March 20, 2005

Against the "Utiliarian Valuation" of Life

PORRETTO OF Eternity Road, at the top of his form in "The Convergence Is Complete":

Over the millennia, men have killed one another in uncounted millions. It's not new, or particularly noteworthy, that one man should want to kill another -- not even that a husband should want to kill his wife, whom he's sworn before God and man to protect. What is new is the accelerating approval and support for such a desire among the "intellectual elite," including judges appointed to do justice, defend the innocent, and protect the helpless.

Europe is deeply mired in this trend. The Netherlands is the standard-bearer for "assisted suicide," and for the deliberate execution, with medical concurrence, of inconvenient babies and oldsters. The horror stories are legion -- so many, in fact, that the horror of them has begun to create calluses over our emotions. One can only hear about so many such villainies before stopping one's ears.

Europe is also the rallying point for the condemnation of the death penalty. The lives of men who've maliciously and unjustifiably destroyed the lives of others are therefore valued more highly than the lives of the helpless and utterly innocent.

America has been a bastion against this sort of viciousness...until now. European thinking -- utilitarian valuation of the "quality of life" of helpless persons by third parties -- has reached these shores and formed a beachhead. The abortion wars, as serious as they've been, were only a preliminary, a shelling of our moral defenses to soften them for a decisive breakthrough.

Posted by Vanderleun at March 20, 2005 8:38 AM
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Being Dutch, I must say I don't agree with the euthanasia practices in my country. But a significant difference with the Schiavo case is that euthanasia, in our country, is not practiced by starving someone to death. Furthermore, our law says euthanasia can only be applied to someone of clear mind who specifically requests the procedure, or has it written down in a will, which again, is not the case with Terri Schiavo.

I remember we had a similar case in the 1980's, I just can't find the details anymore. But I believe the husband was denied the right to kill his wife.

I don't think that it's possible in The Netherlands to legally euthanise Terri, the way it is now.

This utilaritarian view of life, it's all becoming rather.. 'brave new world', isn't it?

Posted by: sered at March 20, 2005 3:14 PM

Explain to me this:

In certain European countries it's become OK to kill the imperfect, inconvenient innocents, but it's deemed barbaric to execute vicious serial killers, cannibals, or mass murderers.

This is an "advanced," "civilized" society?

Posted by: Roderick Reilly at March 20, 2005 9:29 PM

I just don't see the connections between the Schaivo case and all the rest of it. And I'm also not terribly opinionated on it one way or another. I heard a story (on FOX?) that the husband had been offered a $10 million stipend to allow reconnection of the feeding tubes, and he had turned it down. Whether or not that story is true or apocryphal I don't really see what he has to gain by allowing her to die other than simple closure. Surely he could easily have a divorce if he wants freedom, and the parents would assume the financial burden.

All of which suggests to me that the reason he's doing this is precisely the reason he says he's doing it: it's what she wanted.

If it were me I don't think I'd want to keep the feeding tubes connected unless I were absolutely sure the Devil was waiting for me on the "other side."

I dunno. Like I said, I'm not powerfully convicted on one side of the issue. But it just seems to me that the argument that the husband is some sort of venal monster is a bit anemic.

Posted by: Demosophist at March 21, 2005 10:33 AM