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Are Some Now Understanding What Happened to Terri Schiavo Was Wrong?
Life News ^ | 10/16/07 | Wesley J. Smith

Posted on 10/16/2007 3:42:23 PM PDT by wagglebee

Wesley J. Smith is a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute and an attorney for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide. His latest book is Consumer's Guide to a Brave New World.

I think Bobby Schindler is right.

There have been a lot of stories of late about how supposedly vegetative patients could understand, or of "miraculous" awakenings by people who doctors were sure would never react consciously again.

Bobby, Terri Schiavo's brother, has noticed that whatever the condition of the patient whose story is being told, the reports all have a common sub theme--the awakening, comprehension, etc. has nothing to do with Terri, meaning it was right to dehydrate her to death.

It is as these reports, to quote Shakespeare, "doth protest too much," as if there is a subliminal realization that a terrible injustice was done to her.

The latest almost unbelievable example is in an otherwise interesting and important (and long) piece in the New Yorker, byline Jerome Groopman. After describing how supposedly unconscious people have been misdiagnosed, the author quotes an unnamed neuroscientist about Terri.

From the story:

A neuroscientist showed me a video on the Internet of Terri Schiavo, the Florida woman who spent fifteen years in what most doctors agree was a vegetative state--tests revealed almost no activity in her cortex--and whose death, in 2005, provoked fierce debate over the rights of severely brain-damaged patients. (Schiavo died after the Supreme Court rejected her parents' appeal of a judge's decision approving her husband's request that her feeding tube be removed. An autopsy showed extensive brain damage.) In the video, a man's voice can be heard praising Schiavo for opening her eyes in response to his instructions, and the neuroscientist told me that he was impressed until he muted the sound. "With the sound off, it is clear that her movements are random," the neuroscientist said. "But, with the voice-over, it is easy to make a misdiagnosis. (My emphasis.)

The above stills are from the video in question. It deeply touched my heart and it is seared forever in my memory. In that video, Terri is asked by the examiner to open her eyes. At first, nothing. Then, within ten or so seconds, her eyes flicker, she opens them, and then opens them so wide her forehead wrinkles. It is clearly an intentional response to the question.

But if you turn the sound off, there is no question to hear--and voila, her opening her eyes with clear intention can now be dismissed as merely "random movement."

But a random movement under those circumstances would be to move her head from side to side or lick or lips. But when she opened her eyes, and so intently, precisely as requested, you have to work hard to make it "random." So, to make sure we don't see the terrible wrong that was done to her, we just turn off the sound.

As I said, unbelievable. But do read the larger piece. It is well worth the time.



TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: crybaby; euthanasia; moralabsolutes; moveon; prolife; terrischiavo; wesleyjsmith; wesleysmith
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Bobby, Terri Schiavo's brother, has noticed that whatever the condition of the patient whose story is being told, the reports all have a common sub theme--the awakening, comprehension, etc. has nothing to do with Terri, meaning it was right to dehydrate her to death.

All the culture of death really cares about is killing the innocent.

1 posted on 10/16/2007 3:42:28 PM PDT by wagglebee
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To: cgk; Coleus; cpforlife.org; narses; 8mmMauser

Pro-Life Ping


2 posted on 10/16/2007 3:44:57 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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To: 230FMJ; 49th; 50mm; 69ConvertibleFirebird; Aleighanne; Alexander Rubin; An American In Dairyland; ..
Moral Absolutes Ping!

Freepmail wagglebee or little jeremiah to subscribe or unsubscribe from the moral absolutes ping list.

FreeRepublic moral absolutes keyword search
[ Add keyword moral absolutes to flag FR articles to this ping list ]


3 posted on 10/16/2007 3:45:40 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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To: wagglebee

Terri was brutally starved to death, The was no decent reason to do this.


4 posted on 10/16/2007 3:46:47 PM PDT by nmh (Intelligent people recognize Intelligent Design (God) .)
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To: BykrBayb; floriduh voter; Sun; MHGinTN; Mr. Silverback; bjs1779

Ping


5 posted on 10/16/2007 3:47:19 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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To: wagglebee

The moral thing to do would have been to try to feed and hydrate her by spoon. If she had survived like that...a natural survival....then it would have been above reproach.

But the system refused her loved ones the chance to try.


6 posted on 10/16/2007 3:47:47 PM PDT by xzins (If you will just agree to murder your children, we can win the presidency)
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To: wagglebee

7 posted on 10/16/2007 3:50:39 PM PDT by ElkGroveDan (Take the wheel, Fred.)
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To: xzins

Her dirtbag husband wanted her to die as quickly as possible.


8 posted on 10/16/2007 3:52:43 PM PDT by Past Your Eyes (Some people are too stupid to be ashamed.)
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To: xzins

They tried (I think Judge Greer eventually backed down) to deny the Schindler’s family priest the right to give her a crumb of a Communion wafer and a drop of wine when he administered Last Rites. They detained at gunpoint a ten or eleven year old boy who tried to bring her a bottle of water. It was inhumane beyond belief.


9 posted on 10/16/2007 3:53:23 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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To: ElkGroveDan
I still say that Michael Schiavo looks like a young Stalin.


10 posted on 10/16/2007 3:55:03 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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To: wagglebee

Yeah. That’s a good one.


11 posted on 10/16/2007 4:00:19 PM PDT by ElkGroveDan (Take the wheel, Fred.)
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To: ElkGroveDan
Just WHAT are you insinuating with that PIC, Dan?
12 posted on 10/16/2007 4:09:32 PM PDT by cpforlife.org (A Catholic Respect Life Curriculum is available at KnightsForLife.org)
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To: Coleus; nickcarraway; narses; Mr. Silverback; Canticle_of_Deborah; TenthAmendmentChampion; ...
Terri PING….
Please Freepmail me if you want on or off my Pro-Life Ping List.


13 posted on 10/16/2007 4:11:04 PM PDT by cpforlife.org (A Catholic Respect Life Curriculum is available at KnightsForLife.org)
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To: nmh
Yes. An American citizen who committed no crime, was not convicted of any crime was subjected to cruel and unusual punishment of the type reserved for priests at Nazi death camps.

I could not at the time, nor now in retrospect, believe this barbarous sentence was given by an American judge to an innocent woman. It is too bad that impeachment has developed such a bad rap. It should be used frequently whenever judges violate clear Constitutional principles.

14 posted on 10/16/2007 4:11:18 PM PDT by Jacquerie (Constitutional Law is too important to be left to black-robed leftists.)
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To: wagglebee

How in Gods name this country has reached the point where we starve a couples daughter instead of letting them care for her is beyond me. Disgraceful!


15 posted on 10/16/2007 4:12:13 PM PDT by ontap (Just another backstabbing conservative)
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To: wagglebee; P-Marlowe

On March 31, 2005 the Bush administration sowed the wind by allowing the death of Terri Schiavo. They have since reaped the whirlwind.

If it had been King David, the prophet Nathan would have told of a man who had a crippled child, abed in Africa with terrible disease. He would have told of a despot ruler who refused to help. The President would have demanded that billions be sent.

And Nathan would have cried, “Thou art the man.”


16 posted on 10/16/2007 4:13:42 PM PDT by xzins (If you will just agree to murder your children, we can win the presidency)
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To: cpforlife.org

Wife killers, all.


17 posted on 10/16/2007 4:13:46 PM PDT by ElkGroveDan (Take the wheel, Fred.)
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To: wagglebee

In my experience, the majority of liberals do not KNOW what happened to Terri Schiavo and cannot be bothered to learn the details, even when you try and tell them.

They only understand that the majority of Republicans and Christians wanted the decision about her fate to respect Life, her family and the Law.

Therefore- the natural Liberal position could only be contrary to this.

And by fomenting lies as to her actual physical state and what SHE really wanted, they then stick to there sanctimonious fraudulent moral high ground.


18 posted on 10/16/2007 4:19:04 PM PDT by DanielRedfoot ("Contrarianism" is Creativity for the Untalented)
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To: xzins

The culture of death would have seen King Solomon’s suggestion about cutting the baby in half as a reasonable solution.


19 posted on 10/16/2007 4:19:38 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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To: DanielRedfoot

And yet less than a year later, they tried to use Christopher Reeve’s death as “proof” that the pro-life movement didn’t care about the disabled.


20 posted on 10/16/2007 4:21:22 PM PDT by wagglebee ("A political party cannot be all things to all people." -- Ronald Reagan, 3/1/75)
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