Asking to Die: Inside the Dutch Debate about Euthanasia

The Dutch experience with euthanasia is valuable for all cultures embroiled in debates about its morality. In the Netherlands, doctors can openly and intentionally end the life of their patients. This practice inescapably influences the practice of medicine everywhere in the world. Yet for a country yielding so much power in shaping our thoughts and policies, it is especially dangerous to neglect its own struggles with euthanasia. The arguments, laws, and policy adjustments should not be overlooked or misunderstood. Without an adequate portrait of the internal Dutch debate, including public and professional arguments as well as intensely personal stories - as set forth in Asking to Die - the valuable lessons from the Netherlands will be lost for other countries. This book therefore differs from other published books on euthanasia in that it addresses the debate, as it is currently formulated, among Dutch physicians, policy-makers, academics, lawyers, and bioethicists, as well as families, and it does so using academic papers as well as personal experiences.