The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

 

Assignment Instructions

Instructions: Please carefully read the following assignment details in its entirety. There are many components to this particular assignment, and each component is graded.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

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This essay should be between 900 and 1000 words, excluding the required annotated bibliography. It must also be in MLA Format. No more than 1000 words.

First, you will choose a public debate that has at least two opposing sides. As before, you need to research that topic in order to narrow the topic’s scope, so it can be easily discussed in 1000 word essay.

Note: Consider your audience as laymen in the field who have only general knowledge of your topic. The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

This essay must include a minimum of five sources.  Three should be peer-reviewed sources, preferably from the APUS databases.  From the library welcome page, click on Advanced Search at the bottom of the page and then check the \”peer reviewed\” sources box filter.

You may use eBooks; however, as discussed in your textbook, books generally are not as current as peer-reviewed articles.  You may also use primary sources (interviews, statistics, etc); however, these primary sources should be obtained from experts within that field.  If you cannot find strong sources for your chosen topic, then change your topic. If you have a question about the validity of a source, please contact a librarian:

Make sure to include the following sections in your essay:The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

an introduction and claim, background, body, and a conclusion. Make sure your essay includes the following: The background for your chosen topic,

A discussion of both sides of the debate, including core values or warrants underlying their arguments

Your common ground (Rogerian) solution/claim

An explanation of how that common ground claim can resolve the core issue for both sides. After you have written your essay, please make sure to revise the content of your essay. Lastly, be sure to edit your essay by checking grammar, format, and smaller technical details. Please make sure your essay is written in third person. The Annotated Bibliography As with the Toulmin essay, an annotated Bibliography (AB) is due with your Rogerian essay.

The following is a sample of an annotated bibliography entry.

Clark, Irene L. The Genre of Argument. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace, 1998. Print.Clark\’s textbook identifies the major steps to developing a well-researched and well-written argumentative essay. It is older, but still contains much useful material on process. Professional essays are included in the text as models. It will help me mostly with writing and organization, since internet research has changed since 1998.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

Euthanasia is a physician assisted death that must pass the legal test to be allowed within the country or state. Oregon was the first state in US to legalize physician assisted death which has seen other several states such as Texas, New Jersey, Massachusetts and California follow suit (Darr pp. 31-2). However, there has been a growing support from the young generation who view the process of euthanasia as morally acceptable, especially for the terminally ill patients or those patients who are in the state of great pain and there is no hope for improvement or recovery. On the other hand, a contrary opinion is held by the church and other lobby groups, especially the catholic church who term euthanasia as immoral and against the stands and will of God, as well as a violation of human dignity and rights (Battin pp. 416-7). California remains one of the recent states that have experienced controversy in the wake of legalizing euthanasia. This essay will focus on California’s euthanasia background and the opposing sides amid the legalization of euthanasia.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

California’s Euthanasia Background

California is among the several states that have legalized the physician assisted suicide. Since the infamous Barber v. Superior Court of 1983, where two physicians were charged with murder due to removal of hydration and feeding tubes from a patient, the California state has been battling with the opposing sides that held different views on the legalization of euthanasia. Although the two physicians were acquitted of murder, there has not been a legal structure that guided the physician conduct on assisted suicide for decades. The California’s Natural Death Act which permits some physician actions such as removal from life-support devices where situations call for such action was not enough to cater for the legal requirements and procedures for the physician assisted death(Petrillo et al. pp. 883-4). As such, the California authorities drafted a bill – End of Life Option Act of 2015 which was signed into law by Governor Jerry, paving way for a whole new era of physician assisted suicide in the state of California (Petrillo et al. pp. 883-4).The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

Analysis of The California’s Differing Views on Euthanasia

With California joining a series of other states that have legalized the Physician assisted suicide, it has not distanced itself from controversies surrounding the different stakeholders within the state. While the signing of the new law has been welcomed by some lobby groups as well as physicians for meeting the legal requirements, some other lobby groups and the church view this as a violation of human dignity as well as immoral. Although the drafting of the End of Life Option Act of 2015 incorporated stakeholders across the board including the chaplains and patient’s rights advocate, the passing of the bill as expected drew opposition from the church and human rights activists who has since drawn a long opposition stand on the morality and ethical considerations in the application of the said law within California(Burlone & Richmond pp. 313).The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

On the ethical considerations, the grounds at which the opposers argue for against the assisted suicide is that a person in pain can make a consent driven by emotions and feelings that they may be undergoing at that difficult moment which in real sense is out of their normal state(Battin pp. 416-7). Therefore, the consent of a person to undergo the euthanasia procedure can sometimes be misused or influence the euthanasia decision in a wrong way(Jones pp. 379). On the moral grounds, the church and lobby group argue that a person should not experience death in an immoral manner which emanates from a decision of a person rather than the natural process of death. The church cites the moral teachings and beliefs and as such, euthanasia contradicts the church teachings.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

With California also having a multicultural setting, the differing cultural and family settings is also a major determinant of the mixed reactions of the application of the End of Life Option Act of 2015. Considering the minority groups and people of color, the acceptance can be a bit hesitant considering the already unresolved health issues associated with these minority groups. The fear of control and safeguard from misuse, as well as distortion of societal values has been a major concern for the application of such controversial laws (Jones pp. 379). The case of mandatory reporting of euthanasia cases has not been taken with the strictness it deserves, therefore,creating a gap for misuse of the procedures (Burlone & Richmondpp. 313).The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

Another major concern within the state of California has been a shortage of trained physicians in the area of euthanasia. Euthanasia procedure must conform with the ethical and professional standards guided by established policies within a given jurisdiction. Considering only less than ten states have permitted euthanasia, the physician training in this area is also minimal and thus the knowledge requirements is left with the specific state health department. On the other hand, the procedure has also not been so popular as its process requires meeting a vigorous legal aspects and prior consent from the concerned patients as well as their guardian.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.

Conclusion

Euthanasia is slowly gaining ground in the US but the conflicting views based on culture, human life dignity as well as religious affiliations is bound to be a challenge in the overall implementation of the physician assisted suicide.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay. The states such as California must as well strike a balance in application of the euthanasia laws with consideration of the state’s multicultural settings, as well as lobby groups and religious views. Nevertheless, medically, the process is gaining ground and the legal processes being put in place continue to engage more and more physicians to consider situations of terminally ill patients with prior consent for the euthanasiaprocedure. California in its own capacity has made a tremendous effort in legalization of euthanasia which can now be done legally within the state following the laid down procedures. The controversy surrounding euthanasia is not about to end soon as different stakeholders hold different views on the procedure in the lens of morality, medical and ethical aspects.The Thin Line Between Law and Morality in Legalization Essay.