Kleptomaniacs

Sunday Times, “She used to shoplift up to five times a week" dated 6/5/o7, page 10”

A young lady suffering a psychological compulsion to steal was given a third chance at rehabilitation as she was spared from a lengthy jail term for two counts of theft. Judge told Goh she had breached the limits of rehabilitation efforts aimed at keeping her out of jail to treat her condition. Psychiatrists say that kleptomaniacs is a rare conditions often triggered by depression a troubled childhood or dysfunctional families. Goh suffered from poor self esteem since young and often has suicidal thoughts. However the most shocking thing is that she still could be able to cope with her studies and did pretty well for her PSLE, O level and even the A level which land s her into NTU.

Personally I feel that she should be kept in behind bar and be treated in the hospital inside the prison. Such people have the tendency to steal thing when their minds not clear due to their mental problems. Imagine if she happened to steal something very important like the fuse of the electrical appliances or anything that could bring harm to the people. How many people will be suffering from her mental illness and death may even occurs as no one knew that this normal looking lady in the street will steal things due to her sickness.

The people around her also have a part to help her to recover from her mental illness. She developed this type of illness due to her surrounding and she was not kleptomaniacs once she was born. The family members, her loves one and even her friends can help to console her and warned her about the seriousness of stealing and the consequence it could bring to the rest and to her. By doing so, it will slowly cause her to stop stealing and may eventually lead a normal life again. If not the fourth case of Goh will appear pretty soon!

Disallowing a market in human organs irrational?

Some people may support the market for human organs because with the financial incentives given to the sale of the organs, there will be an increase in the supply of organs. With more supply of organs, more patients could be saved. This would benefit all as the present, non- price, system of allocating organs remains and hence the poor and rich would have an equal chance on the donated organs. With a market in human organs, there will also be an increase of cadaveric organs. As the bereaved families will be more willing to give away the cadaveric organs if they could get the thousands of dollars which could help to pay for funeral expenses. Furthermore, there is informed consent, market participants will not and cannot before or misled into selling that which they really desire not to sell. In addition to that, people are neither only profit – maximizing, nor do they love their neighbour as much as themselves. Also now patients are needlessly dying while precious organs that could save them rot away in the ground or are burnt to ashes. However with the market for organ, they will have a supply of organs and thus their lives could be saved.

There are also reasons why a market for human organs should be disallowed. If a market for human organs exist, the world will be flooded with un healthy organs as the seller usually are the poorer individuals whom organs are malnourished. Furthermore, drugs addicts, alcoholics or pathological gambler may likewise sell their organs for money to clear debt or to gamble. Having a market for human organs might also induce the family members to pull the plug on the dying patient to collect the payment for the human organs.

I support the sale only for the kidney from live donors. As people can continues to lead healthy lives with one kidney, and the risk of death from donating a kidney is less than one in one thousand. However, I do not support the sale of other human organs like the heart, liver and even the eyes as the risk of death would be higher and these are the essential human organs a person must have. Furthermore kidney transplantation is more effective cure for dialysis and allows the patient to live longer. In conclusion, I think that there should be a market for the sale of human organs but only to the sale of kidney. As I is safer as a person can survive with one kidney and by doing so he or she could save a precious life!