Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (Full Version)

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celticlord2112 -> Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 5:36:18 PM)

Suicide on TV condemned in Britain

Suicide as entertainment....one word:  creepy.




Padriag -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 5:48:40 PM)

Awwww... c'mon... why not... we could even giv'em swords and stuff and put them in pairs.... or even better... how about a big old factory with lots of rooms full of interesting ways to die... we can score them on creativity, originality...

What... didn't like Hostel?

I'm not sure what I find more creepy... people committing suicide online or on TV.... or the popularity of movies which graphically depict mutilation and murder for entertainment.

We live in interesting times.




marie2 -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 5:55:53 PM)

Not sure that televising it is such a good idea.  But I think it's great that people can legally euthanize over there.   




susie -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:05:46 PM)

I think that the subject has been brought out more into the public eye can only be a good thing. It is being discussed more openly and has enabled me to feel easier about discussing my wishes with my family. We have been able to discuss openly what would happen if I get to the point where the pain from cancer becomes too much. It is a choice I have been able to make and talk to them about because the subject has been brought up by the media. Perhaps it was not the best thing to show on TV but perhaps it will enable others to feel more open about discussing their wishes just as I have.




Padriag -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:09:03 PM)

I've got very mixed feelings about euthanasia.

On the one hand, forcing someone to stay alive who really doesn't want too is probably futile anyway.  Besides, if you don't own your own life (and therefor have the right to take it) then what do you own?  So, if someone wants to off themselves... let'em have at it say I.  But I'm not gonna watch because... well... frankly... I just don't give a damn.

On the other hand I think it is a very dangerous idea to allow anyone the authority to euthanize someone else, not even a doctor or a court or a parent... and especially not where a minor is concerned.  I've got a very personal reason for feeling that way, if such a thing were legal... I probably wouldn't be typing this right now.  An ya know... despite feeling like crap from having the flu... I rather like being alive.




popeye1250 -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:12:53 PM)

"HONEY! Get the chips and dip "DIRT NAP" is comming on!"
Sponsors?
"Brought to you by Remmington!"
"Brought to you by "DRANO!"
"Brought to you by an 80 something driving a Buick."
"Brought to you by The Golden Gate Bridge Society."




ChainGoddess -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:14:26 PM)

I fully agree that anybody with an incurable illness should have the right  to end their life as they chose.   But it is not something I wish to watch on tv.   




popeye1250 -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:17:23 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: ChainGoddess

I fully agree that anybody with an incurable illness should have the right  to end their life as they chose.   But it is not something I wish to watch on tv.   


Not even if they jumped in front of a train or threw themselves in front of a STEAMROLLER?




GreedyTop -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:24:56 PM)

great.. now I have that scene from ROger Rabbit in my head, Popeye.. thanks.. grrrr


I don't know that I'd want to watch it, but I agree with Susie that an open dialogue can only be a good thing




stella41b -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:25:14 PM)

The problem is nobody can accurately predict how long any of us have got left to live, and even in the case of someone who is terminally ill, at best all a doctor can do is make an educated guess.





Padriag -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:26:45 PM)

That would be Gross... and.... nope... still don't give a damn.  So no, don't wanna watch.




popeye1250 -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:27:39 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: stella41b

The problem is nobody can accurately predict how long any of us have got left to live, and even in the case of someone who is terminally ill, at best all a doctor can do is make an educated guess.




Oh yes they can!




ChainGoddess -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:33:20 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: popeye1250

quote:

ORIGINAL: ChainGoddess

I fully agree that anybody with an incurable illness should have the right  to end their life as they chose.   But it is not something I wish to watch on tv.   


Not even if they jumped in front of a train or threw themselves in front of a STEAMROLLER?


Nope, sorry Popeye.   I get my kicks from CSI.




celticlord2112 -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:38:41 PM)

quote:

Perhaps it was not the best thing to show on TV but perhaps it will enable others to feel more open about discussing their wishes just as I have.

Euthanasia is a touchy subject, and suicide another one.

I can't see how making an actual death entertainment fare for the boob tube can avoid trivializing the subject--and perhaps distorting the debate by glamorizing the act of taking one's own life.

It is good that people talk about such things....but does that really justify putting the end of someone's life on primetime TV?




Lockit -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:50:08 PM)

Using suicide as a means to end it is risky in that you cannot always be sure, have access to the things you need or may include other's in finding you or how you do it.  I do believe we need a humane and legal way to do this.  Some places have it so you can do it but only if you have six months to live.  That doesn't work for some of us.  I would like some say in the matter and have a few options.  But I wouldn't want to be watched, but I can understand why some would want to do something like this to promote some change.  I wouldn't watch one though.  I think there may be some better ways to make a point.




servantheart -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 6:51:09 PM)

I am deeply conflicted.  Death, like birth, is a very natural part of life, but we as a society have made both something to be feared.  Anything that reduces that fear is a good thing in my mind.  But to sit idly by while someone takes their life is something I will never understand.  Even creepier is the active participation of the family and especially physicians, such as placing within reach or handing the person a lethal dose of medication.  Likewise, how anyone can ask another person to help them die is in my opinion pretty selfish.  Maybe people wouldn't feel the need to resort to desperate measures if the medical community did more to ease the suffering of terminally ill people. 
 
 




marie2 -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 7:29:54 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: celticlord2112

I can't see how making an actual death entertainment fare for the boob tube can avoid trivializing the subject--and perhaps distorting the debate by glamorizing the act of taking one's own life.


I think it would all depend on how it's presented.  I probably wouldn't watch it for my own personal reasonsn, but without knowing the participants' motivations behind this, it's a bit of a jump to assume it's all about entertainment and glamourization.  Maybe he wants to show others in the same situation that it doesn't have to be a horrible process should they chose this route. 

quote:

It is good that people talk about such things....but does that really justify putting the end of someone's life on primetime TV?


Why does it need justification?  No one is forced to watch it any more than they are forced to watch a horror movie or the news, or a true documentary about a horrible murder case.  If it has value to you, you watch it, if it doesn't you don't. 




Vendaval -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 7:52:45 PM)

General Reply -
 
Not long ago public hangings were common in the city square or on a hillside outside of the town limits.  How about the stoning to death of adulterers?  Is that any more objectionable?  How about viewing a death row execution?  Rhetorical questions of course...

"Every state that performs executions has legislation providing for certain people to witness them. State laws vary as to who is allowed to watch an execution, but in general, these are the people who are allowed to be witnesses:
  • Relatives of the victim(s)
  • Relatives of the prisoner
  • Prison warden
  • Medical personnel
  • Spiritual advisor(s)
  • Prison guards
  • Official group of "reputable citizens"
  • Official group of state-selected witnesses
  • Media representatives " 

http://www.usatoday.com/news/science/stuffworks/2001-05-10-lethal-injection.htm#more




kidwithknife -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 8:37:58 PM)

This is a complicated one.  To start, I'd take issue with this from the linked article:

quote:

The televised suicide in Britain follows a well-publicized case in Florida, where a teenager killed himself on camera last month and broadcast the chilling images live on an Internet site.

Whether you're in favour or against euthanasia, I really don't think there is a valid parallel between someone with a terminal illness making a rational decision to end their own life and a mentally disturbed teenager filming their suicide online.

Ironically, that part of the report strikes me as far more sensationalist then anything I've seen reported about the documentary itself.

Actually, from what I can tell (I haven't seen it) the documentary seems non-sensationalist and sensibly done.  Tentatively, I don't think there's necessarily wrong with filming this kind of suicide, as part of the broader picture.  There's not actually much different between that and showing corpses on the evening news for me.

However, where this becomes more complicated for me is the fact it was broadcast on Sky.  Sky are obviously a commerical channel, so ratings are their prime priority.  And broadcasting it on their reality channel (which is pretty tacky) isn't the venue I'd choose for a sensitive issue like this to be aired.  I'd actually have been far less uneasy if the BBC had shown this- they aren't bound by ratings in the way commerical television is.

This is pretty telling in the article though:

quote:


Care Not Killing, an anti-euthanasia group aligned with the Catholic Church and other religious organizations in Britain, denounced the broadcast as "a cynical attempt to boost television ratings" and persuade Parliament to legalize assisted suicide.
"There is a growing appetite from the British public for increasingly bizarre reality shows," said the group's director, Peter Saunders. "We'd see it as a new milestone. It glorifies assisted dying when there is a very active campaign by the pro-suicide lobby to get the issue back into Parliament."


It's very interesting that an anti euthanasia group is against this, at least in part, precisely because they don't want the general public to see what assisted suicide looks like.  As the article mentions at the end, 80% of the British public support assisted suicide in cases like this.  And I have no time for the complaints of those who believe that their personal religious beliefs are more important then the will of the British people. 




kdsub -> RE: Suicide on TV condemned in Britain (12/10/2008 9:05:43 PM)

I've seen enough people die in my life...only sick bastards would want to watch..only sicker bastards would but it on television.

It's nothing new to the human race...we've always been sick bastards...we love to see fear in others and watch the gore as lives are ended...

Just another proof of our unworthiness of being called civilized.




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