I'm sure this has been brought up before, but then again, so have most discussions and polls on VJ. Anyway... I thought I've give this one a whirl and see how the answers turn out. It's self-explanatory, so I don't need to go into detail.

NOTE: This poll isn't meant to insult anyone. If you know someone who has committed suicide and you find anything in this poll rude, I apologize. It's not meant to be. I'm just trying to cover as many bases as I think I can.

Undecided
Undecided
No/No

Maybe. Mercy. YES/YES

I don't think mentally ill people should be "allowed" to commit suicide.

Regarding the last question - I answered with euthanasia after a painful illness in mind more than, say, helping my friend jump off a building.

I believe in the case of terminal illness, people should have the right to choose for themselves. It is, however, a mortal sin in my religion and if I chose to go that way, they would not preside over my funeral. I'm pretty positive God would forgive me, so it doesn't worry me much.

I believe Kevorkian is helping people fulfill their wishes. I see nothing wrong with it.

I could not help anyone I loved kill themselves. I would give them my blessings; but not my help.

Maybe {for terminal illness only, people with severe depression can hopefully be helped}

Both {I would hope that his actions are truly sincere and he didn't coerce ppl into it}

No/No {because I could not & would not terminal illness or not I would not want a family member or friend to die, some people would call that selfish especially if the person is suffering a lot, but I can admit I'm not a strong enough person for that}

Yes/Mercy/Yes/Yes....

I equate the right to die with a woman's right to choose. I also believe mentally ill patients should be awarded the same dignity as "physically ill" patients: I've always had a with this mental/physical absurd dichotomy-- mental illness carries equal if not more pain than physical infirmity.

But isn't there a chance that the desire to commit suicide is a result of the mental illness and that if that illness could be treated, then the person would change his mind?

There might be sister, or there might not. Unfortunately, psychiatry is not as evolved as say oncology --- so the chances of treatment saving someone in the extreme woes of a severe and say medicine-resistant mental illness are slim, sadly. My assertion is that the pain of a person who has been chronically depressed for 25 years is comparable (not bigger or smaller) than that of a terminally ill patient.

yes, mercy, no/no.

I lost my Dad because of suicide and I am still angry at him. He had no right to do that and leave me as his daughter behind. As long as there is one soul on this planet that will cry after you and yearn for your presence you cannot do that. It's terribly cruel to those who loved you and cry after you. Several years have passed now and I still miss him awfully. It hurts that he won't be there at my wedding, and he'll also won't be there to see his first grand-child. And it hurts even more because he chose to miss out on all of that. Nobody should be encouraged to do something as terrible as this.

Thanks for sharing

I know a few people who committed suicide as teenagers- I can't help but think if they had gotten help or just hung on longer that there lives would have gotten better or at least they would have learned a way to deal with their lives better.

I believe everybody has a right to die if that person believes it is his/her time.

We can send young whole strong men off to war to fight for their country and if they die in the line of duty, they are honored as heroes.

Yet we fight to keep the aged and terminally ill alive artificially with machines against their wishes and it's considered wrong to let them die.

The former is heroism, the latter is suicide. We honor heroes, we condemn suicidals.

War is unnecessary in this day and age and quality of life is more important than quantity. Risking the whole and strong in a futile gesture is as wrong as forcing those who no longer wish to live to do so.

Condemn not the soldier nor the diseased one, but the government that insists it is okay to let the one die but the other must be forced to live.

Atlanticat, you have spoken wisely and from your heart. Thanks for these words

My father tried multiple times to kill himself. After awhile, you get more annoyed and numb at the attempts than anything else. One time he drank antifreeze and the doctors told us it might be it. I was really hoping it was. There was no help for him. You just want it to be over.

If people want to kill themselves, I don`t care.

let's send the old and terminally ill off to fight the war!

My opinion is: God gave you the gift of life and you should not commit suicide.
Anybody that has thoughts as such needs professional help as soon as possible.

What do you mean by the "right to commit suicide"?

If you want to commit suicide, who's going to stop you?

And if someone tried to stop you, why would you give a ####?

In the U.S., it's considered illegal to commit suicide for any reason. This is why Kevorkian got thrown in prison, despite the fact his patients went to thim and asked him to end their lives. But the U.S. legal system feels that even if you're going to die, you still can't termnate yourself. So the only two ways to die legally are through natural or accidental means; suicide is, at the moment, very illegal.

I don't get the ''right to commit suicide'' thing. If you don't have the right to commit suicide, but you decide to commit suicide, then you're breaking the law, cuz you have no right to do such, but you'll be dead. Is there a fine you'll receive in hell for doing such?

I think that beneficiaries are unable to collect on life insurance if the death is ruled a suicide.

Wow.....I never really thought about the two together like this. Thanks.



Ha Ha.............

i have put many...100s of people in lock-up on the psych unit..for suicide attempts or ideations.....it is a major focus of mental health care

Illegal to commit suicide? I think you meant "illegal to help someone commit suicide" - otherwise
it doesn't make any sense. What are they going to do - prosecute you for killing yourself?
Euthanasia is another story.

It is illegal to try to kill yourself. Most attempts don't succeed, you know.

Not true - most life insurance policies allow suicide with an exclusion period (2 years is common.)
The presumption is that most people who want to commit suicide are not going to wait 2 years
so that the beneficiary can collect the death payment.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Can_you_collect_...after_a_suicide

Well who gives a rat's ###. If you're ready to die, you sure as hell are not going to care about legality.

Yes, and the penalty for attempting suicide is death!

Hmmm....I am pro-life. Anti-abortion, anti-capital punishment, anti-war, anti-suicide.
My faith is that life is a gift from God and neither I, nor any other human, has the "right" to take that away.
But, I have never been depressed and I have never experienced the murder of a loved one, so I cannot truly make a judgment.
I can only say what I believe. Perhaps if my child was killed I may look differently on capital punishment, but I don't believe so.

When Kevorkian was first brought into the news many years ago, I though that what he was doing was wrong. I still do.
Yet who am I to pass such judgment? My brother died of colon cancer, after a 5 year battle. My mother died of complications
from diabetes, after many many years of sickness. My best friend's brother died of cancer and my friend's husband died of cancer.
I have seen people suffer greatly through the process, and therefore who am I to judge someone for wanting to end that suffering?
Just because I think something is a sin doesn't mean it is my right to judge the person.

I believe in life, not "choice" because of my belief in God. But my faith also tells me that the only one with the right to judge is God.

No...but I don't think it's fair to say it's because I think it's the "cowards way out" that I am saying no. I know people who committed suicide and I don't judge them as cowards. They did leave lots of sadness and broken hearts behind them. I couldn't condone that at all.

Both-he might have meant well but I don't agree at all with him

NO/NO

No, I mean it is illegal to commit suicide. Just as VJ Troll said, the attempt to commit suicide is illegal in the United States. Sure, you may say it shouldn't be that way and probably wouldn't matter to someone who's ready to perform the act, but what if they fail? Most suicide attempts don't succeed. Then what? Then they are in some serious trouble for committing an illegal act. The penalty would most likely be institutionalization at a mental facility.

Which is a good idea, and probably why it's illegal, right? Can they put someone in a mental institution by force unless they've committed some crime?

Possibly. In New York, the sole legal grounds for involuntary commitment is a person's danger to himself or others.

yeap..depending on the state ..is the length of hold..i have put many..i mean many people in the psych unit for 48-72 hours and then there is a hearing in front of a judge and can be extended ...

Ok, so I'm out of possible reasons why committing suicide is illegal.

Because the IRS doesn't want to lose a taxpayer?

Honestly... I disagree with it. I think someone should be able to commit suicide if they want to, so long as the method they're using is not a danger to anyone else. Deciding to blow your brains out in your own home is a lot different than driving the wrong way down the freeway. Both might gain the desired results, but only one would put others at any noticable risk.

I think the reason suicide is illegal is due to a confusing combination of medical, legal, cultural and religious views:

1. The medical community would see suicide as mental health issue, so that no one "in their right mind" would ever wish to commit suicide. Unfortunately, it seems this view doesn't take into account terminal illness. Naturally, if someone is going to die no matter what they do, then they will be depressed and upset. Modern medicine wouldn't see that side of it, however. It'd see the patient as "depressed and in need of psychological and psychiatric care."

2. Legal views vary between countries (and even states and provinces), but usually suicide -- or attempted suicide -- is considered illegal in reference to "common law" more than anything else. Those who attempt and fail at suicide are generally dealt with by the health care system more often than the legal system, although legalities still exist (such as forcing the individual who tried to kill themselves to seek help or remain in an institution).

3. Culture, once again, varies depending on location, but some societies can see suicide as anything from a vile and cowardly deed to a noble and honorable act. In general, Western Society has frowned upon suicide while Eastern Societies have been more tolerant (some, such as Japan many years ago, even considered it the "right" thing to do if dishonored) of this form of death.

4. Religion has played a huge part in how suicide is viewed. Judeo-Christian beliefs, which are dominant in much of North America and Europe, have shaped our views on many things, such as suicide. Because of this, suicide has been thought of in a very negative way. Religions not assoicated with either Judiasm or Christianity, however, usually lack such associations with suicide. Some may still dislike or generally disapprove of it, but the extremely strong reaction against it is not there.

i think suicidal person is potentially dangerous.

Just curious:

Euthanasia (medically assisted suicide) what do you all think of that?
Just curious because this is legal in some countries (the Netherlands I think is one of the countrys)

I believe suicide is still a mortal sin no matter what the circumstances are and you'll go to hell too

Even though I am against suicide...I don't believe you definitely go to hell for it. I know someone who grew up a Christian but was having a time of severe depression, and committed suicide by jumping off a housing building at USF. Really really hard for his family, and is still hard for them over 10 years later. But I don't believe he went to hell. I think it's a sin, but I think God has more mercy than we think.

You are one of only a few (of religious people) that I have heard (read) speak this way. It's rather refreshing. Usually the people seem to think that they are the mouthpiece for their god and can pass sentence and punishment.



ALL people are "potentially" dangerous.

If everyone has a right to suicide then that means someone who cares about you will have no power to stop you. In other words, if you say you will go kill yourself, your wife cannot stop you. Very cold, don't you think.

My husband has a close friend from childhood. They were like brothers & grew up together. They grew apart when they were in late 20's and they got into stupid argument 2 years ago - they stopped talking since. His friend killed himself last year.

My husband did not & probably will never understand why he did it. He remember that once they were talking about suicide & both my husband & him will never do that. There must be something that trigger his decision - nobody will ever know why he did not reach out first before he decided to kill himself.

When you have somebody close to you committed suicide, you do not judge whether the person will go to hell or not. You are left with sadness/anger/confusion/guilt & "what if" scenarios.

I believe the only reason that suicide should be acceptable is if that person is terminaly ill.. and even then they should only do it as a last resort.. the early stages of most illnesses like that can be dealt with at least long enough to come to terms with everything and say your goodbyes and get your affairs in order.. i however dont believe that just merely being depressed is at all a reason to commit suicide.. there is ALWAYS someone willing to help so there is absolutely no excuse..

as far as helping a family member or friend to commit suicide.. i could never.. and it'd be better for all parties involved.. as i'd be completely emotionally unstable and i'm sure that wouldn't bode well for them as well!

Undecided
Both
No/No

I can't imagine being so ill that you'd prefer to be dead - in that case there may be justification for suicide (IMO). Otherwise, I lean more towards the "cowardly" thing to do.
The people left behind (families and friends) suffer so much after they lose a loved one to suicide. I have a 14-year-old student whose brother tried to commit suicide twice this month, and as far as I know is still in the hospital. It's been so hard on her.

Consider the following:

Are there cases when suicide is acceptable?

Case 1: From the New Testament: “no greater love has a man then to lay down his life for his friends.”

Case 2: In some Native American cultures the old and infirm were left behind to die when the tribe moved on for better hunting/food gathering. Those that left behind accepted their fate. Is that suicide?

Case 3: A patient is given a prognosis of 3 months to die due to some form of terminal illness. The patient refuses all treatment and dies in 2 months. Is that suicide?

If cases 1, 2 and 3 are NOT suicide then what distinguishes them from suicide?