Posted on 03/14/2006 11:28:51 AM PST by KevinNuPac
Terri's Day challenges the nation to unify
Kevin Fobbs
March 13, 2006
Terri's Day — A Celebration of the Culture of Life honoring Terri Schiavo with a day of remembrance challenges each and every one of us to stop for a moment and ask ourselves a question, do we respect ourselves, our families, our lives?
And if we are faced with the question of the possible certainty of death, does anyone truly know, or even have the faintest clue about, our wishes? That is the greatest good, the greatest legacy that Terri Schiavo's death and an annual "Terri's Day" can bring to our lives and to the celebration of the Culture of Life.
On March 18th, we as a nation will begin to grieve again, to reach into our hearts and feel with our collective national spirit what the Schindler family felt last year at this time as each moment since Terri was disconnected from the feeding lifeline, the moments crept by like hours and hours like days.
All of us have felt in some way that pain — even if it were only in the privacy of our loved one's home, hospital room, hospice or perhaps talking with an attorney and doctor attempting to make sense out of some fleeting comments made in a conversation perhaps voiced ten, twelve or even two decades earlier — not necessarily an expression of her true feeling about an end-of-life decision but merely an incidental musing in a long-forgotten side conversation.
For at least one million Americans, and quite possibly a whole lot more, this is an opportunity to voice an opinion through a pledge supporting a resolution in each state called "Terri's Day — A Celebration of the Culture of Life." Each and every person who cares that your family, your spouse, your mother, your father, your sister or brother understands with clarity what you wish the end of life for you to be, with dignity and certainty should sign the online pledge at www.kevinfobbs.com and take the additional step to sign a Living Will — or as they call it at www.terrisfight.org, the Will to Live.
Some have asked why Americans should care about an annual Terri's Day. It is quite simple, we tend to keep turning the page on the Culture of Life because we feel it does not affect us. We tend to believe that seemingly universal belief that those who are handicapped, those who are not quite living a "perfect" life or by contemporary notion "ideal" then those lives are possibly disposable, marginal, not relevant, and part of the Culture of Death which embraces a "disposable society."
But life and our values for the Culture of Life are not disposable. Think about the young people today who would rather hurt themselves or even take their own lives rather than feel "imperfect" or the elderly person whose family is told by an insensitive health care professional while the stricken person struggles to cling to life, "she would be better off in another place," — just let her die, disconnect her from life, because her quality of life is not up to "contemporary standards. "
Why does celebrating the Culture of Life in Michigan become so essential for all of us in America? It is important for several reasons. Dr. Jack Kervorkian, also known as "Doctor Death" helped launch first in Michigan and then the nation the notion of the death culture. Secondly, and equally as important, at the May 12 event — just two days before Mother's Day — there will also be a "Mary's Moms" celebration of those women and mothers who have met challenges in standing up for some aspect of the Culture of Life.
This past weekend I sat at my cousin's funeral — or going home celebration, which more accurately describes it — thinking about the dearly departed and how she packed so much caring for others into her life even as she struggled with illness and advancing age. She was a wonderful woman who had lived through many, many challenges in her life, but in her 73 years she had met these challenges with dignity and had conveyed to her family when would be the right time to allow her to pass away.
Her daughter, who is a minister, spoke to the packed church about the times when, with all of her pain and then a stroke, the doctors had informed them that perhaps it was better to let her go. Yet that was three years ago that that occurred, and if the family had listened to the doctors and refused to see how she fought back and not only recovered but went back to volunteering at the church to feed and clothe the homeless. The medical professionals didn't care about an elderly lady who was on dialysis, but the family did and they knew better. Patricia lived three more years — years her extensive extended family considered "a gift from God."
So isn't part of the lesson of Terri's legacy and Terri's Day for families and loved ones to have a meaningful conversation with their family and to have the written document on hand as well that conveys the wishes clearly and concisely? You betcha.
As I sat in the church I thought of all of the families across the nation and the world who were sitting at their loved one's bedsides — or even standing outside of a hospital emergency room — overwhelmed with emotion, torn by what may be days of conflicting anguished decisions. I thought again of how out of death we may have the certainty of life. Terri's death reminded the nation that yes a state can and will starve you to death, and your family may be rendered helpless as you watch your loved one's precious life forces drain slowly away.
By signing the online pledge at www.kevinfobbs.com or going to www.terrisfight.org, you can learn about how to encourage your state legislature to establish March 31st as an official Terri's Day. Hold a Culture of Life Home Party or meet-and-greet to sign pledges, share ideas and support The Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation as well as Culture of Life activities and events in your community or around the nation. Between now and March 31st you can make a dramatic difference for yourself, your family and for the nation. Stand up for the Culture of Life because one person, one life, one family can and does make a difference in America. Make the difference and be the difference today. America...The countdown for the Culture of Life has begun.
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Kevin Fobbs is President of National Urban Policy Action Council (NuPac), a non-partisan civic and citizen-action organization that focuses on taking the politics out of policy to secure urban America's future one neighborhood, one city, and one person at a time. View NuPac on the web at www.nupac.info. Kevin Fobbs is a regular contributing columnist for the Detroit News. He is also the daily host of The Kevin Fobbs Show on News Talk WDTK - 1400 AM in Detroit. Listen to The Kevin Fobbs Show online at www.wdtkam.com daily 2-3 p.m., and call in toll-free nationwide to make your opinion count at 800-923-WDTK(9385) © Copyright 2006 by Kevin Fobbs http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/fobbs/060313
He parlayed a murder from loser status to McMansions. Amazing.
FOX NEWS ALERT - DAYSIDE WITH JULIETTE HUDDY AND THAT MIKE GUY WILL BE ON AFTER A COMMERCIAL BREAK with TERRI'S BLOOD RELATIVES. TUNE IN......
Fox News Dayside now: Bob Schindler, Sr. is speaking.
Cap Weinberger died today too.
FOX NEWS ALERT - DAYSIDE WITH JULIETTE HUDDY AND THAT MIKE GUY WILL BE ON AFTER A COMMERCIAL BREAK with TERRI'S BLOOD RELATIVES. TUNE IN......
(Thanks for the heads up, floriduh voter)
Please FReepmail me if you want on or off my FoxFan list. *Warning: This can be a high-volume ping list at times.
I just saw u on tv. May I have your autograph?
Isn't Barbara Walters also the dimwit who chased after Monica of the Clinton scandal and cuddled up the Amy Grossberg(?), the baby killer who got a slap on the wrist from yet another at best incompetent judge?
Shhhhhh
Was glad to watch that one. Seems they were very fair in presenting the story and the Schindlers were very gracious.
This forum on Terri is very interesting.
http://www.topix.net/forum/news/terri-schiavo/T9OBAMNU6K4LGI9MU
I just found out that Jodi was already married when she met MS and dropped her husband like a rock. It has been alleged that Jodi was a typical bar fly.
Psst. It's even more fun for guys :-)
The Schindlers exemplify grace and last year grace under fire.
Nah. Chump change.
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (KJV Mark 8:36)
Where? Where? I wanna see too. Show us which one.
Earlier up thread, a poster mentioned that the cops spent roughly 2 2.5 hours investigating the "incident". Right or wrong, if there is a male in a woman's life, he is the first suspect. This just doesn't make any sense to me, unless MS was friendly with the officers that showed up. If there is a felon waiting to be made, cops will turn over every rock to secure another guest for their system. Why not Mikey? Granted, Judge Greer is at best a senile old fool, but what about the rest of them? How many red flags have to be waved before one of them bought a clue? As you and everyone knows, I was a court appointed conservator. I had to account for everything. Everything I did was scrutinized, and the paperwork was a nightmare. Mikey broke damn near every rule in the book. Just unreal.
I lost my faith in law enforcement, and then the court system many years ago. I was raised to have respect for these entities, but I just can't do it anymore. They are to be feared rather than sought out for protection or justice.
Our elected officials are no better. Our Constitution has been systematically gutted. Have you seen what Jim Robinson posted a couple of days ago? The McInsane-Feingold Act directly affects the operation of websites such as Free Republic. So much for free speech.
MS can't keep a straight story in his head. Where's Columbo when you need him? Even Mark Furhman wrote a book after investigation Terri's murder, and it went nowhere. Matt Lauer reports and lets the audience decide. Mikey will hang himself in the court of public opinion, but will most likely get justice when he meets his Maker, not on this earth.
The hatred and lies directed at the Schindler family are appalling. By letting MS have his moment in the spotlight, others can see him for what he is.
I don't know what to say about Jodi. She's an attractive woman, so does she have low self esteem? Has MS manipulated her? Is she just as evil as he is? You'd think having children would somehow implant caring and compassion into your psyche, but I guess not. When their children get old enough, what are Mom and Dad going to say to explain their actions? The kids will hear about Terri. Poor things : (
Barfly is how I react when I listen to Michael.
Arrived 6:33 a.m. Closed file 9:55 a.m. Two hours, twenty-two minutes.
"Nothing here, Chief, just some dame's body. We're on our way back to the station."
I spell it barfy,
What happened to tourist Ted Stith in Florida?
Read
http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/020106StithDies.html
3:00pm ET (2:00pm Central) on TBN (Trinity Broadcasting Network); and
11:00pm ET (10:00pm Central) on the Family Channel (aka ABC/Family).
It's the first ten minutes of the program, and it's a very well-done and powerful feature.
(And oh yeah... can someone tell Dominique she needs to watch it?)
Also remember the Schindlers are supposed to be on Catherine Crier Live on CourtTV this afternoon at 5:00pm ET (4:00pm Central). Should be, ummmm... interesting!
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