my brilliant child...

Kadie - my oldest child - is a junior in high school....

She is a brilliant child if I do say so myself...lol....which is why i get so irritated with her and her grades...

At 5 years old she cried when she had to go to kindergarten because to her "it is just like daycare - I am way smarter than all these kids - they cant even write their names!" It was quite humorous and sad at the same time...lol...she knew she was smarter even then...

Kadie has always loved to write...anything...

She writes poetry - some of it I dont even PRETEND to understand - its that whole teenage angst thing - Cassey understands it better than me- lol

She had an assignment to write a "research/debate" paper and she chose Physician Assisted Suicide as her topic -

While I do not agree with some of this - ok a lot of this - and mostly because there is no way I could assist a loved one in dying - i say that but i have never been in that position so this is one of those instances where I would have to be in the situation to say what I would or would not do - ignore me now i am rambling....

Here is her paper -

Physician Assisted Suicide

The practice of physician assisted suicide should be legalized because of prolonged pain and suffering, healthcare costs, preservation of time for savable patients, the family and friends of the patient, organ donation, and brutal alternatives to physician assisted suicide.

Patients can be saved from a tremendous amount of pain and suffering. Certain types of cancers, liver disease, various strands of sexually transmitted diseases, heart failure, stroke, and various other conditions and health issues result in a slow, painful death. Would it not be more humane to give the patients the option to terminate their lives in cases such as this? Also, the psychological effects of terminal illness must be taken into account. The knowledge that the patient will eventually expire and that the pain will only worsen takes a physical and emotional toll on the mind and body.

Healthcare costs can be dramatically reduced, which would lower insurance premiums and save money for patients that can be helped. Consider the expenses required to keep alive a dying patient; costly x-rays, lab tests, drugs, hospital bills, etc. It is certainly common for medical bills to equal several thousands of dollars. It is utterly irrational to keep pouring this amount of money into patients who want to die anyway.

The patient’s family’s pain and anguish can be saved and final goodbyes can be said. Often times, friends and family suffer through as much emotional anguish as the patient. It’s positively draining to have the stress of losing a family member or friend drawn out for so long. When the patient eventually dies, it is either sudden or follows a coma or other state of lost consciousness. Physician-assisted suicide would give the families a chance to say goodbye and end their life peacefully.

Countless organs can be saved and bodies can be preserved for examination and tests with PSA. But when a person dies, the organs can not be harvested quick enough to be of any help before they become unusable. If diseases are allowed to run their full course, organs will weaken or expire completely. Bodies and organs can be saved and tested on before complete expiration.
Without the option of PSA, some patients may commit suicide in a messy or traumatic way. “Older Americans often see nothing ahead of them but loneliness and pain. So if these people are going to commit suicide, which is better--controlled, compassionate doctor-assisted suicide or clumsy attempts like taking sleeping pills or firing a bullet into one's head?” (Messerli 1) Which would be more traumatic: saying goodbye peacefully in a hospital, or coming home to find your loved one’s head splattered against the wall from a bullet?

Several counterarguments have been made saying that PSA is “against religion” and “unethical.” Pray tell, what is unethical about ending the suffering of a loved one and helping them say their goodbyes peacefully in stead of suddenly or after being on life support for years? PSA may very well be against several religions, but the argument being made is that it’s a personal choice. If you should choose to suffer and be in constant pain, by all means, exercise your right to do so.

Again - not my beliefs but she did make HER point in an educated, articulate way.