Are Some Now Understanding What Happened to Terri Schiavo Was Wrong?

Life News ^ | 10/16/07 | Wesley J. Smith

[wagglebee]

Wesley J. Smith is a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute and an attorney for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide. His latest book is Consumer's Guide to a Brave New World.

I think Bobby Schindler is right.

There have been a lot of stories of late about how supposedly vegetative patients could understand, or of "miraculous" awakenings by people who doctors were sure would never react consciously again.

Bobby, Terri Schiavo's brother, has noticed that whatever the condition of the patient whose story is being told, the reports all have a common sub theme--the awakening, comprehension, etc. has nothing to do with Terri, meaning it was right to dehydrate her to death.

It is as these reports, to quote Shakespeare, "doth protest too much," as if there is a subliminal realization that a terrible injustice was done to her.

The latest almost unbelievable example is in an otherwise interesting and important (and long) piece in the New Yorker, byline Jerome Groopman. After describing how supposedly unconscious people have been misdiagnosed, the author quotes an unnamed neuroscientist about Terri.

From the story:

A neuroscientist showed me a video on the Internet of Terri Schiavo, the Florida woman who spent fifteen years in what most doctors agree was a vegetative state--tests revealed almost no activity in her cortex--and whose death, in 2005, provoked fierce debate over the rights of severely brain-damaged patients. (Schiavo died after the Supreme Court rejected her parents' appeal of a judge's decision approving her husband's request that her feeding tube be removed. An autopsy showed extensive brain damage.) In the video, a man's voice can be heard praising Schiavo for opening her eyes in response to his instructions, and the neuroscientist told me that he was impressed until he muted the sound. "With the sound off, it is clear that her movements are random," the neuroscientist said. "But, with the voice-over, it is easy to make a misdiagnosis. (My emphasis.)

The above stills are from the video in question. It deeply touched my heart and it is seared forever in my memory. In that video, Terri is asked by the examiner to open her eyes. At first, nothing. Then, within ten or so seconds, her eyes flicker, she opens them, and then opens them so wide her forehead wrinkles. It is clearly an intentional response to the question.

But if you turn the sound off, there is no question to hear--and voila, her opening her eyes with clear intention can now be dismissed as merely "random movement."

But a random movement under those circumstances would be to move her head from side to side or lick or lips. But when she opened her eyes, and so intently, precisely as requested, you have to work hard to make it "random." So, to make sure we don't see the terrible wrong that was done to her, we just turn off the sound.

As I said, unbelievable. But do read the larger piece. It is well worth the time.

[floriduh voter]

yeah, the posts elsewhere are downright hilarious.

[OKIEDOC]

I consider what happened to Terri to be nothing short of barbarism and murder.

[wagglebee]

This is all about taking earned resources from frail and helpless owners (the elderly and handicapped) so the powerful and healthy can steal their money and deny giving them costly medical care.

Please give examples here.....Or is this a theory?

You mean like the FACT that a jury awarded Terri $1 million for her rehabilitation and her estranged, adulterous husband spent the money KILLING her?

[seekthetruth]

“Terri was brutally starved to death, The was no decent reason to do this.”

I agree totally. As far a I am concerned it was a state sponcered murder. There are functioning people in wheelchairs with feeding tubes, so I really don’t consider a feeding tube life support although it can certainly end many people’s lives if taken away. Her parents wanted to care for her and were not allowed to. I still believe her husband wanted her dead, was the cause of her death, and he succeeded with the court’s help.

[wagglebee]

I wear the deathbots hatred of me as a badge of honor!

[wagglebee]

And very few murderers have the hubris to carry it out over an extended period of time with the entire world watching.

[floriduh voter]

So far, Senator Jim King of Jax has been out of the discussion. Senator King from Jacksonville has an award from Hospice himself. He's going to just explode someday from gluttony but until then, he serves in the state house and there is no one greedier, meaner or more twisted than Senator Jim King. He held the purse strings for Pinellas County. Judge Greer was on a team who had to go to Tallahassee to lobby for money to flow back to Pinellas. So, Terri was sacrificed also at the hands of Senator Jim King, Hospice Man of the Year or something ridiculous like that.

Someone I know met w/him after Terri died. He scared her so badly that she ran out of his office straight to the restroom to get sick. If I called that person today and said his name, well, it would be too cruel for me to do that to them.

Senator Jim King, disgusting pos.

[floriduh voter]

Jim King, Hospice Hall of Fame. (they treat killing people like it’s a sport).

[OKIEDOC]

How Terri was murdered just makes me sick every time I think of how she was murdered.

What those creeps in the MSM and Alan Combs, Nancy Pelosi liberals did to enable Terri's death makes me puke when they got their ignorant panties in a bunch over the possibility that we may have tortured a terrorist to save American lives.

[Osage Orange]

You mean like the FACT that a jury awarded Terri $1 million for her rehabilitation and her estranged, adulterous husband spent the money KILLING her?

Whoa...!!

I was speaking in the global/national sense...not in that particular case.

[floriduh voter]

Thanks. Terri's fight and plight was a once in a lifetime experience for millions of people. They haven't forgotten either.

Terri's foundation has various projects which imo will end up help disabled persons as well as baby boomers who find themselves caught in bad situations.

www.terrisfight.org (an incredible family).

[bjs1779]

I was speaking in the global/national sense...not in that particular case.

Sure that was clear enough. Cough..

[wagglebee]

You asked for an example, I gave you one.

[floriduh voter]

And, how many people died after Katrina because Brownie did a heckuva job before he was forced to resign? Bush 2004 was not the same man as Bush 2000. The new model Bush 2004 used people for votes and then turned his back on them. He turned his back on The Constitution too. So, we have a few Supremes who are decent. That’s not much of a record. It all went downhill after Terri slipped away and people in power at all levels, city, county, state, federal level DID NOTHING to save her. It boggles the mind but nobody knows more about loyalty than W. Loyalty is more important to him than “freedom” or “liberty”.

[floriduh voter]

Root Beer’s not a bad way to go.

[floriduh voter]

I made a Hilary costume for halloween that year. We wore costumes to work and it was funny scary. I took a real doctor bag and made up a health care card that was printed "U R COVERED" with gold glitter glued on it. I made a kabuki type mask (hard to eat cupcakes and candy in) and painted it to look like her. It did.

I have a polaroid.

[Osage Orange]

Dadgum..I’m leaving while I still have a skin........

[floriduh voter]

Free Republic has the best running archive on Terri. All one has to do is put Terri Schiavo in the search and see what happens. Anti-Euthanasia is a recognized category at Free Republic. Awareness on how to protect your family and friends is why we are still at it.

Prevent forced exits, it's that simple. Dr. Kevorkian comes to mind. Anyone a fan of his? He's the future if we don't pay attention.

[bjs1779]

Dadgum..I’m leaving while I still have a skin........

I don't mind if you voice your views. Maybe that is what you are afraid to do?

[floriduh voter]

Post 132 re: the cards.