Prime Minister Gordon Brown elaborated on his opposition to assisted-suicide laws in Great Britain.
For let us be clear: death as an option and an entitlement, via whatever bureaucratic processes a change in the law might devise, would fundamentally change the way we think about mortality.
The risk of pressures – however subtle – on the frail and the vulnerable, who may feel their existences burdensome to others, cannot ever be entirely excluded. And the inevitable erosion of trust in the caring professions – if they were in a position to end life – would be to lose something very precious.
I know in my heart that there is such a thing as a good death. And I believe it is our duty as a society to provide the skilled and loving care that makes it possible; and to use the laws we have well, rather than rush to change them.
When it comes to Mr. Brown's views, there is very little about which I find myself in agreement, especially when it comes to his hyper-Keynesian economic policies. This however is one such instance where I'm pleasantly surprised.
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