Fatal discrimination against disabled people

Who are "the disabled"? The truth is at some time in our lives we all are. We were helpless babies, we may become disabled through disease or accident, we are, often, temporarily disabled through illness and we shall be increasingly dependent in old age. By attacking disabled people, the will to devote resources to the care of all those in need is undermined and every life is endangered.

Discrimination against disabled people is widespread in our society and includes the following practices, all of which are designed to ensure that disabled people are killed:

Screening tests and abortion. A growing number of pre-natal screening tests are now available which aim to detect disabling conditions in unborn babies. If the baby is found to have a disability there is often great pressure on the mother to abort.
Embryo screening. Human embryos conceived in IVF, i.e. in a test tube, can be examined in the laboratory. If they are found to have a disabling condition they are thrown away.
Neglect of newborn disabled babies. Newborn babies, particularly those with conditions such as Down's syndrome and spina bifida, are sometimes sedated and starved to death. Some people call this "allowing them to die" but it would undoubtedly be called murder if it were practised on an able-bodied baby.
Euthanasia. There is growing pressure to legalise euthanasia. This is a threat to everyone but especially to disabled, ill and elderly people who are often regarded as "better off dead".
Denial of food and water to those in PVS. These letters stand for "Persistent Vegetative State". It is an inappropriate term because no human being is a vegetable. Occasionally people emerge from PVS, sometimes after many years. People in PVS are profoundly disabled and are vulnerable to being killed by having their food and water withdrawn. This is completely unethical, as vulnerable people have the same infinite value as any other human being. There are now reports that people with less profound disabilities are being subjected to this inhumane regime. This is equally unethical.