Posted on 04/08/2005 10:29:19 AM PDT by Theodore R.
National Disgrace
The coverage of the Terri Schiavo tragedy by the cable news channels was a national disgrace. They provided a national megaphone for fanatics to make wild and unsubstantiated — and, in some cases, previously discredited — allegations about Michael Schiavo and Florida Circuit Judge George Greer.
Their feverish greed for sensationalism caused them to disregard the truth.
One falsehood repeated by many people, including some who should have known better, was that Mrs. Schiavo's wish not to be kept alive was decided on the basis of "hearsay." That is untrue.
The legal term "hearsay" refers to a situation in which Person A says that Person B told him what Person C said. That is hearsay and is not admissible in American courts. In the case of Mrs. Schiavo, three people testified as to what she said directly to them at a luncheon following a funeral for an elderly relative. Presumably, the opposing party could not produce any evidence to refute that, because Judge Greer's decision was upheld repeatedly throughout the state and federal court systems.
You should also note that Schiavo and his in-laws, Bob and Mary Schindler, had a falling out not over the fate of Terri Schiavo, but over money. A malpractice suit resulted in an award of about $700,000, which went into a trust fund administered by the court for the medical expenses, plus $300,000 to Michael for what the law refers to as loss of consortium. The Schindlers apparently expected him to split that $300,000 with them, and when he refused, there was a terrible, vitriolic shouting match. Prior to that, Schiavo and his in-laws had been close and had worked hand in hand trying to rehabilitate Terri.
Michael Schiavo had been told from the beginning by neurologists that Terri's condition was hopeless, but for a number of years he stubbornly refused to believe it. He was so persistent and insistent that Terri Schiavo get the very best of care that he was described as "a nursing-home manager's worst nightmare." A man who didn't care for his wife would not have done that. When he finally accepted the grim truth, he went to court, and the Schindlers opposed him.
The fact is that if this family dispute had not been seized upon by national organizations with political agendas that used this poor woman as a fundraising tool, you would never have heard of it. Families have to make these kinds of terrible decisions every day in this country. Occasionally, they don't agree. In those cases, the standard procedure is to have the question settled by a judge. That was done in this case, and based on sworn testimony by people subject to cross-examination, Judge Greer decided that (1) her medical condition was hopeless, and (2) her wishes were not to be kept alive by artificial means. There is no justifiable doubt on either point, despite what rabble-rousers, quacks and people with grudges have blurted out on television.
It was shameful for the Florida governor, the Florida legislature, the U.S. Congress and President Bush to involve themselves in this private family matter. The courts, all the way up to the Supreme Court, have properly squelched their attempts. It was shameful for those fanatics to show up in Pinellas Park and disturb the dying in the hospice with strident shouts and irrational claims. Fortunately, those ugly faces, angry and threatening, do not reflect Christianity. National polls have shown that an overwhelming majority of Americans, including those who describe themselves as evangelicals, support the decision to remove the feeding tube and disapprove of the political intervention.
We are our brains. The rest of our body exists to carry the brain and to obey its instructions. When the brain dies, we die, even though the rest of the body can continue to function on automatic, provided the primitive part of the brainstem still functions. Terri Schiavo, the person, died a long time ago.
People should be encouraged that the rule of law has survived an onslaught by a mob of fanatics, a gaggle of opportunistic politicians and a swarm of television vultures.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © 2005 by King Features Syndicate, Inc. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I firmly believe Charley Reese has something medically wrong with him. His columns have, for some time, been filled with wild suppositions and accusations as well as a fair amount of vitriol.
From the title I thought it was about Ted Kennedy!
And we only had to sacrifice one life to do it!
Perhaps this needs to be hidden in the Smoky Backroom. ;)
Note the demonizations of those who stood for life: mobs, politicians, vultures. Yet, who was it that was actually hovering about waiting for her carcass?
The fact that this guy calls himself a "conservative" is beyond the pale.
"It was shameful for the Florida governor, the Florida legislature, the U.S. Congress and President Bush to involve themselves in this private family matter.".
It stopped being a "private family matter" once it was taken to a GOVERNMENT court.
I think there were three witnesses that said Terri wanted to die. And their last names were Schiavo, Schiavo, and Schiavo.
I concur that something bad must have happened to Charley Reese's head. I though it was just vicious antisemitism that was driving him to oppose the Iraq war, but now it seems that he has just plain gone off his rocker.
What happened to Charley, 15 years ago he was a sensible creature, and now he's really gone off the deep-end. This is the first I've heard from him in years, I thought he left the newspaper business.
This malcontent Charley Reese is making no sense whatsoever. Pat Buchanan and Joe Sobran (who share some views with Reese) wrote more sensible columns about this tragedy.
The real "national disgrace" is that the courts allowed Michael Schiavo to, literally, get away with murder.
Also these "witnesses" forgot she said it for SEVEN YEARS. Then, after they had collected the money intended for her rehabilitation, they suddenly remembered that she didn't want to be rehabilitated. Extraordinary coincidence.
It was based on testimony that contradicted previously sworn testimony. Difficult to call that credible and not clear and convincing evidence. IMHO.
Pinellas county, Florida murderer uncertified Judgenfuhrer Greer:
"Some people are just born victims."
CR has been in the Rubber Room camp for quite a number of years now.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.