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WHAT IS EUTHANASIA?

Euthanasia. The very word can spark many different questions in everyone. Is it approved? Should it be legal? Who will it affect? Diverse authorities have their own descriptions of the term as well as their reasons for endorsing or opposing it. Many times, it is difficult to evaluate both sides of this controversial issue of death and dying. Attempting to consider the sources of information received both from books and the internet can prove to be daunting enough on its own because limited information is available regarding the credibility of the authors and contributors involved. So to give those interested a better understanding of the subject, this article will deal with exactly what euthanasia is and why it is such a prominent topic, a clarification of the four classifications derived from euthanasia, and some problems surrounding euthanasia should it become legal.

The root meaning behind euthanasia in Greek is "good death." Overall, it is a term used to describe the achievement of a merciful or painless passing. The Webster's Dictionary defines euthanasia as "[The] act or practice of causing death painlessly, so as to end suffering: advocated by some as a way to deal with persons dying of incurable, painful diseases." Euthanasia would potentially be a wonderful entity if it were only intended for people who were in the condition to be entitled to it. But unfortunately, this is not the case, for the disagreement abounds over to who exactly would qualify to be euthanized, and the classification consists of more than just the terminally ill. Instead of being an object used for legitimately relieving patients of incurable diseases, many now want to make it an available option for a much broader spectrum, and this is where the debate becomes such an issue.

As you might expect, there is not only one type of euthanasia but rather four different classifications of a "merciful death." In reality, each variation provides a different approach to reaching the same objective: taking a life under the false pretense of mercy rather than the actuality of murder. Below are the explanations of these four.

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Passive euthanasia: Hastening the death of a person by altering some form of support and letting nature take its course.1 This form of euthanasia is typically relative to dangerously ill patients who are more or less being kept alive by machinery and constant care. It refers to the instance when a physician disconnects whatever is keeping the person

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