Kennedy’s address at the 97th annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in 1941 encapsulates well how the acceptance of evolution and utilitarian thinking are tied into arguments for eugenics (and euthanasia), which is ironic, of course, since many advocates for euthanasia deny such connections and modern proponents of evolution become apoplectic at the insinuation …
Category: humanitarianism
On the Elimination of Defectives: Hitler, in Mein Kampf
Note the utilitarian appeal to the reduction of suffering, the appeal to the ‘common good’, and the basic belief that all he is doing is applying biological principles. Hitler, in Mein Kampf. [Source] In this field the People’s State will have to repair the damage that arises from the fact that the problem is at …
Joseph Fletcher, A Right to Die; Down Syndrome people are not persons and OUGHT to be killed
[People] have no reason to feel guilty about putting a Down’s syndrome baby away, whether it’s “put away” in the sense of hidden in a sanitarium or in a more responsible lethal sense. It is sad; yes. Dreadful. But it carries no guilt. True guilt arises only from an offense against a person, and a Down’s is not a person.
The Obstacle of Sentiment and Sentimentalists to Pure Scientific Application
One of the common themes that surfaces in eugenic writings is their annoyance that others do not act on the logical implications of Science. Note that, in the main, they are not taking issue with people who do not agree with their conclusions, but rather those who do agree–but will not act on them. This …
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