Today the New England Journal of Medicine has an editorial entitled, “Physicians And Execution.” The editorial makes it clear that medical doctors should never be involved in state killing.
This is extremely important and another significant step toward the abolition of state killing. How so? “Lethal injection” was introduced to “medicalize” and lend moral authority to executions when hanging, gassing, and electrocution were finally recognized to be inhumane. That is why those to be executed are required to lie on hospital like gurney (see above). And that is why the gurney has sheets on it. That is why in many cases hospital like curtains are used to surround the dead person after the execution. The “medical” appearance of killing is intended to make it more palatable.
More after the jump.