Posted on 07/31/2005 3:38:47 AM PDT by amdgmary
TALLAHASSEE - It was one of the shortest speeches of Charlie Crist's career, but as a campaign for governor unfolds, it may prove to be one of the most memorable.
Two weeks ago, the Republican attorney general and candidate for governor gave a late-night speech to a roomful of lawyers in Miami where he referred to the judges in the Terri Schiavo case as "heroes."
Crist insists he wasn't endorsing court rulings that prevented the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube from being reconnected, but critics view it differently. And by appearing to break his silence in the Schiavo case, Crist has sharpened the contrast between himself and Republican rival Tom Gallagher, who has said he favored government action to "prevent Terri's starvation."
At the dinner in Miami, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge George Greer and U.S. District Judge James Whittemore of Tampa were honored as jurists of the year by the Florida chapter of ABOTA, the American Board of Trial Advocates. The group champions judicial independence and its members are lawyers who represent both plaintiffs and defendants.
Greer is the judge who ordered Schiavo's feeding tube removed, rejecting a subpoena from Congress and pleas from Gov. Jeb Bush, and Whittemore also denied emergency requests to reinsert the tube in the weeks before Schiavo died March 31. Both men's decisions were later upheld by higher courts, and both were praised and vilified by opposing sides of the emotionally charged end-of-life case.
Crist said he was "proud" of both judges.
"You are heroes to all of us, and your defense of the judiciary and what is right is beyond admirable," Crist was quoted in the Daily Business Review, a Miami newspaper that provided the only news account of the July 15 event at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables.
In an interview, Crist did not dispute the quotations. Nor did he offer a view of whether he agreed with their decisions. Rather, he said, he praised them for fulfilling their constitutional duty to provide checks and balances against the other two branches of government.
"I try to say nice things about judges. I'm sure I was complimentary," said Crist, who as the state's chief legal officer often speaks at bar-related events. "I didn't talk about any specific case. ... It's important that those checks and balances exist. Our system of government needs to have that."
Crist's comments have resonated far beyond the Biltmore.
"Judge Greer is a poster child for everything that's wrong with the judiciary," said Gary Cass, executive director of the Center for Reclaiming America, a grass roots Christian political group in Fort Lauderdale that lists "sanctity of life" as one of its priorities and plans to form a political action committee.
"For Charlie Crist to hold that up as an example of good judicial practice concerns me," Cass said. "I think it was a mistake for Charlie to say that. I don't know how anybody can be happy about a woman being deprived food and water."
Rep. Dennis Baxley, the Republican from Ocala who sponsored legislation last spring to force the tube to be reconnected, said Crist's speech was revealing.
"I think it is one of those very important moments for us to know where he (Crist) stands," Baxley said. "I truly believe there's a lot of people out there who were sensitive to this case who are going to find those comments, and that association, very instructive. I'm understanding where people line up on this."
Baxley said that while Crist was "conspicuously absent" from the Schiavo debate in the Legislature, Gallagher sent Baxley a personal letter of support last spring. While activists in the Schiavo debate take aim at Crist, his Republican rival Gallagher is not.
"Tom's made his position very clear in the past. There's really no comment we're going to make on that," said David Johnson, a Gallagher adviser.
Polls show a majority of Americans agreed with the judges' decisions to order the removal of Schiavo's tube, as her husband, Michael, said she wanted. By a greater margin, polls show people were opposed to Congress' intervention in the case.
But to those who view the long-running Schiavo saga as a test case of support for the sanctity of life - like abortion - Greer and Whittemore are "judicial activists" who starved a woman to death.
Many of those people can vote in the Republican primary for governor in September 2006. Crist's stand on the Schiavo case could prove to be an asset if he wins the GOP nomination and faces a Democrat. But one Republican strategist said the damage has been done.
"Schiavo killed the Republicans. They've lost the women's vote," said Matt Towery, an ex-Republican legislator who now runs an Atlanta media and polling firm. "It's one of those turning points that you just can't get away from."
Cheryl Ford RN Comments: He "stuck by her," Kenny states?
Schiavo has been carry on in an adulterous relationship for over ten years and has fathered two illegitimate children. Immediately after Terri's unexplained tragedy, he had dated several other women.
Have the vows and definition of commitment and "sticking by" someone since changed in the last two decades? I don't think so!
It is clear that Michelle Kenny is a part of the ignorant clan who paid no attention to the true FACTS behind Terri's situation.
It should not come as a surprise to me that it would be the Florida Guardian Association and the ignorance of its keynote speaker, Kenneth Goodman, who would acknowledge a person like Michael Schiavo. Goodman and I were guest speakers on a Ft. Lauderdale radio talk show a few months back. I decided to use the opportunity to publicly question him about just how much he knew about the specifics of Terri's case.
When he could not appropriately respond to my questions on LIVE talk radio, stating he did not have the papers in front of him, it became clear to me that I was wasting my time speaking to a person who did not research the facts regarding Terri Schindler's case.
People like Goodman migrate to Florida because of the obvious ease they can make a living advocating for the death of the innocent and disabled. The only "PRIMITIVE" in my opinion, is the thinking of the University of Miami BIOETHICIST, Kenneth Goodman!
It still remains despicable that an organization such as The Florida Guardianship Association would have the audacity to publicly support the cruel murder of a human being, that they would go so far to organize an award for a person like Michael Schiavo!
I surely hope that all the people who wrote and supported Terri throughout her inhumane death will take the time to write and show just how many "THOUSANDS" there are who did not agree with what Michael did to Terri!
kgoodman@miami.edu
Tel: 305-243-5723,Fax: 305-243-6416
Mailman Center for Child Development,Suite 2050,P.O.B. 016960.(UM M-825),Miami FL 33101
FLORIDA STATE GUARDIANSHIP ASSOCIATION
P.O. Box 13978
Tallahassee, FL 32317
Email: executiveoffice@floridaguardians.com
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=47375&version=1&template_id=39&parent_id=21
From a paper in the Gulf region of the mid-east.
DR. ALAN KEYES ON FOX NEWS CHANNEL TONIGHT AT ll:00 pm EST. (Cal Thomas' show - topic was not specified).
Cheryl Ford sends this.
Click here: CBSNews.com / CBS News Video
http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/videoplayer/newVid/small_player/cbsnews_videoplayer.shtml?clip=/media/2005/08/05/video760734.wmv&sec=500202&vidId=500202&title=20-Year$@$Coma$@$Woman$@$Speaks&hitboxMLC=earlyshow
Coming Soon!
READ
Over 400 pages
Trafford Publishing: Our Fight4Terri
http://www.trafford.com/4dcgi/robots/05-1041.html
The first expose and sourcebook on the Terri Schindler-Schiavo case! Discover the true facts behind the most significant legal battle over constitutional rights of the disabled in history. Read the actual documents. Discover the dangers all Americans face with Terri's death!
Fight4Terri @aol.com
Theresa Marie Schindler
December 3, 1963 ~ March 31, 2005
Light a candle For Terri at her online Memorial Website
Memory-of.com - Memorial website in memory of Theresa Schindler (1963-2005)
http://theresa-schindler.memory-of.com/about.aspx
Visit: www.fight4terri.blogspot.com
Cheryl Ford, RN (Fight4Terri@aol.com) is not affiliated with any other group and works to protect the rights of the disabled community.
Cheryl Ford sends this.
Dear Friends of Terri:
As we all know, it is imperative for us to continue to show unity for the sanctity of life and for Terri. When the people in a state agency go out of their way to organize a banquet to honor Michael Schiavo for what he did to Terri, we know that we have some serious problems in our country.
Please, take just a few moments out of your day to call Elizabeth Langston, Account Executive of the Florida State Guardian Association at 850/322-0525 and ask her how a state organization can justify honoring a man who just starved and dehydrated his wife.
I am eager to post the response you receive from Elizabeth at the Fla Guardianship Association to the Fight4Terri blog, so please take a few moments to call her
at 850/322-0525 with your opinions.
Each of us can make a difference like we did when we brought in Congress on Easter weekend. Continue to allow the people who honor the criminal actions of the innocent and disabled to hear our voices. Together, we will make a difference!
See article below.
Please pass this email on to others and ask them to do the same.
Thank you so much,
Cheryl Ford RN
Fight4Terri@aol.com
Elizabeth Langston
Florida State Guardianship Association
Account Executive
P.O. Box 13978
Tallahassee, FL 32311
liz@floridaguardians.com
Posted on Fri, Aug. 05, 2005
Guardians laud Michael Schiavo for fulfilling wife's wishes
BY MAYA BELL
The Orlando Sentinel
DORAL, Fla. - (KRT) - He has been rebuked by the Vatican, castigated by Congress and slandered on the Internet, but Michael Schiavo was welcomed as a hero Friday by a state organization whose members make end-of-life decisions for people unable to make them for themselves.
The Florida State Guardianship Association bestowed its Guardian of the Year Award on Schiavo for carrying out his wife's wishes not to be kept alive artificially despite a drumbeat of withering criticism.
In a rare public appearance, Schiavo, 42, modestly accepted the award at the association's 18th annual conference at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa west of Miami.
"As you know," he said, "I'm not much of a speechmaker. I don't talk much. But on behalf of my wife Theresa, I thank you."
Association members, most of whom are appointed by judges to represent people who have been declared incapacitated, acknowledged Schiavo was a controversial choice and they anticipate a backlash. After all, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush joined world leaders from the president to the pope in aligning themselves with Bob and Mary Schindler, the couple who fought their son-on-law's effort to remove the feeding tube that kept their severely brain-damaged daughter alive for 15 years.
But, group members said, Michael Schiavo's unwavering commitment to honoring his wife's wishes in the face of public scrutiny and enmity embodied the professionalism and compassion with which court-appointed guardians quietly carry out their duties every day.
"We see a lot of situations where family steps away," said association president-elect Michelle Kenney, a care manager and professional guardian in Broward County. "He stuck by. He didn't walk away."
Added past president Joan Nelson Hook, an attorney from New Port Richey: "He was an ordinary guardian who carried out his duties in extraordinary ways."
News of the award brought the same swift reaction - surprise - from both sides of the right-to-die case that divided a family and a nation, but for wildly divergent reasons.
"Yikes! That took a lot of courage," said Bill Allen, director of the bioethics program at the University of Florida. "It would have been easier for them to whisper, `Atta boy!' privately and not take such a public stand."
"Oh, my God, that's offensive," said Brother Paul O'Donnell, a Franciscan friar who serves as the Schindler family spokesman. "Michael Schiavo ... basically let her rot."
State Rep. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, who pushed legislation limiting the circumstances under which artificial sustenance and hydration could be withdrawn, called the recognition "ironic."
"There were a lot of issues that raised some questions about his credibility to act in her (Terri Schiavo's) best interest," Baxley said.
But Kenneth Goodman, a University of Miami bioethicist and the keynote speaker at the conference said the record speaks for itself. He noted that Michael Schiavo, a one-time restaurant manager, became a nurse to better care for his wife and took her to California for experimental treatment after her unexplained 1990 collapse consigned her to a persistent vegetative state.
"And then he's maligned and vilified and condemned when he decides to get on with his private life," Goodman said. "Frankly, what he said his wife wanted is what most reasonable people want. It's primitive to believe that human consciousness is not important. What most of us value about life is cognition and communication and interaction. We don't value simply not being dead."
Yet, association officials made it clear it is their job to adopt such "primitive" views if the incapacitated person they are appointed to represent held them. Conversely, it is their job to reject treatment or life-prolonging measures if their ward would have chosen to do the same.
"That is our main mission. We stand in their shoes," said association president Barbara Reiser, a public guardian in Miami.
Deciphering what Terri Schiavo would have wanted was at the core of the once-private family dispute that launched unprecedented but ultimately unsuccessful efforts in the Florida Legislature and Congress to keep her alive. Her feeding tube was disconnected in March, and she died 13 days later at age 41.
Though she never wrote down her wishes in the event she became incapacitated, her husband said his wife made it clear in casual conversations: She never wanted to be kept alive artificially, unaware of her surroundings, dependent on others for her every need.
But her parents' vehemently disagreed, saying their daughter was a devout Roman Catholic who would choose life no matter how she had to live. They also questioned their son-in-law's motives, accusing him of wanting his wife dead so he could inherit a malpractice settlement he won in her behalf.
However, like the guardianship association, the courts repeatedly found that Michael Schiavo acted in his wife's interests and carried out his guardianship duties professionally and compassionately.
As wellwishers lined up Friday night to congratulate Schiavo, he said the diamond-cut crystal award was the first public recognition of his actions, and he was deeply gratified by what it represented.
"These people are part of the silent majority," he said. "When Terri's wish was finally carried out, I had thousands and thousands of letters saying, `We are with you. We believe in you. You did the right thing.' Thousands."
---
8mm
Don't he and Janet make a lovely couple in that 1st photo? I just love them all giving each other awards and you can bet they believe they are heroes just the same as some fireman who saves the life of someone from a fire. After all, they saved their own financial lives and kept their full employment legal racket from going down the drain while holding the lid on their bi-partisan criminal enterprise. Somebody should give Jeb Bush an award too. He withstood all the pressure to act like governor while talking out of the other side of his mouth. He certainly did his part in not blowing up their little scheme to defraud old people and the gov't.
Thanks for the ping!
So is Arlen Specter although when called on it during his last campaign, he claimed to not know a thing about Soros' backing and $. Arlen is liable to change his mind about forced exits now that he is closer to exiting. Nah...I forgot all that stuff is just for us little people, not for those who really count.
It doesn't occur to them that their heroes would be firemen who carry people into fires to burn them to death.
Which, btw, is probably even more painful than death by dehydration, but a lot quicker, and therefore more merciful. Mercy is an important part of mercy killing, although by no means essential. Killing is the main thing.
When the euthaNazis figure this out, they'll torch all the hospices, and if anyone gets out, they'll carry them back in. This even saves the cost of cremation.
Then they'll give each other Janet Reno Waco Holocaust awards.
(/sarcasm, but you probably figured that out.)
8mm
DORAL, Fla. - (KRT) - He has been rebuked by the Vatican, castigated by Congress and slandered on the Internet, but Michael Schiavo was welcomed as a hero Friday by a state organization whose members make end-of-life decisions for people unable to make them for themselves. The Florida State Guardianship Association bestowed its Guardian of the Year Award on Schiavo for carrying out his wife's wishes not to be kept alive artificially despite a drumbeat of withering criticism. In a rare public appearance, Schiavo, 42, modestly accepted the award at the association's 18th annual conference at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa west of Miami. "As you know," he said, "I'm not much of a speechmaker. I don't talk much. But on behalf of my wife Theresa, I thank you." Association members, most of whom are appointed by judges to represent people who have been declared incapacitated, acknowledged Schiavo was a controversial choice and they anticipate a backlash. After all, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush joined world leaders from the president to the pope in aligning themselves with Bob and Mary Schindler, the couple who fought their son-on-law's effort to remove the feeding tube that kept their severely brain-damaged daughter alive for 15 years. But, group members said, Michael Schiavo's unwavering commitment to honoring his wife's wishes in the face of public scrutiny and enmity embodied the professionalism and compassion with which court-appointed guardians quietly carry out their duties every day. "We see a lot of situations where family steps away," said association president-elect Michelle Kenney, a care manager and professional guardian in Broward County. "He stuck by. He didn't walk away." Added past president Joan Nelson Hook, an attorney from New Port Richey: "He was an ordinary guardian who carried out his duties in extraordinary ways." News of the award brought the same swift reaction - surprise - from both sides of the right-to-die case that divided a family and a nation, but for wildly divergent reasons. "Yikes! That took a lot of courage," said Bill Allen, director of the bioethics program at the University of Florida. "It would have been easier for them to whisper, `Atta boy!' privately and not take such a public stand." "Oh, my God, that's offensive," said Brother Paul O'Donnell, a Franciscan friar who serves as the Schindler family spokesman. "Michael Schiavo ... basically let her rot." State Rep. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, who pushed legislation limiting the circumstances under which artificial sustenance and hydration could be withdrawn, called the recognition "ironic." "There were a lot of issues that raised some questions about his credibility to act in her (Terri Schiavo's) best interest," Baxley said. But Kenneth Goodman, a University of Miami bioethicist and the keynote speaker at the conference said the record speaks for itself. He noted that Michael Schiavo, a one-time restaurant manager, became a nurse to better care for his wife and took her to California for experimental treatment after her unexplained 1990 collapse consigned her to a persistent vegetative state. "And then he's maligned and vilified and condemned when he decides to get on with his private life," Goodman said. "Frankly, what he said his wife wanted is what most reasonable people want. It's primitive to believe that human consciousness is not important. What most of us value about life is cognition and communication and interaction. We don't value simply not being dead." Yet, association officials made it clear it is their job to adopt such "primitive" views if the incapacitated person they are appointed to represent held them. Conversely, it is their job to reject treatment or life-prolonging measures if their ward would have chosen to do the same. "That is our main mission. We stand in their shoes," said association president Barbara Reiser, a public guardian in Miami. Deciphering what Terri Schiavo would have wanted was at the core of the once-private family dispute that launched unprecedented but ultimately unsuccessful efforts in the Florida Legislature and Congress to keep her alive. Her feeding tube was disconnected in March, and she died 13 days later at age 41. Though she never wrote down her wishes in the event she became incapacitated, her husband said his wife made it clear in casual conversations: She never wanted to be kept alive artificially, unaware of her surroundings, dependent on others for her every need. But her parents' vehemently disagreed, saying their daughter was a devout Roman Catholic who would choose life no matter how she had to live. They also questioned their son-in-law's motives, accusing him of wanting his wife dead so he could inherit a malpractice settlement he won in her behalf. However, like the guardianship association, the courts repeatedly found that Michael Schiavo acted in his wife's interests and carried out his guardianship duties professionally and compassionately. As wellwishers lined up Friday night to congratulate Schiavo, he said the diamond-cut crystal award was the first public recognition of his actions, and he was deeply gratified by what it represented. "These people are part of the silent majority," he said. "When Terri's wish was finally carried out, I had thousands and thousands of letters saying, `We are with you. We believe in you. You did the right thing.' Thousands." ---
Tel: 305-243-5723
Fax: 305-243-6416
Mailman Center for Child Development
Suite 2050
P.O.B. 016960
(UM M-825)
Miami FL 33101
P.O. Box 13978
Posted on Fri, Aug. 05, 2005
Guardians laud Michael Schiavo for fulfilling wife's wishes
The Orlando Sentinel
The first expose and sourcebook on the Terri Schindler-Schiavo case! Discover the true facts behind the most significant legal battle over constitutional rights of the disabled in history. Read the actual documents. Discover the dangers all Americans face with Terri's death!
Fight4Terri @aol.com
Theresa Marie Schindler
December 3, 1963 ~ March 31, 2005
Light a candle For Terri at her online Memorial Website
Memory-of.com - Memorial website in memory of Theresa Schindler (1963-2005)
http://theresa-schindler.memory-of.com/about.aspx
Visit: www.fight4terri.blogspot.com
Cheryl Ford, RN (Fight4Terri@aol.com) is not affiliated with any other group and works to protect the rights of the disabled community.
8mm
Thanks for the ping!
What little evidence exists of Terri's wishes, points to just to the opposite conclusion. And not many people would want to die in such a barbaric way.
While Terri was alive, Michael made her life as miserable as possible. I very much doubt Terri would have wanted her family treated the way Michael treated them.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45644
bump to WND re: Tom Delay Justice Sunday. post 269?
Terri surrounded by the men accountable for her untimely death.
Fla AG Crist, Judge James Whittemore, Fla Senator Jim King, DNC Howard Dean, jackbooted thug, Judge Greer. That's the actual photo of Crist and Whittemore from the Coral Gables awards ceremony. They don't look remorseful, they look ecstatic.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20050807/D8BR61DO2.html
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