Mark Sketchley: Suicides a possible factor in fewer Canadian visitors

To the editor:

Canadians apparently aren't visiting us as much as they have in the past. You know why. You have heard the company line. Have you ever considered the possibility of an alternative cause? Could it be because they are killing themselves in record numbers? Euthanasia is now the fifth leading cause of death in Canada, and it increases every year, according to the Atlantic magazine. Fifteen thousand people a year are now terminated through assisted suicide and for virtually any reason. You are naive if you think it will remain only for the terminally ill and only for those who choose it. It is especially predominant in Quebec, where 7 percent of all deaths are from assisted suicide.