{"podcast":{"title":"Open to Debate","slug":"open-to-debate-610487","podcast_index_feed_id":610487,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/PNP1207584390","website_url":"http://opentodebate.org","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/bcc042ec-fb48-11e5-b604-930d2eb6cae2/image/91ce7bbfeea734ae7e63a6e6e8a9cd70.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Open to Debate","episode_count":459,"summary":"America is more divided than ever—but it doesn’t have to be. Open to Debate offers an antidote to the chaos. We bring multiple perspectives together for real, nonpartisan debates. Debates that are structured, respectful, clever, provocative, and driven by the facts. Open to Debate is on a mission to restore balance to the public square through expert moderation, good-faith arguments, and reasoned analysis. We examine the issues of the day with the world’s most influential thinkers spanning science, technology, politics, culture, and global affairs. It’s time to build a stronger, more united democracy with the civil exchange of ideas. Be open-minded. Be curious. Be ready to listen. Join us in being Open to Debate. (Formerly Intelligence Squared U.S.)","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-to-debate-610487"},"episode":{"title":"Legalize Assisted Suicide?","slug":"legalize-assisted-suicide","published_at":"2026-01-30T10:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-to-debate-610487/legalize-assisted-suicide","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-to-debate-610487","url":"https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.megaphone.fm/ADL9122957061.mp3?updated=1769806766","audio_url":"https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.megaphone.fm/ADL9122957061.mp3?updated=1769806766","summary":"In December of 2025, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul announced that after months of negotiations with the state legislature, she was finally ready to sign into law a new bill allowing some patients to request medical assistance in dying, or MAID. That bill is currently sitting on her desk waiting for her signature. This type of bill has become more and more common. In 1994, Oregon passed the Death with Dignity Act, becoming the first state to allows physician-assisted suicide for the terminally ill. Now 12 states plus the District of Columbia have laws on the books allowing physicians to assist patients in ending their life, within limits. Patients must have a prognosis of less than six months to live, and they must take the medication themselves. As more and more states discuss passing their own versions of these bills, we revisit the debate we had on this very topic in 2014. The motion that we debated: Legalize assisted suicide. While the preferred language has changed to Medical Aid in Dying, the thorny ethical questions and the complicated medical judgments remain unchanged. Will these laws lead to a slippery slope, where the vulnerable are pressured to choose death and human life is devalued? Or do we need to recognize everyone's basic right to autonomy, the right to end pain and suffering, and the right to choose to die with dignity? This debate was recorded live in November of 2014 at the Kaufman Music Center in New York. Arguing Yes: Peter Singer: Co-Founder of the Effective Altruism movement. Professor of Bioethics, Emeritus, Princeton University. Podcast host, \"Lives Well Lived\" Andrew Solomon: Author of “Far From the Tree”, Professor of Clinical Psychology at Columbia University and Weill Cornell Medical College. He also researches at Yale School of Med…","meta_description":"In December of 2025, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul announced that after months of negotiations with the state legislature, she was finally ready to…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3195,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/open-to-debate-610487/episodes/legalize-assisted-suicide/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/open-to-debate-610487/legalize-assisted-suicide.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}