Over the past 20 years, I have heard many compelling arguments from people who believe physician-assisted suicide is a choice they want to have at the end of life. But the most trivial and frankly uninformed reasons for anybody to argue in support of suicide, as preferable to hospice care, is in the “Taking the sting out of death” opinion by Marian McCue.

Just so she knows, there is no way to take the sting out of death. It is final. Moreover, she claims that many of us barrel through life not knowing when or where death will occur. She is wrong again. The truth is, all of us go through life without knowing when or where death will occur. Since McCue begins her opinion column with quotes from the Bible, none of which pertained to suicide, perhaps she should include “for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” People who are facing death because of terminal illness should not be thinking that suicide takes the “sting” out of death. Hospice provides the compassionate care needed when that “thief in the night” meets all of us.

Juliana L’Heureux, RN
Topsham