Posted on 03/25/2005 5:21:18 AM PST by mhking
My position on the Schiavo matter has vascilated back and forth over the past few days as I've agonized over the matter.
Should she be given a chance at life? If so, what kind of life are we talking about? Is there a chance at rehabilitation? Is Michael Schiavo an evil S.O.B., or is he simply a heart-broken man?
Conversely, is she truly in a vegetative state? A virtual zombie with eyes open, and nothing inside? Are her parents and family in denial about her pain and suffering? Are the evangelicals coming to her aid getting so worked up that they are looking past the true nature of this situation?
Difficult questions these. Who wins? Who loses?
There is no winner here. This situation is heartbreaking at the core. A vibrant woman struck down in the prime of her life. A myriad of doctors, most of whom have indicated that much of her brain tissue has deteriorated and possibly even liquified inside her skull. CAT scans that support that diagnosis.
Conversely, we see her eyes focusing on a balloon, we see her apparently responding to people entering her limited field of vision.
What do we believe?
After 22 different judges have agonized over this, they all have come to the same decision: that her husband has the right to make that agonizing decision.
Talk show host Neil Boortz has taken the stance that Terri Schiavo has earned her place in heaven, and that we, as a people, should let her go home.
Do you believe in Gods promise of everlasting life? Do you believe that the reward for a life well spent on this earth is a life with God in heaven after you die? If you do, then a few more questions if you will.Jesus awaits Terri Schiavo at the gates of heaven with open arms. He will grant her eternal rest. He loves all, no matter which side of this sad story the people are on.Do you believe that the human soul can make the transition to everlasting life while the human body that carried that soul through life clings to life on this earth? If you do, then you must surely believe that Terri Schiavo has earned and is already enjoying her reward in heaven. That being the case, why is it so important to you that the now-unneeded body of Terri Schiavo is kept alive?
But perhaps you believe, as I do, that the human soul is so connected to and integrated with its earthly body that any transition will not be made until that body ceases functioning -- until death occurs.. That being the case, why do you so ardently desire that the soul of Terri Schiavo spend five, ten, perhaps 30 years or more trapped in a useless and non-functioning body, unable to move on to whatever reward awaits her? Isnt 15 years enough?
Where do your concerns truly lie, with the eternal soul of Terri Schiavo, or with her earthly body?
Let her go home. We can only commend her spirit among the angels for the journey.
Sadly, those who damn the judges and politicians and those of us who wish her spirit to move on are going to fracture the fragile fabric of the conservative wing of the GOP. In their zeal to ignore the rule of law and the Constitutional process, they are sliding down the slippery slope of anarchy toward mob rule.
This is a land of laws, not men. And the political problems that are surfacing -- on both sides -- point toward the deterioration of our constitutional republic. Are you ready for that? Are you ready for that will mean in the future?
I weep for Terri Schiavo today. But I fear for more tears in our future, thanks to those who would wad up the Constitutional protections and freedoms wrought by the notion of ignoring the rule of law, simply because those in power didn't get their way.
Hey watch it, talk like that could get you kicked out of the big tent.
No, YOU'RE pathetic and have no understanding whatsoever as to what this is about .
This is not simply a case of somebody being disabled.
This is a about a woman who's brain Doctors say has been liquified and CAN NEVER return to normal.
This is horrific. And she has been forced to exist in this state for 15 years.
People can disagree over how to deal with this, but the fact is hundreds of people in her case are LET GO every day and people consider it merciful.
Let's not be too quick to condemn.
Out of context and refers to her parents statements. King interrupted midsentence and never let Schiavo finish the statement.
If God wants to take Terri home, He can accomplish that in a nanosecond (stroke, heart attack or whatever) and no human intervention could deny Him the ability to do so. Divine intervention of that sort is an every day affair. Whatever God's plans may be, they have to be better than ours.
That having been said, there can be NO EXCUSE for dehydrating anyone to death. This is nothing less than premeditated murder of Terry Schindler Schiavo, judge or no judge, law or no law, husband or no husband, whatever.
Evil people are people who DO evil things. By any sensible standard, MS is purely evil; Judge Greer and the other judicial collaborators are evil. Whoever thinks this through and comes down on the side of killing Terri by dehydration is doing evil. QED.
It is truly amazing that people seek to be absolved of their evil by the emotionally coerced (can't we all get along? NO, we can't!) empty statements of others solicited on the basis that it is somehow unkind or rude or nosy or whatever to pin the tail on the relevant donkeys.
You may mean well but the judicially protected and encouraged premeditated murder of this woman is NOT a GOOD. It is and EVIL.
Please reconsider your opinion.
Conservatism is not at all fragile. It makes sense. It will recruit five warriors for every waffler it loses. The future is ours. All we have to do is claim it.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church
Euthanasia
2276 Those whose lives are diminished or weakened deserve special respect. Sick or handicapped persons should be helped to lead lives as normal as possible.
2277 Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.
Thus an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator. The error of judgment into which one can fall in good faith does not change the nature of this murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded.
2278 Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal of "over-zealous" treatment. Here one does not will to cause death; one's inability to impede it is merely accepted. The decisions should be made by the patient if he is competent and able or, if not, by those legally entitled to act for the patient, whose reasonable will and legitimate interests must always be respected.
2279 Even if death is thought imminent, the ordinary care owed to a sick person cannot be legitimately interrupted. The use of painkillers to alleviate the sufferings of the dying, even at the risk of shortening their days, can be morally in conformity with human dignity if death is not willed as either an end or a means, but only foreseen and tolerated as inevitable Palliative care is a special form of disinterested charity. As such it should be encouraged.
He will, when His work with Terri and our country is done. I believe that Terri's purpose in life and in her manner of death was decided from the very beginning of time, as all our lives have been. I just hope that there is a silent majority out there who are so appalled at what has been happening that come the 2006 elections, we'll see an increase in prolife election winners.
Courage, everyone. God answers all our prayers...but often not in the way we want them answered.
Soon to be followed by anyone with a mental and/or developmental disability (like my 4 y.o. autistic son). Next are those whose looks are less than perfect (harelip, misshapen limbs, etc.).
Dear independentgrrl,
I've struggled with my weight just about all my life.
Might as well get in line...
sitetest
How did they come to this conclusion? I suppose God must have told you guys that Terri is going to Heaven.
You're welcome. Thanks, Leni!
At this point, because Terri is suffering so much, thanks to those who supported "letting her die in peace," I also hope that the Lord takes her mercifully.
Putting the stark fact aside that this is government sanctioned murder, what's next most unnerving to me is the politicization of this case such that for some it is as much about defending certain people in the Republican party as it is about "defending the law."
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