Holland has just made a controversial end-of-life decision.
Elon Musk ushered in a new era for entrepreneurs: No squeamish topics would be off limits for a CEO.
Basically, bosses are part of the community and should not be afraid to take a stand even on issues that could hurt their bottom line. It is the end of corporate political neutrality, which, according to Techno King, is in line with society’s evolution towards an economy dominated by influencers and witnessing the emergence of the creators’ economy.
Musk’s philosophy is that everyone is a brand.
As a result, the CEO of Tesla (TSLA) – Get a free reportHe uses his platform to draw attention to issues he considers important and urgent for humanity. He believes that presidents should be involved, because it is in line with their duty to develop products and services that will change the world. He has made this social responsibility his leitmotif with interesting results.
On the one hand, the tech mogul has managed to establish himself as one of the most influential voices on the global geopolitical scene thanks to Starlink, the Internet access service developed by SpaceX, his aerospace company. The service is the only communication system of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the war against Russia. It has also become a window to the world for many people living under dictatorial regimes and for people living in remote areas.
Certainly not children
On the other hand, Musk has become a character that diffuses and stirs emotions. This aspect has been visible since it took over Twitter, a platform that is the city square of our time. It made it a stronghold of the conservatives. He regularly attacks progressives and their values. The expression he uses in this culture war is “the virus of the awakened mind”. Despite the criticism, the billionaire is moving forward.
Thus, he has just taken a stand on one of the most sensitive topics of our time: euthanasia and in particular the euthanasia of children. For Musk, assisted suicide should never be legalized for sick children without hope of recovery as Holland just did. He maintains that the children are not old enough to give their consent and that the decision of their parents cannot replace it. It all started with a thread on Twitter. A user reported on the new assisted suicide legislation in the Netherlands.
“The Netherlands allows parents to euthanize their sick children of any age,” the user wrote on Twitter.
The billionaire commented, “I agree with assisted suicide if the person is a mature adult.” “But certainly not children. There’s a reason we agree to adulthood.”
Not surprisingly, most of the comments shared Musk’s view, with some even seeing assisted-child suicide as an extension of abortion.
“Life is precious,” said one Twitter user.
Another user agreed, “No. This extends the abortion period to 225 months.”
complex issue
On the other hand, users who presented themselves as coming from the Netherlands denounced the misinterpretation of the law by US conservatives, including Musk.
“Leave it to conservative American media to misrepresent the Netherlands’ assisted dying laws,” said one Twitter user. “It’s a common, recurring type!”
The user continued: “It usually ignores the basic elements, such as the fact that the human beings involved are suffering unbearably from a particular condition with no hope of improvement. Or that the vast network of people needs to come to a conclusion like this.”
The Dutch government announced on April 14 that euthanasia for children under 12 “suffering from an illness or disorder so serious that death is inevitable and (…) expected in the foreseeable future” is now possible.
It should also be “the only reasonable alternative for a doctor to put an end to the desperate and intolerable suffering of a child,” said Ernst Kuipers, the Netherlands’ health minister.
According to the local government, a “small group” of “five to ten children” would be affected annually.
Euthanasia is already legal for minors over twelve years of age “who can give their consent” as well as for infants under one year of age with “parental consent”.
The Dutch government has indicated that a re-evaluation of the new regulation will take place a few years from now.