According to the title of an article which came out in Der Speigel two months ago, a Dutch NGO “pioneers mobile euthanasia.” The plan is to initially bring death to the homes of people who are terminally ill and suffering. But the end objective is to increase public acceptance and eventually achieve the full legalization of assisted suicide – so that this service can become available to anyone who fancies to die, no questions asked. After all, if someone thinks it is in their best interest to die, why should they be persuaded otherwise?
The director of Right-to Die-NL thinks they shouldn’t. She says thousands of desperate individuals already call their office every year seeking advice on how to kill themselves. And their staff doesn’t try to dissuade any one of them. That, you see, would be too paternalistic. Instead, callers are given advice on how to kill themselves most efficiently even if this take some effort – like going to Belgium to buy a few over-the-counter drugs needed for some lethal concoction. Hobbes once defined freedom as the opportunity to pursue one’s desires in the “absence of external impediments.” If this is all there is to freedom, then viva la liberte, once and for all!
