Terri Schiavo's Family Continues Effort to Block Jack Kevorkian UF Speech

Life News ^ | 9/3/07 | Steven Ertelt

[wagglebee]

Gainesville, FL (LifeNews.com) -- The family of Terri Schiavo is continuing its efforts to block a speech by Jack Kevorkian scheduled for the middle of next month. The speech would be the first for the former assisted suicide crusader following his release from prison for killing a disabled man and showing the death on national television.

Kevorkian would speak to students at the University of Florida on October 11 and receive $50,000 for the talk, as long as his parole officers approve the trip.

The family of Terri Schiavo has been leading an effort to stop the speech by gathering petitions from concerned citizens so Kevorkian doesn't get a platform in their home state.

They don't want the former pathologist telling students that people with disabilities should be killed, like their sister, rather than receiving appropriate medical treatment or rehabilitative care.

Bobby Schindler, Terri's brother, told LifeNews.com, "We have collected thousands of petitions (and they are still coming in) to deliver to the Office of the President of the University of Florida."

"We're demanding the University rescind its offer to pay $50,000 for Kevorkian to address the students," he added.

"Despite the ongoing message of death spreading through our society and those, like Jack Kevorkian, who attempt to justify killing the most vulnerable among us, we are committed to fight against this death-obsessed culture and spread Terri's legacy of life, hope and love," Schindler explained.

He said there is still time for pro-life people and others worried about Kevorkian's pro-assisted suicide message to sign a petition asking the University of Florida to cancel the speech.

The petition can be found at the Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation web site.

ACTION: You can also contact the University of Florida President J. Bernard Machen at 352-392-1311 or president@ufl.edu.

[Mr. Silverback]

BTW...we are moralistic Morons when it comes to treating pain. On the one hand we criminalize docs who try to help dying kill people and on the other hand we yap about how ‘terminal people can be helped with their pain.” Uh, there you go...more hypocrisy.

There, fixed it for you. Also, I've noticed that most assisted suicide advocates pretend we live in a world where palliative care is non-existent, and where there is no moral distinction between letting death happen and making the doctor a killer.

[hodaka]

Bobby Schindler has the right to protest, Jack also has the right to make a speech, and make a living. I believe that if someone is dying of a incurable disease, and is in sever pain, that they have the right to end their life. I was in a restaurant the other day and saw a person with Lou Gehrig's disease. The guy could not do anything except blink and say a few words. I would rather be dead then in that guys situation.

[Mr. Silverback]

But our society ties doctors hands about pain treatment so it pushes people into the euthenasia camp.

Ex-hippie, you are ill-informed and may even have been lied to.

My wife, an RN who often works with dying patients, says the following to you:

"It is nearly impossible in the current medical environment for a terminal patient to be suffering because a doctor is unable to or afraid to prescribe the medication they need. The only time I see patients in unnecessary pain is when family members directing their care believe that we are using the pain meds to 'control' the patient and make their care easier on us. Otherwise, if I call the doctor and tell them the current med level isn't controlling the patient's pain, they will prescribe more or different meds, period. In the rare cases where we have a crappy doctor who won't do so I can refer the matter to my nursing supervisor, who refers it to the doctor's chief, and the problem will get solved. The patient in agony because of government controls or a lack of legalized assisted suicide is simply not a factor in real-world care."

[Mr. Silverback]

Sometimes palliative care involves increased dosage of pain medication.

See post 143. Sorry I forgot to include you.

[Mr. Silverback]

I would rather be dead then in that guys situation.

Then by all means, let's remake our society. See post 139, it's for you too.

[hodaka]

Sorry, but I would rather have my family see me peacefully brought to an end, then having them find my head blown off with a shotgun as you suggested.

[Mr. Silverback]

Sorry, but I would rather have my family see me peacefully brought to an end, then having them find my head blown off with a shotgun as you suggested.

Well, I would rather we didn't change the legal and medical system so that we're giving non compis mentis individuals the power to make momentous and irreversible decisions. I will not have people destroy my freedoms so they can have the delusion that they are guaranteed a dignified death. The only dignity in death is to face it bravely.

[8mmMauser]

Pinged from Terri Dailies

8mm

[ReignOfError]

Can we agree upon the following?

- As long as Kevorkian is a free citizen not subject to legal sanctions, not imprisoned nor under probation supervision, he is free to speak as he wishes. Same as anyone else who enjoys the first-amendment protection of free speech. Same as you or I.

- Any organization is free to choose to pay him to speak, or to choose not to. Same 1A protection. If the speaker fees are paid with taxpayer funds, then there if a good argument hat any Florida taxpayer has grounds to argue against.

- The Schindler family has at least as many free-speech rights as Kevorkian has. Kevorkian has a right to voice his opinion, and the Schnindlers have a right to voice theirs. Any organization has a right to book him to speak, and anyone has a right to tell them they shouldn’t.

So this is not a debate about rights. It is a debate about choices. Some group of people chose to book Kevorkian, and some other folks oppose that. There is no travesty here. This is the system working as it’s supposed to.

Independent of the above, I will note that Kevorkian is famous for helping people die — or killing people, if you prefer — who stated, clearly, that they wanted to die.That is is a different matter from people who were not able to form or express an intent. People like, for example, Terri Schiavo.

My understanding is that Kevorkian acted on informed consent. If I am mistaken, please enlighten me.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

thank you for that post. I will take it into consideration now.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

Thank you for this excellant clarifying post. You are correct..this is about choices..and I do agree he should not be paid,and certainly not with tax funds.

Your entire post is very articulate.

[bikerman]

Its collage with young adults not grade school I would hope the young adults can make up their own minds to attend or not attend Dr K.talks

[bikerman]

He said he wasnt going to do any of this again, where is the statement by him he wants to continue with his machines?

[ReignOfError]

Thanks. What the article doesn’t include is who’s paying the freight.

When I was in college, there was a $30 “activity fee” per semester per student, to be divvied up by the student government. With all the other costs, sixty bucks barely attracted any notice — but even with a modest 10,000 students, that’s 600 grand a year, every year.

UF is a much bigger school, and even if the fees are lower they’re playing with a much bigger budget. I don’t know that the university administration is paying for this appearance, other than having built the facility. My first guess would be that Kevorkian is getting paid by the SGA, which was elected by the few students who woke up early enough to vote, or frankly gave a good damn.

[rich8]

www.michaelschiavo.org

[wagglebee]

That is why everyone should read his book, Terri: The Truth. You just need a good barf bag.

I'm waiting until Costco has Michael's book and OJ Simpson's "If I Did It" book in a special two-pack for 99 cents.

[wagglebee]

I agree with everything except that I don't think that taxpayer funds should be used to pay Dr. Death to speak and I question the following:

My understanding is that Kevorkian acted on informed consent.

Many of his victims were simply depressed, a person suffering from severe depression is demonstrably incapable of giving informed consent about their future. There have also been reports that at least one of his victims tried to back out once the procedure was started and that Dr. Death did not allow it.

[wagglebee]

He said he wasnt going to do any of this again, where is the statement by him he wants to continue with his machines?

I am pretty sure the EVERY murderer who has ever been released from prison without serving their full term made a "promise" not to commit any more murders.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

wow...sad, but then Antioch College in the sixites donated their student fund to the black Panthers. ha. I beleive the college is now closed.

[Dante3]

Taxpayers should not pay for Dr. Death’s speech.