The latest in a series of DIY suicide gadgets
Australia’s best-known euthanasia activist, Dr. Philip Nitschke, is back in the news with another machine for committing suicide, the Sarco capsule.
The machine will allow anyone who has the access key to end their life by simply pressing a button. Developed in the Netherlands by Nitschke and an engineer, the machine can be 3D printed and assembled anywhere – provided that you can find a large enough printer. Access to the capsule will be by an on-line mental questionnaire which will provide a four-digit access code.
When the person lies in the capsule, he can activate it and liquid nitrogen will rapidly drop the oxygen level, leading to death a few minutes.
The novel feature is that the capsule can be detached from the Sarco machine and repurposed as a sleek and shiny coffin. The machine base can be re-used.
Design criteria for the Sarco capsule will be free, made open-source, and posted on the internet.
Nitschke says that the world is now one step closer to the goal where any rational person can electively end their life in a peaceful and reliable way at the time of their choosing. “Sarco does not use any restricted drugs, or require any special expertise such as the insertion of an intravenous needle,” he said. “Anyone who can pass the entry test, can enter the machine and legally end their life.”
The Sarco capsule is the latest of Dr. Nitschke’s do-it-yourself suicide machines. He is also the author of The Peaceful Pill, a book available on the internet which gives detailed instructions about how to use drugs and poisons to kill yourself.
If only loving care for the disabled and the dying were as easy as killing them!
Editor’s note. Michael Cook is editor of BioEdge where this first appeared. Reposted with permission.
Chelsea Garcia is a political writer with a special interest in international relations and social issues. Events surrounding the war in Ukraine and the war in Israel are a major focus for political journalists. But as a former local reporter, she is also interested in national politics.
Chelsea Garcia studied media, communication and political science in Texas, USA, and learned the journalistic trade during an internship at a daily newspaper. In addition to her political writing, she is pursuing a master's degree in multimedia and writing at Texas.
