Dr. Kevorkian's Delima:

Should people be forced to stay alive? No. In fact, certain situations make sustaining a person’s life cruel and inhumane. There is a point where life is no longer a reward or a pleasure; it becomes a punishment and is painful. When do we draw the line? There is no single, objectively correct answer, which has application to everyone as to when, if at all, life becomes a burden and unwanted. But that simply points up the importance of individuals being able to decide autonomously for themselves whether their own lives retain sufficient quality and dignity. In making such decisions, the patient must decide for himself as the primary beneficiary of life or death, which option has the greatest return in relieving themselves of pain and suffering. Given that a critically ill person is typically in a severely compromised and debilitated state it is, other things being equal, the patient’s judgment of whether continued life is a benefit that must carry the greatest weight, provided always that the patient is competent.