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Sunday, March 27 Live Or Let Die
Mostly because I wanted to understand a little bit more about the background of the case before I did so. My general feeling about cases when someone is in a vegetative state is that it’s best to let them go peacefully rather then drag them thru years of hell here on earth. But, of course, if there is a chance they can be brought from that state, that’s another story too. Generally I also side with the spouse on this one, because in every long term relationship I have ever had and even some of the short ones, I have always known the wishes of my lover far more and better then her parents have. If this were to have happened to my most recent ex..I know full well that she would want to be let go. She has made me promise that on several occasions. I also know full well that her mother would fight to her dieing breath to keep her alive and consider it an abomination against Jehovah that I was letting her go. Of course this would have been a case that would never have wound up with the mileage of the Schiavo case because this country would not have let the grieving spouse in a gay relationship have those rights, but that’s another story. My own brother has started sending me emails, calling the removal of Terri’s tube to be a crime against god and a public murder. He, a long time critic of the Bush Family, is now sending them letters telling George and Jeb that they are doing holy work by trying to save this woman. He feels on behalf of the Jewish religion that this is an attack on everything holy. I have rarely seen this kind of outrage come from my little brother. My pal Nancy, of Matrixland (see linkie love this) had perhaps the smartest thing to say about this which was, that we all being made privy to a very private situation. This is the husbands business, not ours. It should not have become a public spectacle. She went on to say, “Every day families do this. The real shame is that you can't show your wife the same mercy as you'd show your cat.” So here’s what I understand about Terri’s background in a nutshell. ** Several doctors, including those appointed by the courts, have pronounced her to be in a "persistent vegetative state". However Terri parents hired doctors that claim that Terri has a consciousness. Her husband, Michael Schiavo sought for years to remove the feeding tube and allow Terri “die naturally”. In other words to starve to death. Now the legal battle seems to be over. Here we are today. Many people do not believe she will live thru Easter Weekend. There are protesters outside her hospice who claim that this happening over Easter Weekend is not a coincidence. They see something Christ like in the removal of her feeding tube. Terri’s fate has become a religious battleground and a political battleground with outrage from both sides. Her husband who feels he is acting on behalf of what his wife wanted, is being called a murderer and perhaps, the rest of this life may be ruined by this stigma. I think Terri’s husband should have the right to decide this matter. I do not think you can make blanket statements that removing a feeding tube is a murder. I think these matters have to be done in a case-by-case basis and in this case, was it 28 judges? Or some such number ruled in favor of letting Terri go. I think the large discussion here is what is life and of course this ties into all the huge red button issues today like stem cell research and abortions. What is your feeling about the Terri Schiavo Case? I would really like to know.
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