Quote:
Originally Posted by Kuan
What would indicate to you that a person is able to make their own decisions about their own lives then? I think it is quite possible that a 13 year old knows the difference between life and death, the difference between right and wrong, and the has the right to control their own destiny. Heck if we can charge kids as adults shouldn't we be able to allow them the ability to make their own decisions about medical treatment?
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I agree that it's quite possible that a 13 yr old could know the difference between life and death and be able to decide. I don't think it's the case here. It's not a question of life and death, it's a question of what treatment will be successful. I doubt the 13 yr old has done much research into the comparative effectiveness of traditional cancer therapy versus the new age native religion therapy his mother is taking him too. If indeed, the kid could talk intelligently about the history of research on the effectiveness of the traditional therapy he was being given versus the 'alternative medicine' he is now getting, and I were the judge, I might be inclined to allow him to make the decision. But if I had the power, I'd generally try to stop 13 yr olds from killing themselves because they have nut job parents who can't tell the difference between a double blind study and double walled sweatlodge.