Comment on You've probably met someone who has killed a person
Crackhappy@lemmy.world 2 days ago
I have killed someone. My mother. It was intentional, legal and sanctioned. She was at the end of her life, suffering from Alzheimers and her entire family was present. I volunteered, as her only living child, to pull the plug. And I did. Did I kill someone? Yes. Was it the best thing to do at the time? Yes. Do you wonder if that’s a good way to go out of this world? Probably. Would you be wrong? Yes.
If you think about it, people have probably elected to be killed by their families ( and friends!) loads of times throughout history.
- old age
- mortal wounds / permanent disabilities
- evading capture by enemies
- escaping debt et cetera
- one less mouth to feed
I was told that once the plug is pulled, it’s not just some flatline and quiet sadness. The human body, regardless of its condition, does not like being deprived of oxygen and spends some time physically revolting before finally giving in. Apparently it’s horrific, but I haven’t witnessed it myself.
Depends. Saw my dad die of mesothelioma (asbestos from being a Torpedoman 3rd class, WWII). Remember Dr. Dyson dying in T2? Like that but a bit worse. Stood by as a family friend had the plug pulled, nothing but a flatline.
It’s going to depend on their condition. Someone who has lost their respiratory drive, someone who has a heart that isn’t working, and someone who is dying of organ failure all have their unique way of passing. And those are just the ones I’ve seen. There’s a saying in my field that everyone dies of shock, but there are lots of ways to get to that point.
I’ve heard that as well. In my mother’s case she actually passed quite peacefully.
Another good example of killing without it being murder
Monument@lemmy.sdf.org 1 day ago
When I was younger my grandmother died of cancer. She wanted to pass at home and we lived with her.
For months she just declined, until she was bed-bound in the living room, having carers and family members feed her, clean her after she pooped on herself, sometimes randomly screaming in pain, having nightmares, and was largely incoherent. In the last week she didn’t have the strength to eat and her doctors told us to just stop feeding her. She had a death rattle that lasted for days and echoed through the house every time she breathed, until finally something just gave out.
It was not dignified. It was not peaceful. It was deeply traumatizing. I wish we could cut her suffering short somehow – for us as much as her.
MangoCats@feddit.it 1 day ago
Our legislators and judges are enormous chicken shits for not addressing this issue better. In a way, I would call them demented torture masters for their lack of clear and humane definition of when assisted suicide and mercy killing are legally permissible. Not required, but when all competent parties are in agreement? Keeping people with no quality of life and no hope of recovery alive with technology can’t be called anything but torture, in my opinion.