U.K. healthcare epiphany: You know, we should really be encouraging old people to kill themselves

In government-run health care, there is no way around any bureaucrat simply targeting old people for termination. One such bureaucrat is Obama's rationing czar 'Dr.' Ezekiel Emanuel, who came up with this ghoulish chart:This chart would be page 1 of the "how to" guide of any death panel. Old people are too expensive to be worth keeping alive because they've already paid their taxes and are thus essentially useless to a totalitarian state. The very young too are of little value since they won't be paying taxes for a while yet. The people that should be treated are healthy people that pay taxes. That's about the gist of rationing, and the modus operindi of government-run systems in Canada and the U.K. So you're fine in those systems. Just don't get sick or old.

Speaking of seasoned citizens, how does one off the old to save a few bucks. Rationing care outright is getting into some resistance as many find it unsavory. Ghoulish. Wrong. Unethical. Which it is, by the way. Thus another strategy has been formulated in the U.K. - encouraging elderly to simply kill themselves. From Reuters via drudge: RPT-FEATURE-Greying Britain looks to assisted suicide reform.

It used to be an issue just for the terminally ill. Now as populations around the world age, governments are increasingly being confronted with the taboo idea of dying as something people can volunteer to do.

"The demand for the option, if not the practice, is growing rapidly," said Dr. Philip Nitschke, 61, founder and director of the pro-euthanasia group Exit International.

The Australian doctor -- nicknamed Dr Death for his work on suicide -- is traveling the world to teach people how to end their lives safely with a suicide drug-testing kit.

Nitschke's is an extreme view, but as the proportion of older people increases rapidly in countries such as the United States, Australia, Japan, Germany and Britain, the suggestion of an option to escape indignity could spur political tremors.

Calls for reform and a legal decision in July forced the government to promise to clarify the law. Draft guidelines are due this month with a final version by next spring, but Derek Humphry, former president of the World Federation of Right to Die Societies said significant changes in Britain would likely not come until after a 2010 election.

In Britain, nearly 20 percent of the population is over 65 -- a proportion the Office for National Statistics predicts will have grown by 50 percent by 2020.

A few things here. 1) What's with the indignity meme? Who made the rule that we must all die with "dignity?" How much dignity were we born with? Best I know, my behind was wiped for at least my first year and not by me. Not a whole lot of dignity there. So when do we get to a point that we can't possibly live without it? And who made that rule? 2) The British culture is killing itself. They are discouraging children to save the planet from global warming and are finding themselves in a situation where most of the population will be elderly without the young to care for them. Well - duh! You are killing yourselves on both ends! What did these people think was going to happen? Further in the article:

While assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland and physician-assisted suicide -- where a doctor prescribes a lethal dose the patient may choose to drink -- is legal in the State of Washington, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Oregon, in Britain helping someone commit suicide is a crime that carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.

Despite the threat of prosecution, British campaign group Dignity in Dying said there is a growing trend of Britons opting for assisted suicide. So far 117 Britons have travelled abroad for an assisted death and 30 more are preparing to go.

Angelika Elliot, 61, said her husband "could not wait". When Dr John Elliott, 79, a medical doctor diagnosed with bone cancer, could no longer bear the pain of his daily life, it seemed the most appealing option.

The issue has polarised British medics: the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), which represents nearly 70 percent of nurses, moved to a neutral position from opposition to assisted suicide, while the British Medical Association -- the body for 70 percent of doctors -- remained strongly opposed to any form of suicide.

The RCN's move may encourage the government to relax its own ruling, but palliative care workers -- who look after the terminally ill -- say more liberal laws could send a dangerous message to disabled people.

Nitschke believes demand for assisted suicide is only going to rise. To help ease the pain of the elderly, his idea is to give them easy access to suicide drugs. His drug workshops have been banned in countries such as Canada and New Zealand, but he said his kits offer a chance to test the drug.

"The test kits allow for testing that it is indeed Nembutal, and at a sufficient strength to provide a peaceful death," Nitschke said.

In Britain, Nembutal is used by vets to put down animals, but its availability is strictly controlled for humans. In Mexico, South America and parts of South East Asia, it is available over the counter.

Figures that liberals want the elderly to have suicide pills fit for animals right next to the aspirin in the medicine cabinet. Pretty soon, once a British citizen reaches a certain age, they will no longer be entitled to wearing glasses. They'll just see what happens then. Speaking of this "die with dignity" boondoggle, what's the last thing that happens when you die? (warning: graphic):

This entire idea of offing oneself is totally reminiscent of the Star Trek TNG Episode "Half a Life" (Season 4, episode 22) where an entire civilization goes through ritual suicide when each individual member gets to a certain age, ostensibly so that they do not become a burden to their families. But a scientist of age is about to come up with a way to save their sun from exploding, but has not the time to finish his research:

Spoiler alert: the guy offs himself in the end. Nothing in the TNG universe gives any indication what happened to that civilization, but I dare say their sun ended up offing itself too. Just got too old you know...