A Definitive Argument On Euthanasia Euthanasia is a very controversial topic, one that provokes both anger and sympathy. There are considered to be two kinds of euthanasia: passive and active. Passive euthanasia is to withhold treatment and allow a patient to die of his or her given disease. Active euthanasia is to take direct action to end the patient’s life, whether it is a lethal injection or an overdose of sleeping pills. In James Rachel’s article “Mercy Killing and the Right to Die”, he outlines these two actions and argues the idea that passive euthanasia is somehow better and more humane than active euthanasia. In David B. McCurdy’s article, “Saying W