Erdman B. Palmore

In the following viewpoint, Erdman B. Palmore argues that the terminally ill should have the right to choose the time of their death. Dying people may want to commit suicide in order to end their own suffering or to ease the emotional and financial burdens on their loved ones, and Palmore believes their wishes should be respected. He maintains that legalizing physician-assisted suicide would decriminalize an already common procedure and reduce the problems resulting from unsuccessful suicide attempts on the part of the fatally ill. Palmore is a professor emeritus at the Duke University Center for the Study of Aging.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to J. Werth and D.C. Cobia, cited by the author, what three criteria can help determine if a decision...