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Open Letter to Gov Jeb Bush + Pix from Terri Schiavo's Vigil
Envoy Magazine Blog ^ | October 19, 2003 | Pete Vere

Posted on 10/19/2003 8:02:16 AM PDT by NYer

Dear Governor Bush:

As members of the Catholic media, we beg you, in the name of our Lord Jesus, to intervene in the case of Terry Schiavo, and, by extension, in the lives of the millions of persons with special needs in Florida and throughout our country whose lives will be greatly endangered if Ms. Schiavo is left to die, or, more accurately, murdered through the present withdrawal of food and water.

The judge in this case is acting on a remarkable doctrine: That food and water are medicines which may be granted or withheld based on a judicial order. What legal or moral authority gives anyone the right to withhold food and water from an innocent person? Starvation is a most painful and difficult death. If one were to propose it as a method of execution for death row prisoners, it would be instantly opposed by society under the Constitution's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. If starvation is cruel and unusual punishment, it should not have the imprimatur of the State of Florida for any innocent citizen.

We admire your seeking the assistance of the St. Thomas More Society concerning what is legally just. And we are strengthened in our hearts by their response that, at the very least, you have the authority and the duty to protect her life and to conduct a proper and thorough investigation. We appreciate the difficulty of this matter and that the right course of action before God may not be the popular one in today's culture.

The moral and just path, however, is clear to us who believe that human life is God's to give and His alone to take. History has shown the truth of the statement,  The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.  We would go a step further in saying that those who have the power to do good, and yet do nothing, participate in the triumph of evil, whether or not their withholding of the good seeks or intends such evil.

It may be that our Lord has put you into office, like Queen Esther of old,  for such a time as this . The God who saved Esther, and through her, the people of God, will not abandon you, dear Governor. He is faithful. May our Lord Jesus Christ be your comfort and guide in this urgent hour, and may you be His instrument to save the life of one of His  little ones , and through her, the dignity of every soul made in His image.

With gratitude and prayer,

Rosalind Moss,
Catholic Author and Speaker
 
Father Richard John Neuhaus
Editor in Chief, FIRST THINGS
The Institute on Religion and Public Life

Pete Vere, Editor
The Alhambran Magazine

Mark Shea
Catholic Author and Speaker

Philip F. Lawler
Editor, Catholic World Report and Catholic World News

Carl Olson
Editor, Envoy Magazine

John Pacheco
Catholic Author and Speaker

Domenico Bettinelli, Jr
Managing Editor, Catholic World Report magazine

Amy Welborn
Columnist, Our Sunday Visitor

Martin K. Barrack
Catholic Author and Speaker

David Pearson
Features Editor, National Catholic Register

Mike Mohr
Chairman, St. Bernadette Soubirous Chapter of Catholics United for Faith

Dave Armstrong
Catholic Author and Speaker

Gerald Korson
Editor, Our Sunday Visitor

Steve Ray
Catholic Author and Television Host

Rod Bennett 
Editor, WONDER Magazine

Matt C. Abbott
Columnist, the Wanderer

Tim Drake
Staff Writer, National Catholic Register

Dr. Paul Thigpen
Executive Director, The Stella Maris Center for Faith and Culture

Mary Kochan,
Contributing Editor, Catholic Exchange

Sandra Miesel
Catholic Journalist

David Moss
President, Association of Hebrew Catholics

Maureen and Robert Wittmann
Catholic authors and speakers

Steve Kellmeyer
Bridegroom Press

Mike Aquilina
Vice President, St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology

Mark Brumley
Catholic Author

Greg Popcak
Catholic Author and Radio Host

Patty Bonds
Catholic Author and Speaker

Jeff Cavins
Catholic Radio and Television Host

Fr. Joseph F. Wilson
Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; US: Florida
KEYWORDS: catholiclist; schiavo; schindler; terri; terrischiavo; vigil
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To: Budge
he doesn't want Terri to survive, because then, when she IS able to vocalize, she could tell how he strangled her and put her in the condition she is now in.

That is purely hypothetical. On the other hand, it's not hypothetical to suggest that if, under the care of a new guardian, she were given therapy and showed any significant improvement, her guardian would be able to file a really big lawsuit on her behalf against Felos and Schiavo for having willfully withheld the therapy that was supposed to be paid for by the trust fund.

Even if her initial collapse was entirely accidental, Schiavo and Felos would still be in big trouble if Terri ever made any sort of recovery.

181 posted on 10/19/2003 3:26:05 PM PDT by supercat (Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
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To: sfRummygirl
I feel as you do. Maybe it's time to give the Constitution Party another look.
182 posted on 10/19/2003 3:31:08 PM PDT by Ferret Fawcet ("A wise man's heart inclines him toward the Right, but a fool's heart...to the Left" ~Ecc. 10:2)
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To: Thorondir
Thanks for the song lyrics. I am so disappointed in Jeb Bush!! I am so disappointed in the medical profession. I can't believe this is happening. An innocent human being being starved to death and this is okay with many Americans. Those who are okay with this are the same ones who think it's okay to kill unborn babies, I guess. Lord have mercy on us.
183 posted on 10/19/2003 3:34:59 PM PDT by Saundra Duffy (For victory & freedom!!!)
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To: Drango
Many FReepers won't like the answer. 'Cause when I see the videos of Terri I have two reactions. First, I pray for Terri. Second, I pray that if I was ever in that condition, my wife would do everything she could to pull the plug. I can't speak for Terri, but as for me, I would want to go and be with my God rather than living a hell on earth.

Terri's HINO has actively prevented her from receiving any sort of therapy. The fact is that there's no way we can know, or will ever be able to know, what Terri's true condition was or to what extent she might have improved with therapy.

There are people alive today who were in apparently-worse shape than Terri, but who have recovered enough to lead somewhat normal lives. One of my relatives was in a head-on collision with a jack-knifed semi and was comatose for well over a month, but she now lives at home with her husband.

Had therapy been tried and proven unsuccessful, then your point of view might not be unreasonable. But to suggest that someone should be killed before making any effort at rehabilitation after an accidental incident(*) is just plain wrong.

(*) As distinct from an incident caused by an persistent underlying medical condition. If someone suffers cardiac arrest as a result of a rapidly spreading cancer, restarting their heart won't do much good because the underlying cause for its stopping will still be present. In the case of someone whose heart stops as a result of massive trauma, restarting the heart may allow it to function for many more years if the trauma is fixed.

184 posted on 10/19/2003 3:36:33 PM PDT by supercat (Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
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To: Saundra Duffy
If Jeb fails to grow a pair and stop this ugly mrder, I will donate money to ANYONE who runs against him. I promise.
185 posted on 10/19/2003 3:38:16 PM PDT by Thorondir (iSLAM is a disease begging for a cure.)
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To: sweetliberty
I can't believe that piece either. If anything, the Bush bros are mourning this situation like we are. I think they're good men and they understand the pain this is causing everyone who loves Terri.

My complaint is the fact that neither of them (apparently) has the guts to step in and call a halt to this inhumane practice. It's legalized murder!
186 posted on 10/19/2003 3:39:22 PM PDT by Humidston (Do not remove this tag under penalty of law)
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To: LaraCroft
That would certainly eliminate this thread!
187 posted on 10/19/2003 3:42:33 PM PDT by verity
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To: MagnoliaMS
I didn't see the Reader's Digest, but by any chance was Judge Lenderman the one from Pinellas? He's Greer's bench buddy, with a sister on the Board of Directors at the Hospice!
188 posted on 10/19/2003 3:46:07 PM PDT by Ohioan from Florida
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To: Saundra Duffy
Amen!
189 posted on 10/19/2003 3:48:55 PM PDT by Humidston (Do not remove this tag under penalty of law)
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To: verity
Your post was crass and unwarranted!
190 posted on 10/19/2003 3:49:22 PM PDT by Thorondir (iSLAM is a disease begging for a cure.)
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To: Thorondir
Which post!
191 posted on 10/19/2003 3:52:26 PM PDT by verity
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To: NYer
From Pinellas and Pasco County Medical Examiner's Office:
The cause of death on the death certificate must be sufficient to: ... (3) identify the underlying or proximate cause of death - the "due to" disease or injury responsible for initiating the lethal sequence of events.
From everything Schiavo, Felos, and Greer have been saying, the initiating event would be Terri's fall, right? So what caused Terri's fall?
192 posted on 10/19/2003 3:53:12 PM PDT by supercat (Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
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To: Salvation; isrul; honeygrl; FR_addict; oceanperch; ckca; victim soul; american colleen; ...
I believe that this case will become for euthenasia what Roe v. Wade became for abortion.

Yes ... it has already been legalized in the Netherlands. As you so wisely pointed out, they come 'first' for the mentally disabled, then move on to the next group. Notice, no one in the media has connected the dots between a woman who can breathe but requires nourishment via a feeding tube, and Christopher Reeve who could not exist for more than a few minutes without his ventilator. Or how about Stephen Hawking? What separates Terri Schiavo from them? Where is the outcry from these advocates for the disabled .... hmmmm????


Stephen Hawking - Physicist
requires an individual to interpret his 'grunts'
Granted Reprieve to live


Christopher Reeve - (former) Actor
Advocates using stem cells from aborted fetuses to research cures for spinal cord injuries.
Granted Reprieve to live life.


Terri Schindler Schiavo - Wife
Terri is not on a respirator or any artificial life support.
Condemned to Death by Starvation

193 posted on 10/19/2003 3:54:11 PM PDT by NYer ("Close your ears to the whisperings of hell and bravely oppose its onslaughts." ---St Clare Assisi)
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To: NYer
If I were Michael Schiavo's girlfriend, I would be having 2nd thoughts about continuing any relationship with him. If he can do this to his first wife, what's in store for #2.

If she's smart, she'll take her child, skip town, and send an anonymous message to Michael Schiavo suggesting that if he wants her to keep quiet he should wire $500,000 to a certain offshore bank account.

194 posted on 10/19/2003 3:57:58 PM PDT by supercat (Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
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To: verity
Post number 11. How hard is that to figure out? Sheesh!
195 posted on 10/19/2003 4:00:52 PM PDT by Thorondir (iSLAM is a disease begging for a cure.)
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To: Salvation
I believe that this case will become for euthenasia what Roe v. Wade became for abortion.

Precedent has already been set. The only thing that makes this unique is that Terri has refused to die off like she was supposed to. Therefore, if this case has any effect, I predict it will be to wake up a lot of people to the lies and deceptions to which the pro-death forces are willing to stoop. And if that happens, even if Terri doesn't last the week, her 13-year struggle for survival against Schiavo's tortures--which she could probably have passed away from if she'd wanted--will not have been in vain.

196 posted on 10/19/2003 4:03:16 PM PDT by supercat (Why is it that the more "gun safety" laws are passed, the less safe my guns seem?)
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To: NYer
I have been making a point of talking to people who are not connected to the internet about this case and I have yet to run across a single one who knew any particulars about the case....just that Terri was either vegetative or in a coma, both completely untrue.
197 posted on 10/19/2003 4:13:03 PM PDT by sweetliberty ("Having the right to do a thing is not at all the same thing as being right in doing it.")
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To: Ferret Fawcet
so why are they not covering this???

My guess is because the majority of the mainstream media believe in and help promote "euthanasia." While Terri's case does have some elements for a debate on euthanasia, it's not quite right and could turn out to be detrimental to the "right to die/culture of death" agenda, if you know what I mean.

<><

198 posted on 10/19/2003 4:14:06 PM PDT by viaveritasvita
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To: Ohioan from Florida
I really don't remember the name, it was someone's else RD that I was reading. But I'll go to their (rd.com) site and see if it's by chance on-line.
199 posted on 10/19/2003 4:15:45 PM PDT by MagnoliaMS
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To: sfRummygirl; Ragtime Cowgirl; sweetliberty
Meant to bump you to this post.
200 posted on 10/19/2003 4:17:10 PM PDT by NYer ("Close your ears to the whisperings of hell and bravely oppose its onslaughts." ---St Clare Assisi)
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