Gutless politicians don’t speak for me on ethics

We need to respect the values of others no matter what. After all, there are no right or wrong answers in morality.

Right? Wrong.It doesn’t take a 19-year-old professional cynic to work out that the term “conscience vote” is used by some parliamentarians as an excuse to not have to consider viewpoints other than their own.

Politicians routinely consult economists, spin doctors and even stylists to guide them through their day by day. So why are some so adamant that they know best about a concept too dense to be quantified?

Morality and mortality have their experts just like any other field.

Dual Australian of the Year nominee Dr Phillip Nitschke has met many palliative care patients who have been forced to inconveniently circumvent the law in order to escape a fate that they see as worse than death. Ignored.

Praised philosopher Peter Singer convincingly argues that human lives are worth no more than those of animals. By that token one could say that we are more humane to our whiskered friends by putting them to sleep instead of keeping them alive only to endure immeasurable pain and discomfort. Also conveniently ignored.

I’m the teenager. I’m the one who is supposed to be recklessly disregarding authority. Not those running the country. Think about this lack of respect for expertise among some of those who determine what we can and can’t do with our bodies.

Frightened? I sure am. I can’t stop playing hypotheticals in my head. My grandma is nearing the end and she may want to go her own way. Will the government force her to keep on breathing until her tired heart finally gives up?

Forgive me if I sound paranoid about that looming shadow of Big Brother creeping up behind me.

I turn 20 in February. Plenty old enough to vote, pay taxes and serve a life sentence. How can I properly immerse myself into adulthood knowing that the government is making my infinitely complex, self-discovering ethical decisions for me?

Furthermore, how can the government expect my generation to be actively engaged in the political process when the selective moralities of politicians go unchallenged? What a waste of time. I should have gone to that party.