THE NAZI - ACCUSATION AND CURRENT US-PROPOSALS

In contemporary ethical discourse generally, and in discussions concer ning the legalization of physician-assisted suicide (PAS) and voluntar y active euthanasia (VAE) specifically, recourse is sometimes had to t he Nazi! accusation. Some disputants charge that such practices are or will become equivalent to the Nazi 'euthanasia' program in which over 73,000 handicapped children and adults were killed without consent. T his paper reflects on the circumstances that lead to the use of this c harge and offers reasons for putting the Nazi! charge aside in contemp orary discussions of PAS and VAE. A number of the philosophical presup positions common to both the Nazi 'euthanasia' program and the current ly proposed practices of PAS and VAE are examined. Noting that racist ideology and violent coercion characterized the Nazi program, the pape r concludes with a cautionary consideration of the current circumstanc es that would specify PAS and VAE in the US.