An Assisted Suicide: Roller Coasters as Tools for Euthanasia

For those who are seeking a way out of existence suicide could come to mind. Though wanting to end their own life sometimes they wish not to do it alone. They want to be assisted in ending their life. A male engineer named Julijonas Urbonas feels as if he can help these people and has come up with a “pleasurable” way for humans to pass away. He has proposed a roller coaster, which is called The Euthanasia Coaster that consists of two main pieces, the drop that is 500 meters and the 6 loops. This death trap kills the person with extreme g-forces. These forces are at work when the coaster car is speeding up. The forces acting on you is the seat pushing your body forward; you always feel the push of acceleration coming from the opposite direction of the actual force accelerating you.

Julijonas claims that by the time the person enters and exits the first loop they should be deceased. But if not, there are 5 more loops to insure the person is really dead. He proposes that this is an enjoyable way to go out because with all of the forces acting on a human body it sends the body and mind into a state of euphoria. Thus, romanticizing the act of suicide.

Suicide or suicidal actions should never be glamorized. Sadly, in today’s society almost anything can be argued as a good option. There are already too many people that have been affected by a suicide, there is no need for someone to come up with a “fun” way for someone to take their life. No family wants to lose someone to suicide. He is promoting that it is A-Okay for individuals to pass as long as they do it in a fun way. He did not take into account how families and friends would react to this. Most would probably be very offended & very afraid if this coater were to be built. Especially those who have already lost a loved one to suicide. From my experience and observation, losing someone, particularly from suicide, is a deep emotional journey. Losing someone this tragically, immediately puts your mind at shock. For most people it’s surreal to be notified that a loved one has suicided. It’s a challenging time to be a part of. There’s nothing fun about it. If anything, true professional help should be offered to people suffering from suicidal tendencies & thoughts, not an “enjoyable” way out.

Not only is this man encouraging suicide he is encouraging a highly debated topic which is Euthanasia. Which is assisted suicide. Euthanisia is defined as. According to http://www.debate.org/euthanasia/, there is a lot of controversy surrounding the issue of euthanasia and whether or not it should be legal. From a legal standpoint mercy killing is a class of criminal homicide. Judicially, not all homicide is illegal. Killing is seen as excusable when used as a criminal punishment, but inexcusable when carried out for any other reason. In most nations, euthanasia is considered criminal homicide: however, in the jurisdictions mentioned above, it is placed on the other side of the table with criminal punishment. Voluntary euthanasia is typically performed when a person is suffering from a terminal illness and is in great pain. When the patient performs this procedure with the help of a doctor, the term assisted suicide is often used. In the United states it is legal in the state of Oregon, Washington and Montana.

There are so many questions to be raised about this coaster. Here are a few to consider; why does this man feel it is his place to encourage people to commit suicide? Would this man be charging these people to end their lives? How long will it take, if it is to be built, for the coaster to be shut down?

At the end of the day, suicide is not something people do for fun. These people who suffer from suicidal thoughts, it can be very scary. They wish they were dead, or they feel worthless to the world so they think killing themselves is the solution. What most people don’t understand is that it is a sickness. A virus that takes ahold of your entire being and it is all you can think about. To receive help or treatment is even harder, because then they are admitting they have a problem and they need help. This is the way they rely on getting out their anger or sadness. Tring to stop or not wanting to end your life is just as hard as a drug addict trying to go through rehab. For someone to advertise a death contraption that is “pleasurable” is disrespectful to those who have been and still are affected by this type of death. Professional help should be offered to those who need it for their suicidal thoughts and tendencies. No soul should have to suffer in silence. Sadly, this man is sick and twisted, and needs help himself. This idea of his is no good for the world.