Euthanasia - Sin is Progressive > The Netherlands just euthanized a toddler, Who's next?

 

1-year-old euthanized under new rules in the Netherlands allowing termination for sick children

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Thursday, October 01, 2026

Getty Images/Isabel Pavia

Doctors in the Netherlands euthanized a severely disabled 1-year-old child, the first case reported by Dutch authorities under rules introduced in 2024 that allow ending the lives of seriously ill children between the ages of 1 and 12.

According to an assessment published by the Netherlands’ Review Committee on Late-term Abortions and Termination of Life of Neonates and Children, which reviews such cases, the doctor involved in administering the euthanasia “acted with due care.”

The report stated that the child was euthanized through gradual sedation with “coma-inducing substances.”

Liana Graham, a research assistant for domestic policy at The Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based conservative think tank, told The Christian Post that the case raises broader questions about euthanasia and the groups for whom the practice could eventually be permitted.

“The situation unfolding in the Netherlands is abhorrent, but it isn’t surprising,” Graham said. “As an advocate against assisted suicide, I have long maintained that as soon as the state legitimates the killing of grandma, it is only a matter of time before it authorizes it for other groups deemed ‘unfit’ for life.”

Graham pointed specifically to disabled people, severely ill newborns and people with severe illnesses as groups she believes could be affected as euthanasia expands.

The child’s name and sex have not been disclosed, but the committee said the baby was born prematurely at 26 weeks while the family was abroad.

The child also reportedly had multiple complications, including severe infections that led to sepsis. By the time the child was nearly 2 years old, doctors estimated the child’s developmental age at about 6 weeks.

In addition to having difficulty breathing, the child developed spastic cerebral palsy and is believed to have had cerebral visual impairment. At 8 months, the child was diagnosed with a severe form of epilepsy.

The doctor leading the child’s care concluded that “the child was not continuously suffering unbearably” and suggested palliative care and other options. But the committee said further treatments caused additional side effects.

An independent doctor argued that the child met the requirements of the nation’s rules on termination of life, saying the child’s suffering was clear. The doctors and the child’s parents ultimately decided to end the child’s life because they concluded there would be no improvement.

“The Netherlands proves that the slippery slope of euthanasia is real,” Graham said, adding that she believes the practice can lead to “a future of less freedom and more paternalism.”

She criticized the language used in the committee’s review. The report stated that “every facet of ‘being human’ in terms of motor skills, behavior and personality was severely affected” and that there would be no improvement.

“Those choice words are extremely revealing. The committee didn’t simply conclude, using their professional judgment, that the child had a poor prognosis — they made a value judgment about which qualities properly fit the category of ‘being human,’” Graham said.

“It rings eerily of the eugenicists and materialists of the 20th century who believed that humanity was nothing more than a product of environment and matter,” she continued. “Delegating authority to an unelected expert class to ‘scientifically determine’ who is compatible with life and who isn’t is a far cry from an expression of liberty, as early advocates of euthanasia claimed.”

Under the Dutch framework, a physician must conclude, based on prevailing medical knowledge, that ending a child’s life is the only reasonable way to end suffering that is unbearable and without prospect of improvement. The 2024 rules apply to children ages 1 to 12 who meet the relevant conditions.

“The case against such a practice is far deeper than a debate within medical ethics,” Graham said. “This concerns what kind of society we want to live in and give to our children to inherit.”

Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman

Maine Drops 9000 From Food Stamps After Refusing To Comply With Work Requirement

This is interesting

Republican Gov. Paul LePage recently began enforcing Maine’s volunteer and work requirements for food stamp SNAP recipients to keep their benefits. The end result was more than 9,000 non-disabled adults getting dropped from the program.

The rules prevent adults who are not disabled and do not have dependents from receiving food stamps for more than three months, unless they work at least 20 hours a week, participate in a work-training program, or meet volunteer guidelines for 24 hours out of the month. Any one of those three getting met will not result in the loss of their SNAP food benefit.

Let me emphasize. The least difficult of those three, is fulfilling an approved volunteer work load of just 24 hours out of an entire month. The hardest, is doing at least 20 hours of on the job work per week. Hey, only volunteering 24 hours per month is a seriously good deal to receive hundreds of dollars of free food. The average SNAP monthly benefit is approximately $477.88 per month for a four person household size. In most cases it’s even more. For 24 hours of volunteering, that’s making about $19.91 per hour. Nice!

In Maine, 9,000 so-called able-bodied people who are too poor to feed themselves couldn’t handle that. Even more of a drastic measure, people in Maine who lose their benefits in such a manner can’t regain assistance for three years.

It is not clear if 'able-bodied people' includes mentally or emotionally challenged people. I would hope they fall under the 'disabled' category, but many such people have probably never been diagnosed. Who can afford to see a doctor in the US?

I like the concept of this program, but I'm concerned that many of the 9000 will fall through the cracks, and suffer unnecessarily. Without food stamps they are likely to eat less or poorer quality foods and require medical attention more than ever, but be even less able to afford it.

Maine should immediately commission a study to find out why those 9000 have refused; it might be very enlightening. It would also be nice to know what proportion of 'not disabled' food stamp recipients the 9000 represents.

Liberals have sold government dependence so deliberately well, that even doing 24 hours of approved volunteer work a month for a capable adult became too much for more than 9,000 people. If it seems like I’m parroting these numbers again and again, you must realize the implications are staggering. Who in their right mind would turn down such a deal? Actually wanting a member of society to be productive in some reasonable way shouldn’t be too hard to meet!

Maine’s State Rep. Scott Hamann (D) has introduced a bill that would direct the administration to seek a waiver for certain counties with high unemployment or a lack of jobs… but wait one damned minute! That is what doing approved volunteer work is all about. If the jobs or training programs simply aren’t there because the economy is a superior mess, then why is it too hard to do 24 hours of volunteer work per freaking month?

LePage’s administration probably won’t support Hamann’s legislation, and with good reason. There should be plenty of volunteer community work in even the most economically depressed regions. Either the Liberals have truly brain washed the voting masses into droning zombies, or they’re really not that needy for food. Either way, the taxpayers who do have to work their butts off won’t have to support such mediocrity any longer.

A Summer of Passion and Humanity in the Promised Land

Interesting article by, and about, the courageous, adventurous, soft-hearted daughter of a friend of mine.

Shoshanna Kervin and friend

United with Israel
Volunteering at a facility for disabled children and young adults gave a Canadian the opportunity to satisfy her two great passions: Helping those less fortunate and supporting Israel. She was struck by the “unparalleled diversity” and “spirit of inclusion.”

Though numerous influences have shaped my life, thus far, there are two specific ideologies that continue to guide my hand most: an unquenchable desire to help others and a profound love of the State of Israel. This summer, these two ideologies meshed seamlessly for the first time in my life, resulting in a transformative internship experience at ALEH Negev-Nahalat Eran, a residential facility for children and young adults with severe mental and physical disabilities. But like many of life’s most important experiences, the road to this fulfilling and inspiring episode began at home.

Growing up in British Columbia, Canada, I developed a longing to help others by watching my parents’ lovingly integrate foster children into our family structure on a regular basis. While the warm and tender environment within which I was raised allowed me find a deep appreciation for my good fortune, the acts of kindness performed by my parents taught me how to look out for those less fortunate than I.

From a young age, I sought out opportunities to volunteer with young people who could use my help. During summer vacations, I shadowed a girl with Downs syndrome and volunteered in a home that cared for individuals with varying levels of Autism and severe physical disabilities.My love for Israel developed much later in life, but quickly became a full-blown passion.

Though I was raised Christian, I would occasionally have in-depth conversations with my father about Judaism and the Land of Israel, two of his chief interests. His fascination began when he came to terms with the prevalence of global anti-Semitism. Having been raised to stand up for the truth, he chose to stand with Israel, a highly moral country that is often unjustly condemned. Following years of conversations with my father, I, too, began to see Israel as a light amid the darkness, and I was curious to learn more.

After university, I decided to spend some time in Israel, immersing myself in the culture and experiencing Israel as an Israeli. My father and I traveled to Israel and volunteered for the Israel Defense Forces through Sar-El, the National Project for Volunteers for Israel. Although I didn’t expect much from the experience beyond quality time with my father, I returned home with a deep affinity for and fascination with Israel. The fact that Israel continues to thrive despite its seemingly countless adversities and adversaries amazed me. And following last summer’s war, I felt a certain responsibility to read up on Israel and dispel the unjustified negative images disseminated by the media in discussions with my friends and family.

From the moment I left Israel, I knew that I would return.

‘Race, religion and background didn’t seem to matter’
This spring, I returned to Israel and joined a six-week Ulpan program at Ben Gurion University to learn Hebrew. I ended up extending my Israel experience into the summer by tacking on another short stint with Sar-El followed by three months at ALEH Negev, the crown jewel of Israel’s largest network of facilities for children with severe physical and cognitive disabilities. At ALEH, I utilized physical therapy techniques to advance the children I worked with toward independent mobility, a very rewarding task.

From my very first tour of the therapeutic village, I was struck by the unparalleled diversity represented within the groups of ALEH’s residents and staff members. I observed Jews, Christians, Muslims, Bedouins, and individuals of virtually every nationality working, learning, and healing together. Race, religion and background just didn’t seem to matter.

This spirit of inclusion and acceptance shapes the philosophy by which patient care is developed and provided. Rather than attempting to shoehorn every child into a one-size-fits-all rehabilitation program, ALEH tailors the programming to each patient’s unique needs and abilities, creating individualized experiences that allows each child to develop to his or her fullest potentials.

Thankfully, this philosophy spills over to volunteers as well. The paramedical staff, who accepted me with open arms, guided me through my internship and provided me with an exciting and enriching professional environment in which I was able to utilize my preexisting skill set to treat residents. But my eye-opening summer internship was more than just an opportunity to gain valuable work experience: it was the first time that I was able to embrace my two greatest passions and become the best version of myself.

Now that I know so much more about Israel’s long-standing tradition of kindness and its capacity for acceptance of individuals of all religions, races, nationalities, and abilities (and have witnessed this acceptance firsthand), my two passions don’t seem so disparate after all. In fact, it makes perfect sense that my true identity was forged in southern Israel.

Surrounded by angels in the Promised Land, I learned the true meaning of inclusion, altruism and humanity.

Posts are contributed by third parties. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent United with Israel.

Port Hardy - marina

Article by Shoshanna Kervin
Shoshanna Kervin was born and raised in Port Hardy, a small town on the northern tip of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. Following her summer volunteering experience at ALEH Negev-Nahalat Eran in southern Israel, Shoshanna enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces.

Port Hardy, British Columbia, Canada