Posted on 04/04/2005 12:24:14 PM PDT by Theodore R.
Zogby Poll: Americans Not in Favor of Starving Terri Schiavo
Polls leading up to the death of Terri Schiavo made it appear Americans had formed a consensus in favor of ending her life. However, a new Zogby poll with fairer questions shows the nation clearly supporting Terri and her parents and wanting to protect the lives of other disabled patients.
The Zogby poll found that, if a person becomes incapacitated and has not expressed their preference for medical treatment, as in Terri's case, 43 percent say "the law presume that the person wants to live, even if the person is receiving food and water through a tube" while just 30 percent disagree.
Another Zogby question his directly on Terri's circumstances.
"If a disabled person is not terminally ill, not in a coma, and not being kept alive on life support, and they have no written directive, should or should they not be denied food and water," the poll asked.
A whopping 79 percent said the patient should not have food and water taken away while just 9 percent said yes.
"From the very start of this debate, Americans have sat on one of two sides," Concerned Women for America's Lanier Swann said in response to the poll. One side "believes Terri's life has worth and purpose, and the side who saw Michael Schiavo's actions as merciful, and appropriate."
More than three-fourths of Americans agreed, Swann said, "because a person is disabled, that patient should never be denied food and water."
The poll also lent support to members of Congress to who passed legislation seeking to prevent Terri's starvation death and help her parents take their lawsuit to federal courts.
"When there is conflicting evidence on whether or not a patient would want to be on a feeding tube, should elected officials order that a feeding tube be removed or should they order that it remain in place," respondents were asked.
Some 18 percent said the feeding tube should be removed and 42 percent said it should remain in place.
Swann said her group would encourage Congress to adopt legislation that would federal courts to review cases when the medical treatment desire of individuals is not known and the patient's family has a dispute over the care.
"According to these poll results, many Americans do in fact agree with what we're trying to accomplish," she said.
The poll found that 49 percent of Americans believe there should be exceptions to the right of a spouse to act as a guardian for an incapacitated spouse. Only 39 percent disagreed.
When asked directly about Terri's case and told the her estranged husband Michael "has had a girlfriend for 10 years and has two children with her" 56 percent of Americans believed guardianship should have been turned over to Terri's parents while 37 percent disagreed.
(4/1/2005) - By Steven Ertelt, Life News
"Jeb was right IMO. The citizens will vote the buggers out."
What!? You lost me there, friend! The memory of Jeb Bush's abject cowardice and failure on this matter will redound to his everlasting infamy! He was the jerk who had his finger to the political wind and used the ersatz polls to justify his abysmal inaction to save Terri's life. The citizens may, indeed, "vote the buggers out", meaning the "Culture of Death" Democrats. But Jeb Bush, too, will never again be a serious Republican candidate for any higher office. I, for one, will never consider voting for this lily-livered idiot for any office! Pontius Pilate thought he was playing the political game pretty smart with his feigned "neutrality" during the trial of Jesus. But all the water in the world couldn't wash his hands clean of the crucifixion "affair".
This is how you and many others see it. However, there are plenty out there who do not. Bush is not a coward. If he was, he would not have taken the slings and arrows for years on this issue. We will see the citizens take back the juciary which, in a Republic, is how it should be. Bye.
Jeb Bush did not sit on the sidelines. Nor did he make his decision BASED on polls, he was merely saying that most people agreed WITH his position.
And in fact I believe most people do. I know I did. I don't want my elected representatives to violate court orders, even ones they find to be inaccurate.
He could have resigned and THEN done something, except once he resigned he would have had no power to do anything.
We republicans should be clear that we don't want precedent for executives to violate court orders based on their own feelings about a topic.
"I don't want my elected representatives to violate court orders, even ones they find to be inaccurate. He could have resigned and THEN done something, except once he resigned he would have had no power to do anything."
Your positions don't make a LICK of sense! Court orders based on erroneous judgments are themselves illegal and SHOULD be ignored by elected representatives, particularly elected executives. If the people have a problem with that, their redress is to impeach those they disagree with or vote to remove them at the next election. And the bit about resigning, then doing something after you left your post is totally ridiculous! The leftist liberal "judges" who committed this atrocity had no such trepidation. they pushed the envelope all the way, went for the whole hog, and WON! When will we see our Republican representatives finally willing to do the same?
Not as long as they defer to people like you, I dare say!
"A whopping 79 percent said the patient should not have food and water taken away while just 9 percent said yes."
KABOOM!
"We Republicans all KNEW the Democrat Dummies shot themselves in the foot on this issue and that once a poll asked the RIGHT QUESTIONS regarding murdering Terri, Americans would realize the travesty being done to her and involving Congress was RIGHT !!!!"
___________________________________________________________
Yup!
Thought you might be interested...
"A whopping 79 percent said the patient should not have food and water taken away while just 9 percent said yes."
Jeb Bush was the last man to turn his back on Terri and walk away. I WILL NEVER FORGET!!!!!!!!
Sliced up my RNC sustaining membership card and shipped it back to the RNC with a note. Re-registered Decline to State. The Republican Party can kiss me good-bye.
NEVER FORGET WHAT HAPPENED TO TERRI!!!!!!
"I, for one, will never consider voting for this lily-livered idiot for any office!"
Not me either, in the primaries, but if it's Jeb against the Wookie, I don't want the Wookie to win.
Further, while I'm irritated with the governor, I failed Terri too. I didn't research enough early on.
FReegards....
Yep! Rush mentioned that today. He said that if pollsters
ask the right questions, they get accurate results.
I will never forget, either. I will never view the Republicans in the same light again... I go back to Goldwater, for whatever that's worth.
We all have the potential to become Useless Eaters- a fall down the steps, a fender-bender, a small stroke... there are many ways to join their ranks. And then, who will speak for you?
Link Meister! Thank you. Linking it up to the Vast Life-Wing Conspiracy.
FReegards....
THE 'VAST LIFE-WING CONSPIRACY' AGAINST MICHAEL SCHIAVO [FR Link page]
It is the Democrats that live and die by the poll. Kerry would take a poll-a-minute. George Bush does what he thinks is right, poll or no poll.
Are you a member of....? THE 'VAST LIFE-WING CONSPIRACY' AGAINST MICHAEL SCHIAVO [FR Link page]
My crusade against the Death Cult is just beginning- I swear on the altar of God Almighty, I will expose and hector them until I breath no more.
They lacked the intelligence to ask their 'right' questions BEFORE the CRUEL and INHUMANE murder of Terri. So what GOOD is this cheap little poll of theirs, now that it's TOO LATE???
Please send copies of this article to Tom Delay and your Congressman!!!! It will help in efforts to obtain Justice for Terri and in efforts to fix the law.
If a disabled person...
|
|
| Don't kill her. |
Kill her by starvation dehydration |
| 79 percent | 9 percent |
Politicians should lead on the conviction of their principles, not the conniving of pollsters.
It's shameful and despicable that an innocent woman died a most brutal and agonizing death despite what that fiend, Felos, imagined because of the weakness of politicians more interested in their careers than their own souls.
It is interesting to note that the Zogby poll came out so late. Why?
Courts make erroneous decisions all the time. Nothing in our law allows the executive branch to ignore judicial decisions simply because the executive feels they are arrived at erroneously. Nor do you really want to live in a country where the executive gets to substitute his or her idea of what is right in place of a lawfully rendered court decision (as much as you wish it had happened in this case).
Charles
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