Forced Exit: The Slippery Slope from Assisted Suicide to Legalize Murder.

Smith, Wesley J. New York: Random House, Inc., 1997.

Polls show that many Americans favor legalizing assisted suicide--or the "right to die," as it is sometimes termed. But this book provides convincing evidence that we have been deceived about what is at stake in this debate, and effectively illustrates how these deceptions threaten us all.

Euthanasia advocates claim that assisted suicide would be restricted to a "last resort" for people already on the verge of death and in unrelievable agony. But these premises already have been proven false. Smith demonstrates that most patients and their families are generally unaware that pain can often be effectively reduced or eliminated. He also provides evidence that many people whose deaths have been hastened by euthanasia were not, in fact, terminally ill. Some doctors are now claiming the right to refuse disabled and seriously ill patients the medical treatment they want.

Smith argues cogently that legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide would be a disaster for the...