Jacqueline Laing

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Jacqueline Laing is a legal philosopher and academic, specializing in jurisprudence, or the philosophy of law, criminal law and applied ethics. She has taught at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, Hughes Hall, Cambridge, King's College, London, St Edmund Hall, Oxford, and Melbourne University. She is a barrister of the High Court of Australia and a solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales.

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Education

Born in Scotland and educated in Calcutta, India, and Canberra, Australia, she took degrees in philosophy and law at the Australian National University, clerked to a judge in Canberra and won a Commonwealth scholarship to Brasenose College, Oxford, where she undertook a doctorate on the concept of intention in the law of homicide under the direction of John Finnis.

Euthanasia

Laing's interests lie in the field of jurisprudence and applied ethics. Commenting on contemporary moral conundrums she applies natural law thinking [1] to questions about the family, life and death, [2] and the limits of legal regulation. On the subject of voluntary euthanasia she argues that institutionalizing medically assisted death erodes respect for human life, [3] endangers the vulnerable and disabled, underestimates human capacity for error and vice and is intrinsically discriminatory. She argues that it plays into the hands of illicit interests and trades on an improper understanding of human autonomy. [4] She warns against dismissing "the army of corporate, financial, medical and political interests that there are in controlling death, euthanasia's corrosive effects on public and professional attitudes, and the discrimination implicit in its implementation." [5] Of the vested interests that there are in controlling death she says:

"Organs for transplant are an ongoing incentive for active euthanasia. So too is cost-saving, litigation and payout minimisation, bed clearing, medical research, improper individual concerns about inheritance and even political Malthusianism. In this environment, failures of transparency, i.e. lies and deception, are both pragmatic and inevitable." [6]

She regards the practice a threat to the elderly, disabled and terminally ill: [7]

"Whenever euthanasia comes up for debate, disquiet is expressed by disability groups. These fears are far from irrational. Efforts to institutionalise the practice are predicated on the idea that certain subjects are appropriate for elimination, while others are of sufficient value to be worth preserving. Discrimination against the vulnerable, and thus Art 14 incompatibility, bedevils this ethical terrain. The sick, the terminally ill and the disabled are invariably the first to be regarded as proper subjects for medically assisted suicide. The logic of active euthanasia endangers the vulnerable by inviting one of the gravest of crimes in law. The practice undermines the dignity of those who may indeed be a burden." [8]

She asserts that voluntary euthanasia logically collapses into involuntary and non-voluntary euthanasia, and that this reality, widely dismissed as a fallacious slippery slope argument, is borne out by Dutch and Belgian statistics demonstrating widespread non-consensual euthanasia, false reporting and under-reporting.

A critic of the Bland Case, [9] she has highlighted the problem of passive euthanasia by incentivised and managerialised sedation-and-dehydration in hospitals (Royal Society of Medicine, London W1 18 June 2012), a position that provoked revealing Freedom of Information Act requests which in turn led to the 2012-13 inquiry into the problem in the UK. In "Food and Fluids: Human Law, Human Rights and Human Interests" [10] she argues that financial, medical, and political interests are bound to incentivise and invite homicide of the vulnerable. An early critic of what she terms the sedation-dehydration regimes, she writes of the Liverpool Care Pathway:

"However useful the Pathway may be in individual cases properly applied, incentivised and managerialised death targets become problematic in the context of uncertain diagnosis, a steadily ageing population, spiralling healthcare costs, and the philosophical dehumanisation of the vulnerable pervasive in contemporary bioethics. The targets themselves constitute improper pressure on healthcare professionals' employment and livelihood. As such, they are likely to invite and rationalise grave human rights abuse with tragic consequences for the defenceless incapacitated in hospitals and care homes."

Utilitarianism

A critic of utilitarianism, in Innocence and Consequentialism she argued in 1996 that utilitarianism has insufficient conceptual apparatus to comprehend the very idea of innocence, a feature central to any comprehensive ethical theory. [11] In particular, Peter Singer on her view, cannot without contradicting himself reject baby farming (a thought experiment that involves mass-producing deliberately brain damaged children for live birth for the greater good of organ harvesting) and at the same time hold on to his "personism" a term coined by Jenny Teichman to describe his fluctuating (and Laing says, irrational and discriminatory) theory of human moral value. His explanation that baby farming undermines attitudes of care and concern for the very young, can be applied to babies and the unborn (both 'non-persons' who may be killed, on his view) and contradicts positions that he adopts elsewhere in his work.

Eugenics and biometric databases

Laing contends that the practice of eugenics has not disappeared. [12] Conceptually related to the utilitarian and Social Darwinist worldview and historically evolving out of the practice of slavery, it led to some of the most spectacular human rights abuses in history. [13] The compulsory sterilization of and experimentation on those deemed "undesirable" and "unfit" in many technologically developed states like the US, Scandinavia, and Japan, led inexorably and most systematically to Nazi Germany with the elimination of countless millions of people for their race, class, political views, sexuality, religion or disability. She argues that the new eugenics adopted by John Harris, Julian Savulescu and others, collapses into the old variety because of its fixation on producing "the better" or even more implausibly, "the best". It was this very idea that drove much of the injustice of the twentieth century. Ethically questionable strategies were at the time viewed as progressive and socially evolutionary. The new eugenics, she thinks, fares no better and spells disaster for people regarded as deficient in some way. She rejects the idea that autonomous efforts to choose "better" or the "best" children are less problematic for being freely chosen. The fact that one freely chooses to give one's children away into slavery or lethal medical experimentation or to create a hundred clones of oneself, is no bar to the action's being independently at odds with intergenerational justice and the common good. She suggests that mistake, ignorance, misinformation, propaganda and behaviour modification techniques, subliminal or otherwise, are celebrated ways of getting people to act freely in ways that undermine intergenerational justice and the common good. Laing suggests that biometric databases and identity cards exposing one's medical data, DNA defects, IQ, and political views, while in many ways proving socially useful, demonstrate how vulnerable humans are, not just at the hands of political misfeasors and tyrants but insurance companies, government and corporate snoopers, and determined social and bioethical engineers. [14]

Related Research Articles

Applied ethics refers to the practical application of moral considerations. It is ethics with respect to real-world actions and their moral considerations in the areas of private and public life, the professions, health, technology, law, and leadership. For example, the bioethics community is concerned with identifying the correct approach to moral issues in the life sciences, such as euthanasia, the allocation of scarce health resources, or the use of human embryos in research. Environmental ethics is concerned with ecological issues such as the responsibility of government and corporations to clean up pollution. Business ethics includes questions regarding the duties or duty of 'whistleblowers' to the general public or their loyalty to their employers.

Consequentialism Class of normative, teleological ethical theories

Consequentialism is a class of normative, teleological ethical theories that holds that the consequences of one's conduct are the ultimate basis for judgment about the rightness or wrongness of that conduct. Thus, from a consequentialist standpoint, a morally right act is one that will produce a good outcome. Consequentialism, along with eudaimonism, falls under the broader category of teleological ethics, a group of views which claim that the moral value of any act consists in its tendency to produce things of intrinsic value. Consequentialists hold in general that an act is right if and only if the act will produce, will probably produce, or is intended to produce, a greater balance of good over evil than any available alternative. Different consequentialist theories differ in how they define moral goods, with chief candidates including pleasure, the absence of pain, the satisfaction of one's preferences, and broader notions of the "general good".

Ethics Branch of philosophy concerning right and wrong conduct

Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior". The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns matters of value; these fields comprise the branch of philosophy called axiology.

Euthanasia is the practice of intentionally ending life to relieve pain and suffering.

Eugenics is a set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population, historically by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or promoting those judged to be superior. In recent years, the term has seen a revival in bioethical discussions on the usage of new technologies such as CRISPR and genetic screening, with a heated debate on whether these technologies should be called eugenics or not.

Peter Singer Australian moral philosopher

Peter Albert David Singer is an Australian moral philosopher, currently the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University. He specialises in applied ethics and approaches ethical issues from a secular, utilitarian perspective. He is known in particular for his book Animal Liberation (1975), in which he argues in favour of veganism, and his essay "Famine, Affluence, and Morality", in which he argues in favour of donating to help the global poor. For most of his career, he was a preference utilitarian, but he stated in The Point of View of the Universe (2014), coauthored with Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek, that he had become a hedonistic utilitarian.

Bioethics is the study of the ethical issues emerging from advances in biology, medicine and technologies. It proposes the discussion about moral discernment in society and it is often related to medical policy and practice, but also to broader questions as environment and well-being. Bioethics is concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, theology and philosophy. It includes the study of values relating to primary care, other branches of medicine, ethical education in science, animal, and environmental ethics. Ethics also relates to many other sciences outside the realm of biological sciences and Bioethics is also claimed as a new ethic to answer complex questions of contemporary society.

Medical ethics is an applied branch of ethics which analyzes the practice of clinical medicine and related scientific research. Medical ethics is based on a set of values that professionals can refer to in the case of any confusion or conflict. These values include the respect for autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, and justice. Such tenets may allow doctors, care providers, and families to create a treatment plan and work towards the same common goal. It is important to note that these four values are not ranked in order of importance or relevance and that they all encompass values pertaining to medical ethics. However, a conflict may arise leading to the need for hierarchy in an ethical system, such that some moral elements overrule others with the purpose of applying the best moral judgement to a difficult medical situation. Medical ethics is particularly relevant in decisions regarding involuntary treatment and involuntary commitment.

Utilitarian bioethics refers to the branch of bioethics that incorporates principles of utilitarianism to directing practices and resources where they will have the most usefulness and highest likelihood to produce happiness, in regards to medicine, health, and medical or biological research.

New eugenics, also known as liberal eugenics, advocates enhancing human characteristics and capacities through the use of reproductive technology and human genetic engineering. Those who advocate new eugenics generally think selecting or altering embryos should be left to the preferences of parents, rather than forbidden. "New" eugenics purports to distinguish itself from the forms of eugenics practiced and advocated in the 20th century, which fell into disrepute after World War II.

Anthony David Bland was a supporter of Liverpool F.C. injured in the Hillsborough disaster. He suffered severe brain damage that left him in a persistent vegetative state as a consequence of which the hospital, with the support of his parents, applied for a court order allowing him to "die with dignity". As a result, he became the first patient in English legal history to be allowed to die by the courts through the withdrawal of life-prolonging treatment including food and water.

Wesley J. Smith is an American lawyer and author, a Senior Fellow at the Discovery Institute's Center on Human Exceptionalism, a politically conservative non-profit think tank. He is also a consultant for the Patients Rights Council. Smith is known for his criticism of animal rights, environmentalism, assisted suicide and utilitarian bioethics.

Non-voluntary euthanasia is euthanasia conducted when the explicit consent of the individual concerned is unavailable, such as when the person is in a persistent vegetative state, or in the case of young children. It contrasts with involuntary euthanasia, when euthanasia is performed against the will of the patient.

Two-level utilitarianism is a utilitarian theory of ethics developed by R. M. Hare. According to the theory, a person's moral decisions should be based on a set of moral rules, except in certain rare situations where it is more appropriate to engage in a 'critical' level of moral reasoning.

Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct. The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concern matters of value, and thus comprise the branch of philosophy called axiology.

Child euthanasia is a form of euthanasia that is applied to children who are gravely ill or suffer from significant birth defects. In 2005, the Netherlands became the first country to decriminalize euthanasia for infants with hopeless prognosis and intractable pain. Nine years later, Belgium amended its 2002 Euthanasia Act to extend the rights of euthanasia to minors. Like euthanasia, there is world-wide public controversy and ethical debate over the moral, philosophical and religious issues of child euthanasia.

Ian Robert Dowbiggin is a professor in the Department of History at the University of Prince Edward Island and writer on the history of medicine, in particular topics such as euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. His research and publications have been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Associated Medical Services. In 2011, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He is the brother of Canadian sports broadcaster and author Bruce Dowbiggin.

Professor David Simon Oderberg is an Australian philosopher of metaphysics and ethics based in Britain since 1987. He is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Reading. He describes himself as a non-consequentialist or a traditionalist in his works. Broadly speaking, Oderberg places himself in opposition to Peter Singer and other utilitarian or consequentialist thinkers. He has published over thirty academic papers and has authored four books, Real Essentialism, Applied Ethics, Moral Theory, and The Metaphysics of Identity over Time. Professor Oderberg is an alumnus of the Universities of Melbourne, where he completed his first degrees, and Oxford where he gained his D.Phil.

Personism Ethical philosophy of personhood

Personism is an ethical philosophy of personhood as typified by the thought of the utilitarian philosopher Peter Singer. It amounts to a branch of secular humanism with an emphasis on certain rights-criteria. Personists believe that rights are conferred to the extent that a creature is a person. Michael Tooley provides the relevant definition of a person, saying it is a creature that is "capable of desiring to continue as a subject of experience and other mental states". A worldview like secular humanism is personism when the empathy and values are extended to the extent that the creature is a person.

<i>Animal Rights Without Liberation</i> 2012 book by British political theorist Alasdair Cochrane

Animal Rights Without Liberation: Applied Ethics and Human Obligations is a 2012 book by the British political theorist Alasdair Cochrane, in which it is argued that animal rights philosophy can be decoupled from animal liberation philosophy by the adoption of the interest-based rights approach. Cochrane, arguing that there is no reason that (nonhuman) animals should be excluded from justice, adopts Joseph Raz's account of interest rights and extends it to include animals. He argues that sentient animals possess a right not to be made to suffer and a right not to be killed, but not a right to freedom. The book's chapters apply Cochrane's account to a number of interactions between humans and animals; first animal experimentation, then animal agriculture, the genetic engineering of animals, the use of animals in entertainment and sport, the relationship of animals to environmental practices and the use of animals in cultural practices.

References

  1. ↑ Jacqueline Laing and Russell Wilcox, A Natural Law Reader, Blackwell, 2013
  2. ↑ David S Oderberg and Jacqueline A Laing Human Lives: Critical Essays on Consequentialist Bioethics, London, Macmillan, 1996
  3. ↑ J.A. Laing (1990), "Assisting Suicide" Journal of Criminal Law, 54, 106-116.
  4. ↑ On the limits of personal autonomy see Laing, Jacqueline A. (2004), "Law, Liberalism and the Common Good" Human Values: New Essays on Ethics and Natural Law Edited by David S. Oderberg and T.D.J. Chappell, London, Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 184-216.
  5. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline A. (2012) "Not In My Name" New Law Journal, 162, 81
  6. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline A. (2012) "Not In My Name" New Law Journal, 162, 81
  7. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline A. (2010) "On the Wrong Track" Solicitors Journal, 154, 2
  8. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline A. (2012) "Not In My Name" New Law Journal, 162, 81
  9. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline (2002), "Vegetative" State – The Untold Story" New Law Journal 152, 1272.
  10. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline "Food and Fluids: Human Law, Human Rights and Human Interests" in Artificial Nutrition and Hydration C. Tollefsen, ed., Springer Press 2008, pp. 77-100
  11. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline A. (1997), "Innocence and Consequentialism" in Human Lives: Critical Essays on Consequentialist Bioethics, eds. J. A. Laing with D. S. Oderberg. London, Macmillan, pp. 196-224
  12. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline (2006), "The Prohibition on Eugenics and Reproductive Liberty" University of New South Wales Law Journal 29, 261-266.
  13. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline (2009), "Los derechos humanos y la nueva eugenesia" 4, SCIO 65-81.
  14. ↑ Laing, Jacqueline (2008), "Information Technology and Biometric Databases: Eugenics and Other Threats to Disability Rights" Journal of Legal Technology Risk Management 3, 9-35.
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