Arguments against Sanctity of Human Life
Many people argue against a principle that says that all human life should be treated as sacred.
- When someone is in great agony and no longer wants to live, their life is not of supreme value
- Severe disability, both physical and mental, can reduce the value of life
- At its earliest stages, human life is devoid of personality, the ability to reason etc. and therefore should not be treated as sacred
- Treating all human life as sacred means we cannot do vital research that would improve the quality of life for millions
- Some lives are simply not worth as much as others - this is why an ambulance driver is trained to focus first on a young person rather than someone who is very old. It makes no sense to see a person who might die any day of old age as of equal value to someone who has many years left in them
- Some people lose the right to be treated as sacred when they kill other people