Euthanasia has always been a very controversial subject. Some countries allow it, yet in other countries, it is tolerated but illegal. In some places, passive euthanasia is accepted better than active euthanasia is. Many people think that if a child is born with severe deformities, it and its family would benefit from euthanasia. Some people believe that a person is in control of their own life and death and therefore should be able to choose what happens to them. Others believe that only God is in control of life and death. Some people think that euthanasia helps to protect the quality of a person's life while others believe that if active euthanasia was legalized or made a person's right, it would be abused. Many think that doctors should not be allowed to take people's lives or aid them in taking their own lives.
             Translated from Greek (euthanatos), euthanasia means good or painless death. Sometimes it is referred to as "mercy killing". In euthanasia, a second party quickens or causes a person's death. There are two different types of euthanasia. There is passive euthanasia and active euthanasia. Passive euthanasia is doing something that will eventually cause death, such as not feeding a person or not giving them medication that will keep them living. Active euthanasia is doing something to intentionally kill someone who is suffering, such as giving them a fatal dose of medication. Physician-assisted suicide, or assisted suicide, is a form of active euthanasia. Assisted suicide is usually when a doctor prescribes a lethal dose of medication for a patient who then takes the drug and passes away.
             One example of a doctor performing active euthanasia on a patient took place in January of 1988. An anonymous doctor had helped a young woman with ovarian cancer die, and then had written an article titled "It's Over Debbie" for the Journal of the American Medical Association. The doctor wr...