Hey guys, I'm just wondering if anyone is willing to read through my oral and give me any feedback?
Any help will be appreciated, thanks
My topic is: We should allow death by dignity in AustraliaIf I was to ask you whether a hopelessly ill patient, experiencing extreme suffering, with no chance of recovery at all, asks for a dose of medication to end their life. Wouldn’t you say yes? [Pause]
75% of Australians would.
Consider Tom Nicklinson, after a stroke in 2005, Tom became paralysed from the neck down and unable to speak. Communicating with a computer, he described his life as “miserable and intolerable.” If the depressed Tom, who hated his life, came to you begging to be granted the right to die because he could no longer endure his own life, wouldn’t you give him what he wants? PAUSE. Unfortunately, the British courts forced him to suffer by keeping him alive in excruciating pain. Tom couldn't bear to live any longer, and decided to starve himself to death. Yes, Tom starved himself. Tom is now dead. Would you have forced Tom to starve himself to death? Or would you have allowed Tom to pass peacefully around his friends and family?
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today, I’m going to tell you why Euthanasia, the painless killing of a person suffering from an intolerable disease, must become legal. I cannot stress how much this would help our society. In its essence, my presentation today will be asking you the question; why should we be forced to live in pain?
Now I’m going to point out the difference Euthanasia makes to society as I describe to you the life and death of Brittany Maynard, a cancer sufferer who died this year. When Brittany was diagnosed with cancer, she tried to fight back but the cancer kept becoming worse, eventually giving her a 6 month expiry date. So, Maynard applied for voluntary Euthanasia and was accepted. Knowing she could escape the pain, Maynard enjoyed the last weeks of her life ticking off her bucket list and having fun with friends and family. After suffering from a painful seizure knowing it will only get worse, Maynard took the pills that peacefully ended her life on November 1st 2014.
Do you all see the difference between Brittany, who was granted the right to Euthanasia and Tom, who was denied his right? While both are now dead, Nicklinson passed in pain we can’t even imagine through starvation while Maynard passed peacefully around friends and family. That is the difference that Euthanasia makes when legal. That is why Euthanasia must become legal. (PAUSE)
Now, the one thing I want to emphasise is that Euthanasia is not suicide. I am not petitioning for an easy way out. To ensure that Euthanasia does not become an option for suicide, Australia’s future Euthanasia laws should follow the Death by Dignity act in Oregon, which state the following:
It is only the patient’s decision. The patient cannot be pressured by anyone else
The patient is above 18
Two different medical professionals confirm the patient will be dead within 6 months, or an ethics committee accepts that the patients life is intolerable, like Tom Nicklinson’s
The patient must sit through two waiting periods of 15 days, making sure the decision is not a rash one
I’m not petitioning to kill people, Brittany Maynard herself said “I don’t want to die,” but we can’t cure cancer as well as many other diseases, and this is the only way to avoid the torture, after all, Euthanasia only shortens life by about of 1 week, but this one week is the most gruelling, painful, torturous week the patient will ever suffer.
I’m sure you all know that animals are allowed to be euthanised and are all in support in it. Whenever any animal is found to be in too much pain to live, it is put down, and this is another reason as to why voluntary Euthanasia must become legal. Let’s take the Melbourne Cup horse Araldo for example. After the famous Melbourne Cup, Araldo accidentally kicked a fence and broke the hind cannon bone in his leg. Upon visiting the Vet, it was found Araldo would suffer from pain for the rest of his life due to his severe injury and was subsequently put down. Could you imagine the outcry from everyone, especially the media and animal rights activists if an animal was forced to live through pain? If an animal is going to die soon, but forced to stay alive, through indescribable torture, what would the reaction be? We put pets down all the time, in fact, world-wide, one pet is put down every hour, they are never, EVER expected to live through pain. Why is it that animals are allowed to escape from torture, but we’re are not? Ladies and gentlemen, I will repeat my question, why should we suffer in pain? Why should we put ourselves below other animals? Euthanasia must become legal. It’s the only option that makes sense. (PAUSE)
Put yourself in the sufferers shoes. You’re lying in a hospital bed, knowing that within a week you’ll be dead. You’re constantly given morphine, a painkiller, but you still lie there in pain as the hospital is just waiting for you to die. If 20 of us were under this type of care, the statistics say that 2 of you would be begging to die. Begging the nurses to relieve you from the torture that is to come. Why can’t we just let these 2 people be free? Why can’t we let the innocent sufferers have their last wish? Why can’t we just legalise Euthanasia?
Ladies and gentlemen, enough with the nonsense. Euthanasia needs to be legalised, to escape the torture, to allow people to pass with their dignity. More the half of patients who die with a disease die in pain. [pause]. If we allow animals to escape the pain, why should we be forced to live through it? Martin Luther King, Jr once said; “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” So are you going to sit here in comfort, letting others suffer? Or, are you going to help end the torture, and fight to allow all Australians the right to commit euthanasia?
Thank you for listening.
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