Semi Finals: Assisted Suicide Should Be Legalized for the suffering

Resolution: Assisted Suicide Should Be Legalized for those that are mentally stable and suffering from a terminal illness.A:The Resolution as written is fundamentally flawed.(i) Lack of clarity with regard to jurisdiction. Where is this to be done? Is it to be global? If so how? (Pro's) position is predicated on the declaration of people having rights. I could only find this aspirational right from the UN that might apply here. Article 5. U.N. : Universal Declaration of Human Rights Source (1) ' No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.'Many governments display an a la carte attitude to these aspirational ideals so that they rarely influence law within their individual jurisdictions for purely 'local reasons', ie the death penalty, etc. Where are we to 'legalize'?(ii) What does 'should' mean? Is this assertion , Utilitarian, Kantian, Ethical, Moral or Religious in it's nature? If it is to be taken as a purely secular rationale, then it probably attempts to mean this. 'used to indicate obligation, duty, or correctness'. If it is this then it again becomes circular in nature in that it draws upon the previously alluded to subjective considerations.(iii) There is no mention within the Resolution, regarding the, 'how' and 'by whom', ie the actual cast by which 'Assisted Suicide' can occur. We are probably expected to assume that a physician is to be involved ie via models implemented in Oregon, Holland etc. Or do you want to consider the Swiss model where anyone without a vested interest in the event can in fact assist.B: Hippocratic OathOnce again we are plunged into a Kantian minefield of conflicting 'Categorical Imperatives'(4). This declaration of 'medical intent' is not predicated upon notions of moral conscience as cited by (Pro). It is a declaration by the new initiate regarding the fundamentals of their chosen profession, ie medicine. This is also part of the original oath, Source(3)'Nor shall any man's entreaty prevail upon me to administer poison to anyone; neither will I counsel any man to do so. Moreover, I will give no sort of medicine to any pregnant woman, with a view to destroy the child. 'This oath defines the commonly held perception of what a medic is. They are not perceived as facilitators in suicide within any aspect of the oath. Are you asking this profession to redefine itself for a new age?. They show little interest in doing this. The Oath is aspirational and idealistic by necessity and it is as non prescriptive as we wish to make it. However, it's subtext is a warning against the corruptive effects of a lack of professional conviction that it regards as 'medical nihilism'. The aspirant is requested to affirm their belief in their healing vocation. C: Legalization = FacilitationLegalized is to make (something that was previously illegal) permissible by law. (Law: The system of rules which a particular country or community recognizes as regulating the actions of its members and which it may enforce by the imposition of penalties:)(Oxford English)(7)What is actually happening in the global theatre of 'assisted suicide' is what might be referred to as 'field studies'. A variety of procedures are being field tested to check their relative tolerances. Obama said as much,(5)In 2008, then candidate Barack Obama was asked what he thought of Oregon"s assisted-suicide law. He responded, "I"m mindful of the legitimate interests of states to prevent a slide from palliative treatments into euthanasia. On the other hand, I think that the people of Oregon did a service for the country in recognizing that as the population gets older we"ve got to think about issues of end-of-life care."The results of these global field studies have been mixed. Take Oregon for example. What do you think about this? I think that it presents a utilitarian outlook that points towards a 'cold' future that nobody wants. Make up your own mind on this.http://www.katu.com... The approach in Switzerland has created 'suicide tourism' which highlights the dangers inherent in having huge variations within legal responses to this issue that share close geographical proximity of each other. It would be ludicrous to suggest that enough clarity existed at the present time that would indicate the wisdom of legalizing the act of assisting suicide. To do this opens the door to an ever ending erosion of any solid ground that might presently exist . I found this sentence to be 'solid' in nature.The State also urges this Court to decline to rule that Plaintiffs have a constitutional right to die with assistance of their physicians, asserting that the issue is properly determined by the legislature. Source 2 (14,15,16) page 24 (Baxter v Montana)In short, our work continues here in an attempt to reach some sort of working solution that is in itself sensible. If you take the brake off the train it inevitably goes faster. You need to know where you are going before you act in such a fundamental manner.(1) http://www.un.org...(2) http://www.patientsrightscouncil.org...(3) https://en.wikipedia.org...(4) https://en.wikipedia.org...(5) http://www.patientsrightscouncil.org...(6) http://www.oxforddictionaries.com...Thoughts are the shadows of our feelings - always darker, emptier and simpler. Friedrich Nietzsche