Good, girl! (she was murdered).
Posted on 08/24/2006 6:50:14 PM PDT by wjersey
THE EYES of the political world will be on us come fall. Pennsylvania is home to the hottest Senate race and three of the most contested House races in the nation. The outcome of the Santorum-Casey, Fitzpatrick-Murphy, Gerlach-Murphy and Weldon-Sestak races could determine control of Congress.
The vulnerability of many GOPers is war-related. But there are also important social issues, notably the attempted intervention in the case of Terri Schiavo.
Some clues on that might be found in Connecticut, which just had a bruising Democratic primary between Joseph Lieberman and Ned Lamont. Not only did they differ on the war, but also the Schiavo case. In fact, Ned Lamont welcomed Michael Shiavo at a statehouse campaign appearance.
"I am a staunch believer in government staying out of private lives... Lieberman believes government should rule lives," Michael Schiavo told me this week.
Michael Schiavo has formed TerriPac, a political fund-raiser, to get involved in races where those who opposed him in the battle over his wife are standing for re-election. He has taken a position in Florida congressional races, its gubernatorial election and two congressional races in Colorado. He has a stump speech that he delivered in Connecticut.
"I bring up points about what they did to myself and Terri, interfering in our decision about end of life. I have points about Bill Frist and Tom DeLay, and comments they made. They never even met Terri, never knew Terri. Rick Santorum, who drove down on the campaign trail to raise money for Terri's hospice, stood outside and made comments and never even met my wife Terri."
Ah, Rick Santorum.
Schiavo's invoking of Santorum's name raises an interesting question: To what extent will he seek to influence the outcome of that and the other hotly contested Pennsylvania races?
"Casey agrees also that government should run your life, should be involved with that. I'll play some role in that race, campaigning and reminding people what both gentlemen did. Both are wrong; neither one of the gentlemen are good for us. We need to find another path."
I asked Sen. Santorum about the prospect of Schiavo campaigning against him.
"He went into Connecticut, and he could go into every single member of the U.S. Senate who was in office the last couple of years and do the same thing because my vote was no different than every other member of the... Senate because it was a unanimous decision...
"So if Michael Schiavo wants to... campaign against every other incumbent U.S. senator, he's free to do so, and that's all I have to say about it."
And what does Schiavo have to say about the congressional races in our area?: "I will be there for anyone who needs my support. If they are good and the believe politics do not play a part in any of our personal or private affairs - I will be there to support them whether they are Democrats or Republicans."
So far, he told me, no one has invited him.
Says political consultant Larry Ceisler: "I am not surprised at all. Michael Schiavo is radioactive. But at the same time, if I was running a campaign against Santorum, I wouldn't mind if he showed up in town, and I'd be snickering in the back of the room."
Michael Schiavo was a Republican until last year, when he joined the Democrats. I wondered what had initially drawn him to the Republican Party given that the GOP standard-bearer interrupted his summer vacation to return to Washington in his PJs just to get involved in the Schiavo case.
"I believed in what they were doing at the time, and I went with it. Now doing what they've done to me, the Republicans started this - the Republicans did this. I don't want to be on that team. They started the fight, not me.
"Whatever your choice is, it is your own personal choice. There should not be another American, another government, telling you that you are wrong. I might have my belief but I have no right to impose it or throw it on somebody else who doesn't believe in what I do."
Apart from the issue that now defines him publicly, the nursing supervisor told me he is "mostly conservative."
"I'm a live-and-let-live guy," he said, which I am sure some will find ironic.
Nothing busy body about that, and nothing emotional about it either. In fact, given your rhetoric and manner of discussing it, it would seem that it is you who are being emotional. Anyhow, from my perspective though, the issue does deal with the reverence and sanctity of life, which is the right that trumps all others...and it does deal with common sense and common decency.
Like I said earlier, perhaps it is just me...and you have every right to your own opinion, as do I.
She's gone now and in a better place...I am sure of that. In the end, there is a tribunal beyond our own that will make the final decision and ruling on the matter.
Good, girl! (she was murdered).
He told Larry King that he didn't know what Terri wanted, but he wanted her to be starved and dehydrated to death.
Yes. These so-called "pro-life" advocates would demand a person's suffering be extended as long as any machine or means could possibly keep them alive. Regardless of their spoken wishes, closest family desires or hopes for recovery.
I am a Christian who believes 100% in the Bible as the Word of God and I would want NONE of these so-called pro-lifers making end of life decisions for me.
Their view of morality is seriously imbalanced.
Smerconish with another liberal spin.
But really conservatives like me were disillusioned by the killing of Terri.
We saw Senator Santorum do the photo op down in Florida.
We saw Congress pass and President Bush sign a law that meant nothing. The courts ignored it like a piece of used toilet paper and had the final say.
And of course the impotence of Governor Jeb Bush who should have taken Judge Greer head on with a state of emergency to deal with saving Terri's life.
The Republicans failed pro-life conservatives like me on this one.
That's the effect of Terri Schiavo's killing. It disillusioned base conservative Republican voters.
It does not strengthen liberal Democrats.
RINO governors can really cause problems. Crist people are deserting him for Gallagher too. I'm not saying in droves but they are coming over to the Gallagher side. The debates are defining moments, imo.
Until this case, it was illegal to remove a feeding tube from any patient who required it. Michael had the government interfere and change the law, to almost make it legal in Terri's case. Not quite legal, but close enough that he could get the government to interfere again, and declare it legal, in spite of clear and convincing evidence to the contrary. And he repeatedly had the government interfere, time and time again, until he got what he wanted. It was always about what he wanted. He even said so. Now, what was that about not wanting the government to interfere?
Suppose, hypothetically, that someone knew that his wife wanted to be sustained, but he also knew that he could save a lot of money by having her fatally dehydrated. Should a person in such case be allowed to have his wife killed?
If not, how would you prevent such a person from killing his wife, other than by providing that any "wish" to be fatally dehydrated must be in writing or other tangible form?
There's a maxim that if you want something to be taken seriously, you should put it in writing. If Terri had been serious about her "wishes", she could have described them in writing. There is no evidence that she ever did so.
If you're worried that people might try to give you food and water against your will, put your wishes in writing and give copies to people you trust. Now what's the problem?
Judicial tyranny snuffed her life out.
Millions of people will never forget what Republicans in Name Only and democrats did to Terri Schiavo.
There is NO STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS for murder and guess what? The GOP is not going to right itself until it owns up to what happened to Terri.
A house divided cannot stand. Throw all the bums in jail and we can move on after the perverse laws of the state of Florida which were written and lobbied for by the Right to Die monsters are SERIOUSLY AMENDED OR DELETED ENTIRELY.
So let me set the record straight from my perspective, just in ccase.
The sanctity of life is paramount in our society, and should be. It is a fundamental pillar upon which our liberty and morality is based.
When there is any doubt, I bel;ieve that we simply must ere on the side of life and ensure that that sanctity is upheld.
I personally believe there was significant doubt regarding all of the issues you raised...suffering, extent of recoverability, and whether and what she had conveyed to others. In the absence of a clear directive, legally or otherwise, and when there is such a blatant conflict of interest...it is clear, at least to me, that extreme caution is callled for.
But that is my opinion, you are free to believe as you wish and I wouldn't think of interjectiong my own beliefs or feelings on your clearly, unambigous, stated wishes when such doubt and conflict do not exist.
If you are a Christian then do you believe in natural death or forced exits? Terri's was a forced exit. She was murdered.
THE PROBLEM IS that according to some on these boards that is murder.
NOTHING says it is OK to make a will directing people "murder" you.
The hypocrisy and intellectual dishonesty on these boards is just astounding.
I never even READ your post much less responded or "projected" ANYTHING regarding your intentions.
All those GOPers couldn't save an innocent woman? Sure they could have. They could have stopped it after one day. Terri thought she'd be getting taken care of shortly after the tube came out. With each passing day, she became more and more afraid. It was despicable.
The Republican Party better right itself because this was not a frozen embryo we're talking about. This was a young adult who had a long life expectancy.
I am for Tom Gallagher because he's pro life. I am not for Charlie Crist because one of his supporters Dave Simmons, Rep. from Longwood, Fl told a group of us the day after Easter that "Terri would be a martyr". That was ONE DAY after the Congress signed the bill to do a new hearing.
Dave Simmons knew Terri would die. He knew the bill from Congress was just window dressing. He also promised that he would look into impeaching Judge Greer. Fat chance of that.
The culture of death has a strong foothold in PINELLAS CTY, FLORIDA and too many GOP politicians bought into it hook, line and sinker.
There are fat cat republicans and liberal kooks who are making big bucks from the death industry. Maybe we should call them BIG DEATH because that's how serious they are. It is an industry.
He's still a judge but he belongs in jail.
http://www.judgegeorgegreer.com (a good web site with lots of local color)
Don't put a pretense of moral superiority to me.
Nonsense. I know what Terri's true condition was and you should not assume that she was suffering.
Agreed. Michael Smerconish, one of Arlen Specter's best friends and the man who bragged about having dinner and a Cigar with Fidel Castro (I can't imagine any conservative making that mistake).
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