Oppose Initiative 1000

Oppose Initiative 1000

Washington Voters Should Oppose Initiative 1000, Say No to Assisted Suicide
by Steven Ertelt

When voters in Washington state head to the polls on Tuesday, they will consider Initiative 1000, which would make the state the second in the nation to legalize the grisly practice of assisted suicide. Washington residents should reject assisted suicide to a solution to helping elderly, terminally ill and other patients. In the minds of most Americans, assisted suicide brings to mind Doctor Kevorkian, the iconoclastic crusader who appeared more interested in publicity than putting the interests of patients first. While a Jack Kevorkian may not come to Washington to flout the current laws, making the practice legal doesn't help patients. For many, assisted suicide involves the same principles as the abortion debate -- where death becomes a handy solution when government or society seeks quick fix solution to a problem. Just as abortion doesn't solve the problems of providing medial care, education assistance, financial aid or comfort and support for pregnant women who believe they have no other option when faced with an unplanned pregnancy, assisted suicide is no legitimate option for patients. Merely legalizing assisted suicide doesn't provide patients with better medical care or health insurance, it doesn't alleviate the pain and suffering that illnesses can bring for patients who don't want to take their life, and it doesn't yield cures, provide better hospice support or strengthen the doctor-patient relationship.
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