Advocacy of suicide
Encyclopedia
Advocacy of suicide has occurred in many culture
s and subculture
s. Confucianism
holds that one should give up one's life
, if necessary, either passively or actively, for the sake of upholding the cardinal moral values of ren
and yi
. The Japanese military during World War II encouraged and glorified kamikaze
attacks, and Japanese society as a whole has been described as suicide 'tolerant' (see Suicide in Japan
).
Ozzy Osbourne
was accused of advocating suicide in his song, "Suicide Solution
".
William Francis Melchert-Dinkel, 47 years old in May 2010, from Faribault, Minnesota
, a licensed nurse from 1991 until February 2009, stands accused of encouraging people to commit suicide
while he watched voyeuristically on a webcam
. He allegedly told these contemplating suicide what methods worked best, that it was OK to commit suicide, that they would be better in heaven, and/or entered into suicide pact
s with them. Melchert-Dinkel is charged with two counts of assisting suicide, for allegedly encouraging the suicides of a person in Britain in 2005 and another person in Canada in 2008.
found that Web searches for information on suicide are likely to return sites that encourage, and even facilitate, suicide attempts. While pro-suicide resources were less frequent than neutral or anti-suicide sites, they were nonetheless easily accessible. There is some concern that such sites may push the suicidal over the edge. Some people form suicide pact
s with people they meet online. Becker writes, "Suicidal adolescent visitors risk losing their doubts and fears about committing suicide. Risk factors include peer pressure to commit suicide and appointments for joint suicides. Furthermore, some chat rooms celebrate chatters who committed suicide." Some pro-suicide sites prohibit postings that attempt to dissuade people from committing suicide.
Suzy's Law would ban sites that provide information on suicide methods
or otherwise assist suicide
. In May 2010, William F. Melchert-Dinkel was accused of encouraging people to commit suicide. There have been some legal bans on pro-suicide web sites, most notably in Australia
, but arguably such bans merely increase awareness of such sites and encourage site owners to move their sites to different jurisdictions.
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
s and subculture
Subculture
In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong.- Definition :...
s. Confucianism
Confucianism
Confucianism is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system developed from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius . Confucianism originated as an "ethical-sociopolitical teaching" during the Spring and Autumn Period, but later developed metaphysical and cosmological elements in the Han...
holds that one should give up one's life
Life
Life is a characteristic that distinguishes objects that have signaling and self-sustaining processes from those that do not, either because such functions have ceased , or else because they lack such functions and are classified as inanimate...
, if necessary, either passively or actively, for the sake of upholding the cardinal moral values of ren
Ren (Confucianism)
Ren is a Confucian notion denoting, as rough approximation, the good feeling a virtuous human experiences when behaving rightly, especially toward others...
and yi
Yi (Confucianism)
Yi, , literally "justice, righteousness; meaning," is an important concept in Confucianism. It is the moral disposition to do good....
. The Japanese military during World War II encouraged and glorified kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
attacks, and Japanese society as a whole has been described as suicide 'tolerant' (see Suicide in Japan
Suicide in Japan
Suicide in Japan has become a significant problem nationally. Factors in suicide include unemployment , depression, and social pressures. In 2007, the National Police Agency revised the categorization of motives for suicide into a division of 50 reasons with up to three reasons listed for each...
).
Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
was accused of advocating suicide in his song, "Suicide Solution
Suicide Solution
"Suicide Solution" is a song by Ozzy Osbourne. It is track five on the album Blizzard of Ozz released in 1980. Guitarist Randy Rhoads wrote the riff to the song , and Bob Daisley helped co-write the lyrics...
".
William Francis Melchert-Dinkel, 47 years old in May 2010, from Faribault, Minnesota
Faribault, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,818 people, 7,472 households, and 4,946 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,644.8 people per square mile . There were 7,668 housing units at an average density of 605.8 per square mile...
, a licensed nurse from 1991 until February 2009, stands accused of encouraging people to commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
while he watched voyeuristically on a webcam
Webcam
A webcam is a video camera that feeds its images in real time to a computer or computer network, often via USB, ethernet, or Wi-Fi.Their most popular use is the establishment of video links, permitting computers to act as videophones or videoconference stations. This common use as a video camera...
. He allegedly told these contemplating suicide what methods worked best, that it was OK to commit suicide, that they would be better in heaven, and/or entered into suicide pact
Suicide pact
A suicide pact is an agreed plan between two or more individuals to commit suicide. The plan may be to die together, or separately and closely timed. Suicide pacts are important concepts in the study of suicide, and have occurred throughout history, as well as in fiction.Suicide pacts are generally...
s with them. Melchert-Dinkel is charged with two counts of assisting suicide, for allegedly encouraging the suicides of a person in Britain in 2005 and another person in Canada in 2008.
Internet
Advocacy of suicide has also taken place over the Internet. A study by the British Medical JournalBritish Medical Journal
BMJ is a partially open-access peer-reviewed medical journal. Originally called the British Medical Journal, the title was officially shortened to BMJ in 1988. The journal is published by the BMJ Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Medical Association...
found that Web searches for information on suicide are likely to return sites that encourage, and even facilitate, suicide attempts. While pro-suicide resources were less frequent than neutral or anti-suicide sites, they were nonetheless easily accessible. There is some concern that such sites may push the suicidal over the edge. Some people form suicide pact
Suicide pact
A suicide pact is an agreed plan between two or more individuals to commit suicide. The plan may be to die together, or separately and closely timed. Suicide pacts are important concepts in the study of suicide, and have occurred throughout history, as well as in fiction.Suicide pacts are generally...
s with people they meet online. Becker writes, "Suicidal adolescent visitors risk losing their doubts and fears about committing suicide. Risk factors include peer pressure to commit suicide and appointments for joint suicides. Furthermore, some chat rooms celebrate chatters who committed suicide." Some pro-suicide sites prohibit postings that attempt to dissuade people from committing suicide.
Suzy's Law would ban sites that provide information on suicide methods
Suicide methods
A suicide method is any means by which one or more persons purposely kill themselves. Suicide methods can be classified according to two modes of interrupting life processes: physical or chemical. Physical modes of interruption typically act by incapacitating the respiratory system or the central...
or otherwise assist suicide
Assisted suicide
Assisted suicide is the common term for actions by which an individual helps another person voluntarily bring about his or her own death. "Assistance" may mean providing one with the means to end one's own life, but may extend to other actions. It differs to euthanasia where another person ends...
. In May 2010, William F. Melchert-Dinkel was accused of encouraging people to commit suicide. There have been some legal bans on pro-suicide web sites, most notably in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, but arguably such bans merely increase awareness of such sites and encourage site owners to move their sites to different jurisdictions.