Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland • Hacker News Board

Re: Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland

#651

Post by wuschel » Thu, Oct 16, 2025, 4:46 PM UTC

wjnc wrote: post #379

dns_snek wrote: post #297

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a difference between "I don't want the disease because I don't want to become a menace to others" (what you're saying) and "I don't want the disease because it would make me lose social status" (what the original commenter said).

I am left wondering. Can’t people (in general) understand that Alzheimer’s changes a person fundamentally, irreversibly and forever until death follows? Many positive traits of personality disappear, the negative starts to dominate, I think mainly from fear and a subconscious awareness of what is being lost. That’s pretty much 101 of grieving when a loved one is struck with Alzheimer’s. The person has left. You conti…

Of course people understand that.

IMHO it is important to see which context people are coming from. Different culture, social acceptance, historic treatment options, etc. influence the response.

Also, dementia is not the only disease with a strong degenerative impact on character and behaviour e.g there is schizophrenia et al. What is common with many of these conditions that there is a strong individual component of progression and morbidity.

It is great that you have the option to make a choice for yourself. Others might decide to make other choices.

Re: Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland

#652

Post by cindyllm » Thu, Oct 16, 2025, 5:33 PM UTC

notanastronaut wrote: post #650

firesteelrain wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s still absurd despite what you say that we are implying that we should euthanize another human because they have become difficult to manage due to illness. Where do we draw the line?

Apparently where the line currently is leads to a whole lot of pain and suffering for everybody involved, for the sufferer and their family, because bad actors exist. I tell you this now in good faith, any human being can choose when to end it. That is without question. I can go get in my car and drive into the nearest body of water, if desired, and no law could stop me. Even under supervision 24/7, it is still possi…

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Re: Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland

#653

Post by cwillu » Fri, Oct 17, 2025, 12:53 PM UTC

account42 wrote: post #616

pantalaimon wrote: post #243

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you visit an elderly care home you'll find plenty of people who express their wish that they don't want to live any longer. It's not getting better for them - they are just waiting for the day to come, often in agony.

And don't you think the solution to that should be to not ship your parents to a care home rather than finishing the job by euthanizing them?

Stop conflating “I don't want to live” with “I don't want my parents to live”.

Re: Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland

#654

Post by sashank_1509 » Sat, Oct 18, 2025, 6:29 PM UTC

squigz wrote: post #523

sashank_1509 wrote: post #374

I’m young, but I’m at the age where I’ve seen many grandparents pass away and I must say, I support assisted suicide. The helplessness of the last stretch of your life, something that can last a couple of years, where you often need to help to even stand, doesn’t seem like a period of time worth living. Further modern medicines, in my opinion insane focus on extending life of the very old, compounds this situation to…

Starving to death in the forest is probably not very dignified, I gotta say.

Probably better than going to the ICU and having five surgeries at 84

Re: Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland

#655

Post by mock-possum » Tue, Oct 21, 2025, 6:58 AM UTC

Der_Einzige wrote: post #584

mock-possum wrote: post #583

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honestly that strikes me as a pretty fucked up and self-serving reason to have children. You should have kids because you want to create new life, and support them as they become the best humans that they can be - not because you’re scared of dying alone.

Your worldview is even worse. At least I'm honest in my egoism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Better_Never_to_Have_Been https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benatar%27s_asymmetry_argument https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voluntary_Human_Extinction_Mov...

> antinatalism, the philosophical position that coming into existence is always a harm

> a decrease in the human population would prevent a significant amount of human-caused suffering

Ridiculous. Without coming into existence there is nothing anyway - by that logic, coming into existence is always a pleasure too, it’s always a joy, it’s always a triumph and a fulfillment. Existence is always existence, nothing is always nothing. It’s a useless tautology.

If you’d rather be nothing then give up on living. I’m perfectly happy existing.