Posted on 03/20/2005 6:06:29 PM PST by Former Military Chick
Wow, I never heard that one before. That's pretty freeping damning, and all those who've posted in his defense should have some interesting replies to it.
I may have to swipe that for my signature. ;)
Broken links... very very troubling.
(then NO AMOUNT of money could prevent him from destroying the evidence.)
You make very good sense. I would disagree with you on the above, however, as I think if there is any evidence it would have been found after 15 years.
That would be about 5 years into Terri's illness, which would explain his remembering AFTER 7 years that Terri would have wanted to die instead! /sarcasm
Life insurence is the survivors money not the deseased money. So it is rightfully his money.
I don't buy this. I have seen the quotes that confirm what you are saying but I have dealt with many nursing homes and hospitals. For a facility to deny oral feedings to someone with the ability to swallow would take a tremendous conspiracy. Looking at her videos I would think she's a very high aspiration risk.
Well, you have me there, I've been so busy with FR and my real life that I haven't read the text of the bill yet. Is the bill that is proposed the one that was specific to Terri's case or the more general one that has been debated? It is still my feeling that because there was no living will that the decisions regarding her welfare should err on the side of continued life. MS has had every opportunity to allow others to take on the "burden" of caring for Terri, so its not like he would suffer having to deal with the situation. I guess his single mindedness in his dealings with Terri, her care, her family etc. is what makes me question his motives.
You are right about the government staying out of our lives. But the government in its role of perserving the rights and liberties of its people is responsible for perserving the same for people who can't fight for themselves. None of this would be an issue if there had been a living will. Up until recently, and with no changes to the law, if there were no living will it was assumed all measures would be taken to perserve life. Its sad that this is no longer the case.
>"Why don't you review her medical record and see if you can come up with an innocent explanation of her multiple bone fractures across various parts of her body..."<
- I posted that doc on #378
It just takes a high aversion to liability. There is a difference between being unable to eat, and being unable to eat safely enough to satisfy the conditions of insurance, and this patient falls between the two thresholds.
That's a huge assumption. I cant believe how people ,who are usually very logical fact based and articulate on FR are now completly bonkers with emotion here and have clouded their judgement because of it .
Sadly the link is broken =(
There is not a single person here that can honestly say that we know for sure that this is not exactly what Terri said she would want. The only we know for certain is that she didn't put it in writting.
Correction, I see it now... for some reason it looked like a broken image to me, odd.
You stated your post the very way I feel but have been unable to put into words. Life is so very precious.
Sorry, I don't follow this.
Absolutely.
Civilized people don't put others to death because their wishes are ambiguous. Valuing human life is the core of what distinguishes us from savages. When you don't know, you are compelled to err on the side of life. Once someone is dead there is no do-over.
Oct 20, 2003 For over 6 years, I have struggled with the Schindlers in court. On Wednesday, I joined them in grief. I understand what the Schindlers are going through at this time. I feel the same loss. For years after this happened to Terri, I tried desperately to find a cure for her. I went from one doctor to another. Almost all of them told me there was no possibility she would recover. Any doctor that gave me a glimmer of hope that some new treatment or therapy would work was given free reign with Terri. I would do anything to make her well. I took Terri to California. I stayed with her while doctors performed an experimental procedure to implant electrodes in her brain to stimulate its function. I spent months working with her - hopeful of a cure. Months later, the doctors told me the electrodes were not working. I took Terri to Mediplex, in Bradenton, Florida, which is a residential rehabilitation facility that specializes in brain injuries. She spent months there in intensive physical, speech, and occupational therapy and testing. Finally, the doctors and therapist told me and the Schindlers they could do nothing more for her. I hired a private duty aide 8 hours a day to take Terri on outings to parks and museums trying to stimulate her - looking for any sign of life, any flicker of hope. There was none - ever. Over the years, I had three swallowing tests performed on Terri in the hope that some of the therapies would allow her to be weaned off the feeding tube. The test all showed no change, and I was advised she could not swallow food. Even now, the nursing home staff says that sometimes Terri gags and chokes on the moisture from the swabs they use to moisten her lips. The reports you heard from nursing home aides that Terri was responsive years ago are not true. I would give anything if they were. Those aides cared for Terri during the time that I was desperately seeking a cure for her. I was so frustrated that I could not help Terri. I am sure that I was sometimes unkind to the aides - even shouted at them. This was not because I wanted Terri dead, but because I desperately wanted her alive. I blamed myself because I could not bring her back. It seemed to me, during that time, that the aides never did enough for Terri. Some days they did not put her makeup on. I would storm into the nursing home insisting that they do so. I knew Terri always wanted to look her best. Sometimes, the aides did not get her dressed and sitting up until late in the morning. They did not always get her hair combed. They sometimes failed to give her vitamins and medications on time. At each of those failures, I became enraged and lashed out. I felt so helpless. Each small infraction reminded me how powerless I was to really help Terri. I admit that I yelled at the aides and I am now deeply sorry for that behavior. Much like the Schindlers now, I stubbornly resisted and suggestion that Terri was in a persistent vegetative state and would never get better. I never wanted Terri to die. I still don't. After more than seven years of desperately searching for a cure for Terri, the death of my own mother helped me realize that I was fooling myself. More important, I was hiding behind my hope, and selfishly ignoring Terri's wishes. I wanted my wife to be with me so much that I denied her true condition. Terri told me on several occasions before this happened that she would not want to live in her current condition. If we had been older, I am sure she would have signed a living will making it clear that she did not to be kept alive on tubes and machines. She never had the chance. That left me to carry out her wishes. It has been hard. In fact, it is the hardest thing I have ever done. In the end, I did what I believe Terri would have wanted me to do. Some people do not agree with the decisions the court made to remove Terri's feeding tube. I struggle to accept it myself. But I know in my heart that it is right, and it is what Terri wants. There is no longer any realistic hope of Terri's recovery. Perhaps there never was, but I had to try - just as the Schindlers have tried. The reality is that Terri left us 13 years ago, and none of us can bring her back. Terri's parents and family may visit with her as much as they choose in the days to come. I, and my friends and relatives, will be there as well to spend time with Terri, as we all grieve. Please pray for us all. Statement By Michael Schiavo
Last Wednesday, my wife's feeding tube was removed.
This story can be found at: http://news.tbo.com/news/MGA9DXB31MD.html
so why not err on the side of life? death is irreversable.
if you screw up, you can't take it back. Let her get well enough to speak again (she was speaking when put into the hospice), and let her say what she wants..
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