Culture of Death: The Assault on Medical Ethics in America

by Wesley J. Smith

When his teenaged son Christopher, brain-damaged in an auto accident, developed a 106-degree fever following weeks of unconsciousness, John Campbell asked the attending physician for help. The doctor refused. Why bother? The boy’s life was effectively over. Campbell refused to accept this verdict. He demanded treatment and threatened legal action. The doctor finally relented. With treatment, Christopher’s temperature subsided almost immediately. Soon afterwards he regained consciousness and today he is learning to walk again. This story is one of many Wesley J. Smith recounts in his groundbreaking new book, Culture of Death. Smith believes that American medicine “is changing from a system based on the sanctity of human life into a starkly utilitarian model in which the medically defenseless are seen as having not just a ‘right’ but a ‘duty’ to die.” Going behind the current scenes of our health care system, he shows how doctors withdraw desired care based on Futile Care Theory rather than providing it as required by the Hippocratic Oath. And how “bioethicists” influence policy by considering questions such as whether organs may be harvested from the terminally ill and disabled. This is a passionate, yet coolly reasoned book about the current crisis in medical ethics by an author who has made “the new thanatology” his consuming interest.

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, History, Cultural, Medicine

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 31, 2000

Reviews

[Elisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think anyone who has had a family member in the hospital, has been in a hospital or will be in a hospital (ie, everyone in America) will find this an eye-opening account of how far medical ethics have slid in the last 20-30 years. Meticulously researched, this book made me think more carefully about organ donation, animal research, quality of life & the value of life, and even have a better understanding of how fuzzy some of these medical definitions can be! And how careful we need to be about preserving the dignity of the patients and their families' rights.

[Lauren Compton]

I ended up abandoning this book😬 I wanted to read about bioethics and I just wasn’t vibing with author’s style. I didn’t make it terribly far so I didn’t want to rate the book. Just not for me.

[wally · Rating 5 out of 5]

at the risk of being reported...i'd read that piece by michelle malkin about health care...at the risk of being reported, this is a must read for anyone concerned about their health or the health of their loved ones.

[Vida · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that truly should be read by all. Scary to watch what is becoming the way of thinking among our medical professionals, makes you think what choices you would make.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very deep and difficult book to read. The subject matter covers abortion, assisted suicide, euthanasia, medical research and other ethical issues. To say that I was shocked by the information presented by the author would be an understatement. The fact that it was written over ten years ago makes me wonder how much worse it has gotten in America! We need to take medicine back from the insurance companies, the immoral bioethicists and the greedy hospital administrators. We should be using our medical knowledge and equipment to help those who are suffering, not to hurt those with severe medical issues. Wake-up America, before someone tries to use this skewed, immoral logic to keep treatment from you or end your life. I encourage everyone to read this book. While it may be difficult at times, we need to know what is happening in the world of medical ethics.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

While "ethics" is a generic term for various ways of understanding and examining the moral life, the term "bioethics" is broader in scope and encompasses biological sciences, medicine and healthcare. It is a relatively new field of philosophical study, being only thirty years old or so. Smith outlines the problems with modern bioethics including the futile care theory and questions of morality relating to testing on humans and euthanasia.

The biggest issue seems to be that many bioethicists are postmodernists and, as such, have no real foundation on which to build ethical principles. Smith touches on Pete Singer, who argues that human life is worth less than animal life. Paul Copan, in his book "How Do You Know You're Not Wrong?" demolishes Singer's ideas, and Singer fares no better here. This is an excellent book for anyone interested in philosophy or critical thinking.

[Natalie]

It has been a couple of years since I last read Culture of Death; I'll update this review once I've re-familiarized myself with it.

For now, just want to add something that's absent from existing reviews: this influential survey of issues in bioethics has an obvious conservative lilt. (For context, Smith is currently a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute.) Compelling read; not objective.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting that he doesn't consider abortion murder.....

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very eye-opening.