30 percent this century<\/a>, with teen suicides rising at twice that rate. Ethicist Wesley J. Smith points out<\/a> that the very same news outlets decrying the increase in suicides laud euthanasia parties like Laramie\u2019s. We cannot call death an exercise in \u201cautonomy\u201d and a “solution to suffering” in one circumstance and a tragedy in another.<\/p>\n

READ:\u00a0Study: Assisted suicide can be painful, prolonged and inhumane<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

As a society, we must also consider those left behind. In the immediate aftermath of Laramie\u2019s death, his wife Stef claimed, \u201cI don’t really feel loss, we don’t need any sorrow at this time and I don’t know if that sounds rude.\u201d In her view, the party and assisted suicide \u201cwas such a clean way to end life.\u201d<\/p>\n

A growing number of families who have experienced the trauma of losing loved ones to assisted suicide feel quite differently. In 2015, Deborah Binner\u2019s husband ended his life in a Swiss assisted suicide clinic. She said<\/a>, \u201cCampaigners for assisted dying underestimate how terrible it is for those of us left behind. I didn\u2019t care what state he was or might be in, he was my husband \u2013 as valuable in a wheelchair as anyone out of it.\u201d Other families have also spoken out against assisted suicide<\/a> following the death of a loved one.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, the European Court of Human Rights agreed to hear the case<\/a> of Tom Mortier, whose mother was euthanized without any of her children finding out until after her death. Godelieva De Troyer, 68, was physically healthy but was killed by lethal injection because of \u201cuntreatable depression.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe big problem in our society is that, apparently, we have lost the meaning of taking care of each other,\u201d said<\/a> Mortier in a press release. \u201cMy mother had a severe mental problem. She had to cope with depression throughout her life. She was treated for years by psychiatrists, and eventually the contact between us was broken. A year later, she received a lethal injection. Neither the oncologist, who administered the injection, nor the hospital had informed me or any of my siblings that our mother was even considering euthanasia.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul Coleman, international executive director of Alliance Defending Freedom, which will represent Mortier, said<\/a>, \u201cAccording to the most recent government report [in Belgium], more than six people per day are killed in this way, and that may yet be the tip of the iceberg. The figures expose the truth that, once these laws are passed, the impact of euthanasia cannot be controlled. Belgium has set itself on a trajectory that, at best, implicitly tells its most vulnerable that their lives are not worth living.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Dan Laramie\u2019s euthanasia party is praised as a great way to go, the coverage ignores the implications of a society that celebrates suicide. Mr. Laramie should have received legitimate options, not a lethal injection; his family deserves condolences, not a high five.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike\u201d Live Action News on Facebook<\/a> for more pro-life news and commentary!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Earlier this month, Canadian Dan Laramie threw a party for about 50 friends in his home. As the evening began to wind down, a doctor arrived and administered a lethal injection, killing Laramie. In any other circumstance this would be seen as tragic and deeply disturbing. 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Reynolds is a freelance wordsmith. She graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Dallas and holds a Master of Arts in theology from Ave Maria University. Her writing has appeared on Live Action News, Crisis Magazine, and others. She is a regular ghostwriter for several organizations. Her personal writing can be found at https:\/\/inspirevirtue.com. 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