What would you do?

Here in Franklin, VA we had a bad accident. Three Scouts and a scout leader killed in a car accident with fire.

http://www.wtkr.com/Global/story.asp?S=5641639

Unpublished reports are that witnesses watched the van burn while the children were screaming, but were unable to approach the vehicle due to extreme heat.

Warning: The rest of this post has nothing to do with self defense, but it does pose a moral/ethical question about the use of firearms.

This got me to thinking, if I was there, I certainly would entertain the thought of a mercy killing. Might be wrong, might go to jail, but how could anyone stand there and witness that, if they had the tool necessary to stop the agony right on their hip?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by paramedic70002

Here in Franklin, VA we had a bad accident. Three Scouts and a scout leader killed in a car accident with fire.

http://www.wtkr.com/Global/story.asp?S=5641639

Unpublished reports are that witnesses watched the van burn while the children were screaming, but were unable to approach the vehicle due to extreme heat.

Warning: The rest of this post has nothing to do with self defense, but it does pose a moral/ethical question about the use of firearms.

This got me to thinking, if I was there, I certainly would entertain the thought of a mercy killing. Might be wrong, might go to jail, but how could anyone stand there and witness that, if they had the tool necessary to stop the agony right on their hip?

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Yeah I envision myself entertaining the thought, but that's also why I keep 2 fire extinguishers in my vehicle so hopefully I don't have to go any further than entertaining the idea.

never really thought about that...hmmm... I probably won't do it and risk legal action. now if that was my family suffering, i still do not know if i can do it, that's a very hard decision. all this "what if's" would be running through my head.

but I couldn't do it...
I believe one would be second guessed by many...

OMO

ret:urla9ub:

If it was my family member I think I would kill them to end their pain. I don't know if I could do that for a stranger. Mainly because I don't know their wishes towards the end of life or how their family veiws end of life issues. I would not and have not wasted a minute putting an animal out of its misery though.

I would not do that, no. It is a situation I hope to never encounter.

Some things may be harder to live with then you think. An old friend of mine was a LRP. His best friend was gut shot and they were trying to get to an extraction point. They ended up surrounded but hidden by NVA searchers and the morphine was used up. His bud was not going to make it through the night without a hospital and was going to make alot of noise shortly in his pain and delirium. He decided to send his friend "home" to spare him and save the rest.

He still wakes up screaming from the nightmares.....

Hard question, but I personally do not think that mercy killings are ethical.

I've no problem with mercy killing, but the problem is the circumstances. When you are talking about an accident as opposed to a terminal disease, it's much more difficult to make a sound determination - you can't have confidence in what's going to happen and you only have seconds to make a determination.

I cannot absolutely and for all time rule out all mercy killings.

But I would not do it in that situation.

There's a good scene in "When Trumpets Fade" about a mercy killing by a soldier. Rod Eldard kills one of his friends. I think there is a MASH episode about a soldier who does the same thing and he has a horrible time with it until Sidney the Shrink helps him a bit...

Ugly thing to contemplate. Truly ugly.

Go ya one better than that.
This happened to me,in Maine,in early '84.

(short version) Though still active duty,the town that I lived in sent me to school to become a EMT. I "ran" with the local,and simi-rural, rescue squad.

We responded to a single vech.MVA at 2300 one evening. The vech. had left the road and struck a power pole. The only occupient,a middle aged male,was still behind the wheel as we arrived. Power lines were down accross the vech. and were arcing on the hood and top. We were told by the chief of the rescue squad to wait until the power company was notified and power was turned off.

A county sherriff's deputy arrived on the scene a short time later. By then the vech. occupent was unconcious and unresponsive.

There was a fuel leak somewhere under the vech and a small fire started about in the center of the vech. We watched the fire grow and I finally asked the deputy if he had a long gun in his crusier. He stated that he had a shotgun with slugs and buckshot. I told him to shoot the wire or the transformer at the next pole down. He refused stating that he could not shoot into the air. I told him to give me the weapon and I would do it. He still refused.

The car finally caught fire,the passenger came concious(probably because of the pain from the flames),and all of us watched in horror as he slowly burned to death,screaming.

After the vech. was completely engulfed,the fire dept arrived, along with the power company a few minutes later.

What a tragedy. If I would have had my firearm in my truck I would have started shooting(wires,transformer,etc.) no matter what the deputy said.

I will never forget that "run". -----

RSSZ, Tough one...
Hate you had to witness that......

I have burns from my hands to my sholders from melted aluminum dripping on me when i was trying to save a semi load of cattle in my younger days . I would like to say that i am smart enough not to do that again , but ... i bet i would ... and if i cant let cattle burn well you know that not only would i be in there creating more for the first responders to do , but would most likely " insult others into foolishness also " .

Rszz you work emergancy services long enough and you think you have seen it all .. well in roughly 20 years of emergancy services work ( between ambulance calls and LE ) I never did , i can still be amazed at the stupidity of man , and the pettyness of man , I am glad i got out before it became so what .

I would never do it. It is for God to decide when an inncents should die, not for man. I would do anything I could to save them, but intentionally killing innocents is wrong no matter how we dress it up.

All the best,


Joe

Whereas I believe that under certain circumstances, it would be wrong not to kill a person who was suffering.

If a dog or a horse were suffering in agony, with little or no chance of escape or repreive, we'd kill them out of compassion and sympathy. I think humans are worth at least as much compassion and sympathy as a dog or a horse.