Problem
Jeffry Box was 81 years old when he was brought to Doctor's hospital. His right side was paralyzed, his spoke in a garbled way, and he had trouble understanding even the simplest matters. His only known relative was a sister four years younger, and she lived half a continent away. When a hospital social worker called to tell her about her brethren's conditions, she was quite uninterested. "I haven't seen him in 15 years," she said. "I thought he might already be dead. Just do whatever you think best for him. I'm too old to worry about him."
Neurological tests and X-ray studies showed that Mr. Box was suffering from a brain hemorrhage caused by a ruptured blood vessel.
"Can you fix it?" Ask Dr. Hollins. She was the resident responsible for Mr. Box's primary care. The man she addressed was Dr. Carl Oceana, the Staff's only neurosurgeon.
"Sure," said Dr. Oceana. "I can repair the vessel and clean out the mess. But it won't do much good, you know."
"You mean he'll still be paralyzed?"
"And he'll still be mentally incoherent. After the operation he'll have to be put in chronic-care place, because he won't be able to see to his own needs."
"And if you don't operate?" Dr. Hollins asked.
Dr. Oceana shrugged. "He'll be dead by tomorrow. Maybe sooner, depending on how long it takes for the pressure in his skull to build up."
"What would you do?"
"I know what I would want done to me if I were the patient," said Dr. Oceana. "I'd want people to keep their knives out of my head and let me die a nice, peaceful death."
"But we don't know what he would want," Dr. Hollins said. "He's never been our patient before, and the social worker hasn't been able to find any friends who might tell us what he'd want done."
"Let's just put ourselves in his place," said Dr. Oceana. "Let's do unto others what we would want done unto us."
"That means letting Mr. Box die."
"Exactly."
i. On what grounds might one object to Dr. Oceana's view?
ii. Would active euthanasia be justified?
iii. Would the natural law view make the operation discussed a moral mandate?