Assisted Suicide News

The subjects of euthanasia continue to make news. The topic is not new, but is gaining recognition. See Evolving Morality (July 2025) and Who Should Live? (January 2023). The Evolving highlights how legislators around the globe are pondering self-harm. At the outset, there is ample opportunity for self-harm in the world, see How Could You No Know Now (April 2026).

Recently, the story of Noelia Castillo, a 25-year-old, brought the realities of Spanish euthanasia to the fore. ABC7 explained an extended and involved process through which Ms. Castillo travelled to her ultimate demise. The reports suggest that the story made bigger headlines in Europe, with the BBC also picking up the story. Britain's euthanasia debate is central to Evolving Morality. That the BBC has had some credibility issues is acknowledged.

Ms. Castillo's life is difficult for most to understand. Her experiences are profound and troubling. She "struggled with psychiatric illness since she was a teenager." Her short life included two previous suicide attempts. The second "in 2022 left her unable to use her legs and in a wheelchair." In the milieu of challenges, she was "sexually assaulted," adding to her stressors, emotions, perceptions, and conclusions.

In 2024, Ms. Castillo sought permission to exit this life through "physician-assisted suicide," which Spain had legalized and formalized in 2021. At 23 years old, this human decided she could no longer persevere. She was granted that permission by a "medical body in Catalonia."

One pauses in such a story to wonder at the level of pain, despair, or other emotions that would drive one to a self-imposed and utterly permanent outcome. There are various worldviews, see Cultural Relativism (March 2026). There are differences and distinctions throughout the world.

Nonetheless, many societies cling to a prohibition on killing, such as the Sixth Commandment. Intriguingly, some academics now contend that should be interpreted more narrowly as "thou shalt not murder," an interesting distinction.

Such a distinction could be meaningful when the morality of self-termination is discussed. Succinctly, "murder" is the act of a human killing another human. Definitionally, the "murder" prohibition perhaps seems inapplicable to suicide generally.

Nonetheless, those of the Catholic faith have an involved history regarding suicide. There have been perceptions and portrayals of condemning suicide. Some see those perceptions as softer, but nonetheless incompatible with faith. And, there is acknowledgement that suicide persists in modern society.

Ms. Castillo's parents are Catholic, and with assistance, they resisted the state-approved suicide for about two years. They first resisted in the application to the Catalonia medical body when Ms. Castillo submitted her required "two requests in writing" to be assisted to die.

When that medical body granted permission, Ms. "Castillo's father appealed the Catalan body's decision, and a court in August 2024 suspended the euthanasia request while it deliberated." While those legal efforts delayed the suicide, the Spanish Supreme Court concluded in January 2026 that Ms. Castillo had the right to die.

Her family expressed disappointment in that decision. There has been significant criticism of the enabling law and the acceptance of self-termination. Ms. Castillo acknowledged that she is a "pillar of the family," a seeming admission of the hole her absence may leave in the lives of others.

Nonetheless, she steered the conversation to her pain and suffering, and her personal decision to end it. She told the press, "The happiness of a father or a mother should not supersede the happiness of a daughter."

The implications of this debate remain at the core of humanity and society. There are strong emotional arguments on both sides of these discussions. There are efforts and expenditures to prevent suicide, see AI Lacks Conscience (September 2025) and the posts cited there. And yet, some cultures are concluding that the desires of the individual are paramount.

In the end, it is difficult to conclude that there is a winner in such debates. Certainly, someone got their desired outcome while others did not. But in the death of a human, is there ever a winner? As I see so many struggle to live, to deal with the incurable, to strive for one more day . . .. What horrors drive one, instead, to voluntarily cease?

Everyone Gets a Trophy

We, as a society, have likely hit our nadir, though there is some chance we have further to fall before some sudden stop marks our complete demise. I have written about the decline in education and capability.

The National Literacy Institute has noted that (il)literacy is tied to "some of today's most pressing concerns." We face teacher shortages, teacher competency issues, and various other secondary education challenges. The Institute notes "21% of adults in the US are illiterate," and "54% of adults have a literacy below a 6th-grade level." Like it or not, this is largely influenced by immigrants: "34% of adults lacking literacy proficiency were born outside the US."

For thoughts on literacy, see Screen Time Wins (February 2026); It's Your Kids! (February 2026). Students are showing up to college, and they lack the basic skills of reading and writing.

The University of Florida reports that "reading for pleasure (is) in free fall." The author of the study says this is not "a small dip—it's a sustained, steady decline of about 3% per year." If you don't do something, practice, you will lose the muscle memory to do it. 

And it is not some systemic change; the drop is steeper among some demographics, which the author attributes to "disparity in reading access and habits." Notably, "women are still more likely to read." Those who exercise skills will better retain them. 

Another dichotomy, perhaps more predictable, is education-based: "People with higher education levels ... are more likely to read." The other good news in the study is that "reading with children did not change over the last 20 years." We may not read for ourselves, but we are at least reading with children. They need us more than ever. 

A Stanford professor is proposing and supporting the "science of reading." She notes that "at least 40 states" have proposed "legislation aimed at reversing the downward trend." There is also interest in teacher preparation, requirements for curricula, and "mandates to use evidence-based screeners to identify students who may need additional support."

There may be some belief that the 20th-century "every kid gets a trophy" has contributed to the decline in competitiveness, refuted by some. Nonetheless, a recent decision by the Los Angeles Marathon to award medals to those who ran 18 miles instead of 26 miles gained headlines. Why 18? Next year 17? 

Will we reach a point where I could get a marathon medal (at the outside, I might do three miles)? Technically speaking, the 18 milers have no more finished a marathon than I have. Where is my medal?

Every kid getting a trophy for finishing the (pick a sport) season is seen by some as rewarding mediocrity. The LA Marathon's decision to award those who did not even finish has been viewed a bit more harshly in some quarters. 

On the other side of the world, the Chinese culture is struggling with the opposite. China announced recently that it would "promote students' physical and mental health" with mandates that limit "excess homework," "reduce academic pressure," and promote "two hours of physical activity ... every school day." 

Might such a move help us with the bane of obesity? Many of our schools do not provide the more moderate recommendation of one hour daily "moderate to vigorous physical activity" now.  

Thus, there is some recognition of the value of exercise and activity. There is the potential of pushing academics too hard. But there is the challenge of illiterate adults and the difficulties that they could present in the world of work and democracy.

In all, there is some need for moderation. Nonetheless, we are societally yielding our futures if we accept "Johnny can't read" as a normal outcome. We can reverse that, but it will require some focus and commitment to teaching, learning, and less screen time, videos, and social media nonsense.  

Thanks for reading this, and for knowing how.