Posted on 03/18/2005 3:32:37 PM PST by BobS
The case of Terri Schiavo raises complex issues. Yet in instances like this one, where there are serious questions and substantial doubts, our society, our laws, and our courts should have a presumption in favor of life. Those who live at the mercy of others deserve our special care and concern. It should be our goal as a nation to build a culture of life, where all Americans are valued, welcomed, and protected - and that culture of life must extend to individuals with disabilities.
Good Lord. Shades of Clinton. The boys at the BATF are going to be pissed they weren't invited to the party.
First off, let me say, that I am appalled that Terri is having her feeding tube pulled, while, at least to me, there is no clear and convincing evidence that indicates this is what she would wish...her husband says one thing, her mom and dad and siblings say another thing...where there is doubt, one should always opt for life...
Having worked in nursing homes for several years, I have taken care of several young patients, who really were in a PVS...now I am not a doctor, but my own personal experience shows me, that those I knew to be in true PVS states, do not resemble Terri in the least...from the small film clips and pictures I have seen of Terri, she responds, she smiles, she tracks with her eyes, she laughs, she seems to enjoy her life so much, regardless of the physical limitations on her in her current state...
None of the PVS patients I ever cared for, could do any of the things Terri appears to do...they never responded to any outside stimuli, they never tracked with their eyes, they never laughed, they never smiled...and while taking care of them, I always had to note if they ever did any of those things, and chart on them...all of their movements were random, if they did appear to track me with their eyes, it was very brief, and most likely simply a random tracking...
On the other hand I have cared for many young people who were disabled, either from birth, or from some other cause such an accident....these were disabled people, disabled both mentally and phyically...many of them were tube fed..they loved life, they responded to life, they wanted to continue their life...
Having said this, I would like tho, to comment on something else...I am really saddened, that so many poster, not anyone necessarily on this thread, but on all the threads that have been going on since this whole sad situation has begun...
First of all, I sense, that some folks out there, love calling Michael Shiavos children, with his girlfriend, lots of names...these children have nothing to do with this...yesterday, on a thread someone was chastized for calling these children "bastards", and they responded that was the correct name for them, and justifying this by using the dictionnary meaning...however, I dont believe these folks are using "bastard" in the dictionary sense...they are using it to be derogatory, and its just plain nasty and mean...these are innocent children, innocent like Terri...they have no fight in this, they are victims of what is going on around them...if someone wants to continue denigrating them, then I feel sorry for you, you are a sad, pitiful person, to get a thrill by calling innocent children names...its unnecessary to call them 'bastards', we all know they have been born out of wedlock, big deal...they are still innocent..
And something else bothers me...there are some folk who seem to be hinting that if Terri is allowed to starve to death and dehydrate to death, that all other people in nursing homes, and in hospitals, and in home care, are going to all have their tubes pulled as well..that is such nonsense...people act as if there are roving bands of killer doctors and nurses and judges, who will run roughshod over every health care center in America, pulling feeding tubes, and pulling ventilators...that is not what this case is about...
Its about who has the right to say whether or not a feeding tube should be pulled from someone who cannot speak for themself...the husband says one thing, the mother and father and siblings say another...they are all trying to speak on Terris behalf because she cannot speak on her own...that is why this whole case has blossomed...
If there is a family, where one member has a feeding tube, and the whole family agrees to keep it in, ,there is not going to be anyone who will pull it out...and if that same family agrees it should be pulled, there will be no one who will demand that it be kept in...I really dont like the fringe element, acting as if Terris tube is pulled, that everyone in America on a feeding tube, is going to be assaulted by 'killer' docs and nurses and judges...
And another thing...yesterday someone on a thread said that Michael Shiavo does not honor Terris Catholic religion because he is going to have her cremated...Huh?...either that person is misinformed, or is deliberately lying...both scenarios are really poor...because the Catholic Church does allow cremation...
Clearly, I believe that Terris tube should have been left in...she just appears to be a lovely woman who enjoys her life, who loves her visits with her family, who wishes to live...
But I frankly detest name calling where its done just for a thrill, where those who are disabled are being frightened into believing that some menacing unknown person will come in the middle of the night, and discontinue their tube feedings, and wonder why anyone persists in presenting misinformation, or outright lies...
I suppose I will get flamed ...so be it...flame away...just remember I am on the side of life, for Terri, her life for as long as she wants to live it...and she appears to want to live it for a long time...
But name calling, misinformation, lies, and frightening innocent people is disgusting...
He's a woman - and a respected poster here. Just, sadly, I think off base on this.
Had lunch (Ridgewood BBQ - Piney Flat, Tennessee) wwith a mate today. On the short drive, I asked him if he had kept up with the Terri story.
He said, "a little."
The he said, "When my daddy was dying, we had some hard times..." His story was that his dad was comatose, and I think they may have quit feeding him. I did not press for details.
I think he knew there was something quite right about his daddy's passing. And, I think that a lot of folks are not real clear about what is right or wrong in situations like this.
I am not a Catholic, but they have the definitive teaching about this.
You pick your side I'll pick mine.
It's called compassion. Something those on the left are severely lacking in.
Not choosing sides, just stating the facts.
She hasn't. Even Anton Scalia, the most Conservative of the 9 USSC judges, said she has not been denied from the state courts on up due process.
Here's a fact; an innocent woman is being starved to death because she's disabled in a state where the state Constitution specifically says disability can't be a consideration in the right to life.
This problem needs to be dealt with at the state level.
You mean, change the laws to suit this case and then, if a court rules that one down, then change another law?
Is that what you're saying?
They ignored it. Now it's a federal case.
Many people think that any means justifies the ends they desire. It's really a bad idea. If the people of Florida, their legislature and their courts can't get it right, I don't see why we should hastily enact some federal law. I don't want to see her suffer and die, either, but this is NOT a matter for the WH. ANY WH.
The whole 'consistent' question. I would like to understand the 'consistency'. And I would prefer not to go back to the Elian threads and read all of that. So:
1. On which side of the 'send Elian home' controversy did you fall?
2. The 'jack booted thugs' everyone is talking about. I know who they are talking about in the Elian case. In this case, is it the same guys going in and pulling her out of the care center, or are these 'jack booted thugs' all wearing white lab coats or long black robes?
I saw the same thing on tv today.
Two head scans.
The one on the right side looks dismal, and that's what you posted.
But...there are more scans available TODAY, to figure it out.
I thought he should be with his father.
And I don't know what the rest of your question means.
Apparently not, since SCOTUS has refused to hear it thereby refusing to overturn the FLSC decision that says Terri's Law is unconstitutional.
Why shouldn't the will of the people in a society be expressed through its laws? And why shouldn't we seek to form a more perfect union?
You mean, "living laws?"
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