"Euthanasia Coaster" Puts A Spin On Dying

Lithuanian engineer wants to give you a screaming good send-off.

vimeo.com / Via Vimeo

Originally conceived in 2010, Julijonas Urbonas' "Euthanasia Coaster" was designed to be a one-man, one-trip coaster which sends its user on an out of this world ride. The coaster has recently seen a renewal of interest as people have once again begun asking, "is this actually humane?"

Screengrab / Via vimeo.com

The coaster makes use of the same principles found in G-force training. However, the blood is drained from the brain for so long (over a minute) that the brain completely suffocates. The resulting ride finds the euthanasee (not sure that's a real term but I'm laying claim now for when it winds up in Websters'. Dibs!) slipping in and out of consciousness in a blur of drooly, twitchy euphoria until finally they lose consciousness permanently.

Screengrab / Via vimeo.com

Of course, "humane euthanasia" is a controversial topic no matter where it is brought up. Urbonas would like to start the conversation about this touchy subject with his model. He feels that the "ritual" of death has been something long abandoned in Western civilization, and the Euthanasia Coaster could be something that would return us to "ritualistic death" in a "beautiful" way.

But things get weird when you begin to listen to the way Urbonas says certain things, such as when he uses the term "population control" in the video. Or when he asks, "what if you get tired of living?" in the placard pictured above. I was intrigued by the idea of a whirling death-coaster, but found myself backpedaling when those terms/phrases were brought up. Could it be as simple as the way things are phrased that cause us to label them with "ick-factor"?

Assisted suicide is a subject most people run from screaming as if they were currently on a rollercoaster, so maybe Julijonas Urbonas is kind of genius to present the idea to us in such a manner.

What are your thoughts on the Euthanasia Coaster? Do you think it will help society get ready to discuss humane euthanasia and assisted suicide? Will we ever be ready to discuss such a topic? Watch the video and give us your reactions.