LGBT News Belgian died by euthanasia after a botched sex change operation

Ah, that's terrible. God rest his soul.

 

From the article:

"I was the girl that nobody wanted," Mr Verhelst told Het Laatste Nieuws newspaper in the hours before her death.
"While my brothers were celebrated, I got a storage room above the garage as a bedroom. 'If only you had been a boy', my mother complained. I was tolerated, nothing more."

Makes me wonder whether this person should've been allowed to get this procedure in the first place.

 

Did he choose it, or was it what they described in the article as a "mercy killing"? It's too vague. If he chose to die, then it's misleading and he should be able to decide what he wants. If the doctor decided to do it without permission, that's murder.

 

I think its quite clear he chose to die. I don't know How I feel about this. There are times when suffering people's conditions are not treatable were I believe euthanasia is simply humane but it sounds like he had mental issues. Were they treatable? I guess I don't know enough about the case. Belgians current policies could move the euthanasia movement back.

 

It says in the first line "after pleading for death." The astonishing thing to me about this is how accepting they are over euthanasia when it's not even a terminal illness. If you read the whole thing, it's like they can just go up and request this at any time. They're even considering "mercy killing" for children...

Euthanasia for children nears approval by Belgian Parliament; doctors to mass-euthanize children and Alzheimer's patients

I mean the cultural gap between this and US is so vast i can't even form an opinion.

 

I would rather die peacefully than go through Alzheimers

 

That has to be the worst article I've ever read.

I can understand the Belgian idea. If I had to choose between a non-deadly but unbearable (physical or psychological) suffering for an undetermined amount of time, or death, I think I'd go with the second option.

I even think euthanasia should always be an option, no matter if you're terminally ill or not. Everyone has the right to decide about their own lives so why shouldn't you be able to end it with some help?

 

Exactly. And if the government won't provide care for disabled children, making their life and everyone around them a living hell, then they should provide euthanasia.

Oh, and blueberrymuffin, I clicked on that link, and that website is insane, unscientific, and haunted by superstitious, right-wing bible-bashers.

 

He needed help not death.

 

I'm a belgian and I'm ashamed my country let someone kill himself.

 

I'll have to say that both that article and website seemed kinda suspiciously slanted, if not conservatively bombastic/paranoid. I think they're just trying to say, "Oh, look how bad those liberal socialists are over in Europe! And golly gee, let's not let that come here!" If I didn't know any better, I'd swear Glenn Beck had wrote the piece.

 

Agreed :icon_sad:

 

Did you two even read the article?

 

I don't think the article paints a very clear picture at all.

I think it's a little sick the terms they use, like "botched sex change operation". When a few paragraphs down they say "showed signs of rejection". Huge difference. The first one would make any sane person scared of the surgery and even surgeon. I'm sure there are people googling right now thinking "I want to avoid that guy" and losing him business unnecessarily. If they screwed him up they might screw me up! The second, and it sounds like the normal risk with any surgery, most modern surgeries are safe but there is always that risk, maybe there was a complication or his body just wasn't reacting the way it should.

And there is definitely more to the story than they let on. In another one of their articles, his mom sounds like a real piece of work,

And I think that probably has more to do with his decision than the operation honestly. Everyone is different and I do not want to trivialize his pain at all. I just feel like it's likely his mom treating him like shit is part of what screwed up his self esteem. He was clearly a handsome man, I just don't think he had anyone in his life telling him that.

Personally, if I've got breasts and they ever have to be removed, I will still view myself as a woman, and if there are complications with my vagina, I'll just be a woman with not the world's most attractive vagina. I have genitals that I'm honestly disgusted with right now.

I know I don't understand his pain because I'm not him. I'm just saying that I'm glad I feel the way I do, and would like other people to feel like it's okay to hate things about yourself, that you still deserve to live, that you shouldn't ever let anyone shame you until you're at the point where you don't want to live. I know there are people out there that love me for who I really am and support what I'm going through; I'm just sad he didn't have the same advantage.

I really think they were taking this man's death and using it to make a cheap political point, and that makes me sad and angry. Trans people are going to be in a harder position now, and we already have a huge problem with suicide. People are going to take this person's situation and try to use it to promote general positions on euthanasia that affect everyone.

I really hate politics more and more every day.

 

Yeah, if i had more time i would have looked for a better article, but the point is they are trying to legalize euthanasia for minors and people without terminal illness.

 

Yeah, their credibility went when they called socialists evil and uncaring (the irony).

 

Straight up, this is fucked up and I don't know why Belgium is letting this guy practice. I also read that he euthanized two twins because they were fearful of going blind and they were already deaf. Wtf... give these people therapy, anti-depressants, something, letting them kill themselves because of physcological stress is just wrong.

 

I can't blame the twins. Deaf and blind? That's two major senses gone right there.

Read the article. Nathan went through six months of therapy and speaking from experience, anti-depressants don't always work. In some cases, they can make the issues much, much worse.