Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: a Response to Edmund Pellegrino (IN: Choosing Life, edited by K M Wildes and A C Mitchell)

Responding to the essay “Evangelium Vitae, Euthanasia, and Physician-Assisted Suicide: John Paul II’s Dialogue with the Culture and Ethics of Contemporary Medicine,” by E Pellegrino, the author of this article for the most part agrees with him. He suggests that there are other signs of disrespect for life in our culture, other than abortion and euthanasia, that should be of concern to all. He argues that the medical system is replete with outrageous and misguided priorities, such as spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to keep dying people alive for a few days or weeks while millions of children live without access to adequate healthcare or living conditions.