KQ: To what extent is it justifiable for humans to determine the right to life?

1. AOK: history.

1.1. 1940s - Nazi use of involuntary euthanasia changed the perception of euthanasia in the U.S.

1.1.1. WOK: emotion. People in the U.S. who supported euthanasia did not want to be portrayed in the same light as the Nazis.

1.2. recent case of Brittany Maynard, which occurred in Oregon.

2. RWS: Euthanasia is a controversial topic that raises the question of who or what can decide a living being’s right to life and death.

2.1. People’s ability to easily end their own lives, with the help of physicians and lethal medications, makes it questionable as to whether they should have that right or if that right is left to something else, such as nature or a higher power.

3. Knowledge Issues: Should anyone/anything decide the duration of another living being's life? If doctors receive consent from the patient to end the patient’s life, are they justified in doing so even if they are in violation of the law?

4. AOK: ethics

4.1. Hippocratic Oath.

4.1.1. WOK: language. We interpret the intended meaning of the Oath through its language.

4.2. Dr. Kevorkian.

4.3. difficulty regulating euthanasia because doctors may take advantage.

5. AOK: religion.

5.1. Religions believe it is wrong for people to end their own lives.

5.1.1. WOK: faith. People know this because it is what they believe in.

5.2. However, in some cases, Buddhists believe euthanasia can be understandable.