Cartoonist Tony Auth's latest outrage (Terri Shiavo)

The Philadelphia Inquirer ^ | Oct. 23, 2003 | Tony Auth

[Frank_Discussion]

Are you freaking deaf? There is testimony that her higher brain has NOT died, and that is in court records. Wake up!

Many Doctors have the "god complex" and make sweeping judgments, the nurses often know a lot more about their patient than the docs do, as they spend a lot more time with them and provide the actual Care with a capital "C". A number of Terri's nurses have testified that she responds intelligently to stimuli and that she has particular preferences in her environment.

She has not retreated into her reptile brain.

[reformed_democrat]

Sorry, I see no grand purpose in Terri's current miserable state.

Of course you don't. No one knows the Mind of God.

Consider this -- Terri Schiavo's purpose may be to remind us of the sanctity of life. The woman was without food or water for over 155 hours, yet she survived. For all we know, she may be able to survive without the feeding tube once she's able to swallow.

During her brief rehabilitation and therapy when the "accident" first occurred, she was able to swallow on her own. Then Michael Schaivo removed her to the hospice to die.

Without therapy, she's lost the ability to maintain herself. Is that reason enough to starve her to death? Or is that a reason to attempt rehabilitation once again to see if she can retain the ability to feed herself.

[Gunslingr3]

If you believe your own arguement why are you still around to ask this question a second time?

I prefer my life. The question was whether someone would want Terri's life, or the afterlife.

[stevio]

This must be an extremely hard thing for all involved to deal with. But come on, you can't starve her to death. No one would do that to a dog.

[Gunslingr3]

A number of Terri's nurses have testified that she responds intelligently to stimuli and that she has particular preferences in her environment. She has not retreated into her reptile brain.

A roach prefers darkness to light. Is that the function of a higher brain?

[Frank_Discussion]

She's suffered autonomic damage that affects her abilty to swallow. For all we know, she wants an effing cheeseburger and fries, with a beer to wash it down, if only she could learn to do it again. What's your point?

[BJungNan]

I don't find the first one too shocking. It can be looked at a couple of ways.

On the second, the cartoon simply is not representative of the situation. If one or two of the people inside the fence were throwing bombs into a crowd of people on the other side of the fence, then it would be accurate.

Don't suspect, though, that the cartoonist was trying to be accurate.

[Rick.Donaldson]

(setting aside entirely the point that a feeding tube inserted into the stomach is a mechanical delivery of food) Why is she fed in this manner? Is it because she can't think so much as to swallow instead of breath food?

A feeding tube is not a machine. It is a method in which you can get food into a person who isn't able to eat on their own. Out of the six children my wife and I had, and seven grandchildren, more than one of them had feeding tubes at one time or another due to the genetic defect I mentioned. (Hirshsprungs Disease, look it up if you're so inclined and you actually feel like educating yourself on something besides your own 'preferences'.)

In all the cases, the children would have died without the tubes. All of them except one are grown adults, and one is still a little boy of three. All of them are thinking, intelligent people that otherwise without the tube would have died.

there is no "machine" that feeds them, the food is put into the tube by other people. It is not a "life support system" in the classical sense. It is merely a method to introduce sustenance. Unlike devices which ARE called "life support" which are machines like dialysis machines (cleans the blood supply, otherwise they would die, because their kidneys arent working), respiration machines (which keep your muscles working by forcing your diaphram and lungs to function, thereby introducing oxygen).... Your argument is based soley on your own personal preference to let someone die whom you deem "unresponsive". This is EXACTLY why the legislature got involved. Several "judges", who themselves are not doctors are weighing a situation that simply is incomprehesible to most of us and making a decision to kill someone. This is precisely what these judges did. They sentenced an innocent woman to death out of pure, unadulterated ignorance. Same as you're doing.

[Gunslingr3]

How do YOU know she won't? Are you a doctor? And even if you ARE a doctor, how do you KNOW? You do NOT KNOW. Her life is probably not very good.

Probably? That's profound, in that it highlights a difference between us over what life is. For you, it is enough to turn food into waste. I expect a little more 'living' to my life.

You are ignorant of several things (as you've already shown here today) including the fact that she isn't on "life support"

You're getting extremely agitated, which is fine, but you're attributing things to me I have not said, which isn't.

[Hildy]

I've been torn by this story since day 1. I believe, for whatever reason, Terri is alive today because she is meant to be alive. She sure has put up some fight. HOWEVER, I do not believe there is one person in this forum who, if asked whether they'd want to live like Terri is living, would say yes and really mean it. And I'm not talking about what it means for them, but most people don't want to put family and friends through it. The fact is that most of the time you are being taken care of by strangers who really don't care about you. And what about when her parents are gone? This is a real, real tough one.

[Frank_Discussion]

Yeah, but even human babies crap on themselves and keep playing in it until someone teaches them it's nasty and unsanitary. When Terri defecates on herself, she DEFINTELY doesn't like it and tries to distance herself from it. It takes higher brain function to demonstrate that distinction.

I see you still haven't realy read the testimony. You're nothing but a hack.

[Saundra Duffy]

I guess these folks think that it was more humane to gas the Jews rather than to let them starve to death.

[eyespysomething]

I wouldn't want to "live" like that. She isn't going to recover. They should allow her to move on. I came about this in the last few days after I got over my emotional response. But I do have a problem with the whole starvation/dehydration method of killing her, oops I mean allowing her to die, what with all the organ failure. I am sorry we are more humane to animals and murderers than people such as Terry Schiavo.

I suggest everyone get a living will, talk to your family and loved ones about what you want if you shoudl be in the same situation. And have them talk about what they want. Don't make anyone a national news story.

A good place to start.

[Gunslingr3]

RETARDS ARE COCKROACHES. SINCERELY, GUNSLINGR3

This is you best? To not discuss, but instead attribute statements to me falsely? When did FreeRepublic turn into a screaming match?

[Gunslingr3]

I see you still haven't realy read the testimony. You're nothing but a hack.

Perhaps you could post a link to it (constructive) instead of insult me (unconstructive).

[Long Cut]

"When did FreeRepublic turn into a screaming match?"

Haven't spent much time on the "Terri" threads, have you?

Emotionally-charged, hyperbolic rhetoric is the rule.

[phil1750]

You have overlooked the fact that her husband has not allowed any re-hab at all. Maybe this is because he doesn't want her to get any better. He already has a baby with his new girlfriend and another one on the way.

[Gunslingr3]

Emotionally-charged, hyperbolic rhetoric is the rule.

It exists in more than just the Terri threads. Try bringing up the massive surges in government spending, etc.

[Manic_Episode]

You did indeed compare Terris brain functions to a roach in post #45